OCTOBER 2013
HIGHTECH HIGHTOUCH HIGHPOINT www.RetailerNOWmag.com
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INSIDE
12.
HighTech HighTouch HighPoint
featuresNOW 14.
Evolution of the Educated Consumer
18.
Furniture Impossible—Showroom Makeovers
22.
Embracing the Tech Age
26.
An Inside Look at Online Sales
28.
A Visit With the Board
32.
Social Media Tactics to Increase Sales
yourVOICE 12.
Retailer2Retailer/Inspired Reading
13.
Roving Reporter Tupelo Furniture Market
54.
Getting to Know the NextGen
58. Fresh Perspectives Word of Mouth 2.0 62.
What's Selling Now
64.
Community Today Technology-Assisted Sales
count onIT 06.
From the Association President Crystal Ball
08.
From the Editor Showroom of the Future
10.
TechNOW
35.
Market Time at High Point What's Happening in the RRC
49.
Membership Marketplace
61.
Product Focus Organic Mattresses
HighTech•HighTouch•HighPoint On the cover: Inside Gallery1 in the Atrium furniture mall in Nova Scotia.
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OC TOBER | 2013
1
Surya in the new Mercedes Showroom Images by Ransom Snelling of Wesley Cadle, Inc.
POINT MARKET 35 HIGH OCTOBER 19-24, 2013
count onIT 67.
Quick-Fire Marketing New Media Best Practices
36.
High Point Seminars Education in the RRC
69.
Industry Scoop
40.
High Point Vendors
77.
Government Relations
47.
Vendors Map
78.
Industry Calendar
80.
The Now List
Read Last Month's Issue— Get the app RetailerNOW!
A few fun ottomans from Surya. 2
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@Market
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RetailerNOW
What we are so passionate about. . .
To have the courage to pursue purposeful dialogues that challenge conventional thinking, to engage and entertain our readers by delivering content that creates a fervent following ready to change the landscape of our industry. RetailerNOW is the magazine for today’s home furnishings professional. Developed for a specialized community, RetailerNOW brings a unique editorial focus on progressive and relevant issues concerning the home furnishings industry in the retailer’s voice, with a focus on issues impacting retailers NOW.
Published by the North American Home Furnishings Association 500 Giuseppe Court, Suite 6 Roseville, CA 95678 800.422.3778 Publication Staff Jennifer Billock Editor jennifer@retailerNOWmag.com Lisa Tilley Art Director lisa@retailerNOWmag.com
Contact Information:
Mailing – Editorial: 500 Giuseppe Ct., Suite 6
Tim Timmons Associate Publisher tim@retailerNOWmag.com
Roseville CA 95678 Mailing – Advertising
Michelle Nygaard Sales Executive michelle@retailerNOWmag.com
500 Giuseppe Ct., Suite 6 Roseville CA 95678 Online: retailerNOWmag.com Phone: Editorial: (800) 422-3778 Advertising: (800) 422-3778 Social: Facebook.com/retailerNOW
Cindi Williams Business Development cindi@retailerNOWmag.com
Twitter.com/retailerNOW Pinterest.com/retailerNOW
Editorial Collaborators Andrew Tepperman Tepperman's Windsor, ON
Subscription: $70/year RetailerNOW, ISSN# 2166-5249, is published monthly (except March and December) by the North American Home Furnishings Association, 500 Giuseppe Court, Ste 6, Roseville, CA 95678. Application to Mail at the Periodicals Postage Prices is Pending at Roseville, CA and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Please address changes to: RetailerNOW, The North American Home Furnishings Association, 500 Giuseppe Court, Ste 6, Roseville CA 95678. If you would like to stop receiving RetailerNOW, please send an email to unsubscribe@retailerNOWmag.com. If you would like to only receive an electronic version of RetailerNOW, please send an email to gogreen@retailerNOWmag.com. © 2012 North American Home Furnishings Association. Published by the North American Home Furnishings Association. Material herein may not be reproduced, copied or reprinted without prior written consent of the publisher. Acceptance of advertising or indication of sponsorship does not imply endorsement of publisher or the North American Home Furnishings Association. The views expressed in this publication may not reflect those of the publisher, editor or the North American Home Furnishings Association, and North American Retail Services Corp. Content herein is for general information only; readers are encouraged to consult their own attorney, accountant, tax expert and other professionals for specific advice before taking any action.
4
Magazine of the North American Home Furnishings Association
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Carol Bell Contents Interiors Tucson, AZ Donny Hinton Colortyme Gaffney, SC Rick Howard Sklar Furnishings Boca Raton, FL Travis Garrish Forma Furniture Fort Collins, CO
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North American Home Furnishings Association Sharron Bradley CEO sbradley@NAHFA.org Mary Frye EVP mfrye@NAHFA.org Executive Committee Chair Howard Haimsohn Lawrance Contemporary President Rick Howard Sklar Furnishings President Elect Marty Cramer Cramer’s Home Furnishings Vice President Steve Kidder Vermont Furniture Galleries Secretary/Treasurer Paul Sanford Jerome’s Furniture Store SHFA President Britt Sams Sams Furniture SEHFA President Wogan S. Badcock III W.S. Badcock Corp.
GE Capital
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Credit is extended by GE Capital Retail Bank © 2013 General Electric Company. All Rights Reserved
President's Message
from the president
Crystal Ball? Are there changes in our industry? You bet there are! Is this the end of bricks and mortar retail as we know it today? Absolutely not! Today we not only need a great showroom with professional, well-trained staff and wonderful products to appeal to our clients but we also need to utilize the latest technology. This technology will help attract new clients, draw them into the showroom and inform them once they are there. Tools like iPads, tablets and smart phones are being used more and more to help designers communicate with their clients. Information from product catalogues, price lists, SKU options, color options and inventory availability engages our customers in the design process while they are actually sitting in a room setting in our store or in their own homes for a house call. We also need to have a comprehensive website that has helpful information, products, room settings, blogs, design tips, room planners and lots of inspiration. People want to immerse themselves in their project and have time to digest what they are looking at, and perhaps what else you offer, in the privacy of their home. If you have a wish list button, this also helps so they can collect their ideas and share them with you later. A user-friendly website is essential in order to stay with the times. We need to make our websites virtual showrooms and a place where our customers can be educated. For the client that has already looked at everything and tested it in our showroom, the option to order online is key to closing the sale. Customers today want the option of browsing and buying on their time, at their convenience. Rick Howard, President North American HFA
Our industry needs to perfect the fulfillment side of e-commerce and have the logistics in place to work within specific trading areas. For those of us that do not have this figured out, we had better do it. Each year statistics tell us more and more people are purchasing online and unless we want to become a statistic, we must make this service available to our clients. So what does the future retailer look like? The best furniture retailer will have a fabulous showroom, a unique customer experience, talented designers, the latest technology and a great online presence. Their website will inform, educate and have the ability to allow the customer to both plan and purchase in a user-friendly way. Personal service will be extremely important, just like it is today. Each of us must create our future and put all the elements together. How well we do that will determine our success. If you have not already immersed yourself in this process ... start now!
Rick Howard
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Editor’s Message
from the editor Tillandsia Purple
Absinthe Green
Rhubarb
Provincial Blue
Jennifer's Fall Pantone Picks
Showroom of the Future Did anyone else here ever watch “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” on NBC? I loved that show. One of my favorite skits was when Conan and Andy Richter would dress up in futuristic outfits and predict how the world would be “in the year 2000.” Here’s one of my favorite musings from the show: “In the year 2000, it will be revealed that the U.S. Supreme Court is just a regular court with sour cream and tomatoes.” This may all be in jest, but it illustrates a very real thing all retailers need to do: Look towards the future. Shopper habits are changing by the day. We need to anticipate what’s coming next and be ready for it. If we resist current and emerging technology, we lose our place in the industry. So what do we do? Read articles. Look at studies. Learn about the emerging tech generation and figure out how to satisfy them. This issue is packed with tips, tricks and advice to help you along your path. Whether it’s the basics of having an effective website or social media campaign, or more intense issues like combating showrooming or moving to a completely online store, we’ve got the knowledge you need to reach the next level. In other news, if you’ve been watching our Facebook or Twitter feeds, you’ll know that we’re currently on a “where are we now” campaign. Here’s a great shot of RetailerNOW out on display at Sofas4Less in San Francisco: Thanks for sharing, keep those pics coming!
(224) 627-3288 jennifer@retailerNOWmag.com @retailerNOW RetailerNOW!
What I’m Loving XL Cork, a designer and retailer based out of England, is able to make every day feel like a festive occasion with these giant champagne cork side tables. Don’t you think the tables would look so lovely with a couple mimosas sitting on top? Cheers!
Follow other products I love on pinterest.com/retailerNOW 8
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kathyireland.com Nourison Industries 5 Sampson Street, Saddle Brook, NJ 07663 路 201.368.6900 / www.nourison.com High Point Showroom: IHFC Building, IH101, High Point, NC 27260 路 336.841.6900
Tech
TechNOW
What technology are you using in your store? Let us know at jennifer@retailerNOWmag.com!
Cool Apps
Good to Know Here’s even more of a reason to make sure your store has a thorough website: Your customers can Google Image Match you. This Google functionality allows users to take a picture of your furniture, upload it to the search engine and search for similar images. It’s a new way of showrooming. If your furniture shows up on their search by a store with a better price, guess who will get the sale? Battle this by having multiple images of your products on your website, and utilize SEO best practices to ensure you’re first in the search.
30/30 Put some power behind your to-do list with the 30/30 task manager. Plan your daily list, input it in the app and set a time limit for each item. When time is up, 30/30 moves you along to the next task on the list, so you never lose track of exactly what you need to be doing. And don’t worry—you can schedule in coffee breaks too. Free; available for Apple.
What is SEO? SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. Basically, it is the practice of using certain words and word combinations that people search for frequently (called keywords) on specific pages of your website. When those keywords go through a search engine, your site will show up early in the search results. For a good, visual explanation of this tactic, read the comic at www. redevolution.com/seo-explained.
Unstuck Are you suffering from a mental block, stopping your productivity in its tracks? Unstuck is here for you. Based on a series of questions about how you feel during your mental blockage, the app will tell you why you may be feeling that way and offers solutions so you can move forward with your day. Free; available for Apple.
Tweet Tech You’re updating your Twitter account every day, but views are still low. We’ve all been there! Soon you will be able to make sure your tweets are getting to the right people every time. Twitter is planning to unveil a new functionality by the end of the year allowing retailers to geo-target their promoted tweets. It’s a new form of advertising for the social media giant. With this functionality, anyone who opens the mobile Twitter app while within a certain distance from your store will see your marketing and advertising tweets. Given the amount of people on Twitter every day, the instant reach could be significant!
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MindNode Manage your ideas and plans better with MindNode. This mindmapping app will help you stay on track by creating streamlined visuals and flowcharts so you can see and organize your thoughts with more precision. $9.99; available for Apple. What apps do you use to help run your store? Let us know at: jennifer@retailerNOWmag.com.
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INSPIRED Selection Location Amenities
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Innovation
Your Voice
Retailer2Retailer
Q.
What is the most important step in the path to closing the sale?
A: Stock availability is important to closing the sale. We ensure the right stock is available in the right quantities at the
right time. The other part is reputation. When you have a positive reputation in the community and a customer has the choice of purchasing a similar item from another store, how you are perceived can be the tipping point. When the consumer already feels a hint of trust in dealing with you, it definitely helps with the closing. —Andrew Tepperman;
Tepperman’s; Ontario, Canada
A: Being persistent in trying to engage the customer, gaining their trust so they will open up and talk about their home
and lifestyle. So many shoppers claiming they are “just looking” or “they will know it when they see it” in an effort to be left alone can be extremely frustrating. The sales associate that grants the customer’s wish to be left alone is basically giving up on the opportunity to really help the customer. The sales associate should continue try to start up a conversation without seeming pushy. They should keep an eye on the customer as they browse and re-approach as often as they can with interesting information and never ask “do you have any questions for me?” Once you have them engaged, you can proceed with learning what they need and want.
Equally as important is asking for the sale. Too many salespeople assume the customer needs to go home to think about it or look in a few more showrooms before they purchase. But if the sales associate was listening and watching for buying signals, they can use the information to get the customer to share if there is any reason the transaction shouldn’t happen that day. Asking for the sale will do one of two things. The customer will state why they are not ready, giving the sales associate the opportunity to ask if they can follow up, or they just might say, “Yes, lets get this going.” I tell my sales staff you should always be closing on something. They should be asking for the sale, asking for the house call, or asking for the next time you will meet to talk with the client about closing the sale.
—Tamara Scott-Anderson; Contents Interiors; Tucson, Arizona
Inspired Reading Your Employees Have Quit… They Just Haven’t Left A disengagement crisis is overtaking the world, stealing billions of dollars each year from businesses across the planet. This money is being thrown away in favor of things like decreased profitability, lower productivity, increased absenteeism and attrition, lack of innovation, poor customer service, injuries on the job and theft. But what can we do to fix it? In his book “Your Employees Have Quit… They Just Haven’t Left,” business owner, consultant, speaker and engagement expert Rich Schlentz shows both the problems and the solutions. Through humorous, compelling stories, he outlines nine strategies proven to transform your workplace and get results. This book will inspire you to become a better leader. Forget micro-managing—you’ll engage people with enthusiasm and purpose. You’ll reconnect with passion for your career and through that, you’ll give your employees a reason to start caring again. 12
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Your Voice Tupelo Furniture Market
Roving Reporter MARY FRYE
North American Home Furnishings Association, EVP
T
here’s no place like Tupelo! If Dorothy was clicking her shoes, they’d have to be blue suede ones instead of ruby slippers.
I hadn’t been to Tupelo in a few years and while some things have changed, many have stayed the same. The remarkable hospitality was clearly evident through breakfast every morning, a delicious dinner every night, readily available market management and the shuttles that were almost always available. Ease of shopping was the same—Tupelo features open floor plans on one level, so there’s no waiting for elevators and no stairs to climb. Retailers, vendors and reps are appreciated and recognized. Association member Mark Godwin, SEHFA board officer and president of Hainje’s Home Furnishers, received the National Buyer’s Appreciation Award.
Your Association was represented along with the Southeastern Home Furnishings Association at a booth where attendees could learn about the many resources available through membership. SEHFA and NAHFA also co-sponsored with the Tupelo Market three days of seminars. The Lunch and Learn series featuring Joe Milevsky and Bob Moorman, JRM Sales & Management, were well received. A well-known source at the Tupelo Market is Largo International; it’s a must-see for me because NAHFA board member Karen Craig is the Texas rep for Largo. National Sales Manager Vernon Piehl reported a strong market. They not only had new introductions but they also had specials specifically chosen for this market. Close outs are another specialty of the Tupelo Market and Largo’s were a hit.
First-time exhibitors were plentiful. If you want to compare area rugs, Tupelo is your market. There were plenty to see and remarkable values to enjoy. A change that I didn’t know about was the number of bedding vendors that show at the market. Most of the big guys were there doing their usual great job but there were plenty of regional sources, too. If bedding is an important category for you (and is there anyone that doesn’t value their bedding department?), the Tupelo Market offers lots to choose from and see.
Tupelo is an important market for local and regional dealers because they can do a lot in a few days. Travel time is negligible and good values are plentiful. If you’ve never been to Tupelo, you should give it a try. You’ll encounter Top 100 Retailers, great market specials and catfish and barbeque dinners that you’ll remember! Are you visiting a show or new market event? Let us know at jennifer@ retailerNOWmag.com!
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HighTech
The Evolution of the Educated Consumer by Richard Sexton
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HighTech
S
ome recently published research indicates that Smartphone users keep their devices within arm's reach 90 percent of the day. Can you imagine? So, it should be no surprise that smartphone use has invaded every aspect of our lives, from communications to entertainment to shopping. As a retailer, we are naturally concerned and intrigued about how smartphone use is translating into the practice of “showrooming.” This is when customers bring their devices into your retail store and use either search engines or price comparison apps to determine if they are getting the best price. They can scan bar codes or just type in SKU numbers to retrieve this pricing data and make their purchasing decision. The worst-case scenario is that they buy from a competitor online while in your store.
What we as retailers must understand is that showrooming and its variations are simply a natural evolution of the educated consumer. Customers have made price comparisons since the dawn of time, when entrepreneurial cavemen sold arrowheads in primitive stalls next to each other. It is the nature of what we do. Technology has made price-shopping more immediate, and some would see this as an affront, that customers dare to price-compare in our very own store, but in fact we should be glad they are even in our store to begin with. So, other than making customers check their phones at the door (it’s been considered!), the savvy retailer has no choice but to turn this potential pitfall into a sales advantage. After all, consider some of these other statistics: The Google study from April 2013 (“Mobile In-Store Research: How in-store shoppers are using mobile devices”) goes even further, stating that the 80 percent
``45%
of all shoppers do some kind of research on a mobile device before purchasing hard goods
``80%
of people shopping in stores use their phones for some type of intelligence-gathering.
``65%
of U.S. shoppers research products and services on a PC and make a purchase in-store.
`25% `
buy on their phone and never go into a showroom.
of shoppers using mobile devices in-store are shopping for an average of 15 minutes, and amazingly, 1 in 3 use their phones for help in-store instead of asking a sales associate. While they are in the store, they are less likely to use the store's app. Instead of going directly to the store’s site or app, 82 percent of shoppers use search engines or some kind of price-comparing application for browsing product information. Another important aspect to showrooming is its opposite action, “webrooming.” Webrooming is when customers research products online before going to a brickand-mortar store for a final evaluation and purchase. It’s no more than browsing online to find a good deal locally. While 73 percent of shoppers have said they have engaged in showrooming in the past six months, even more shoppers (88 percent) have engaged in webrooming. Webrooming is actually an opportunity to provide information online, while showcasing the physical store experience as the educated consumer's final destination. It's not as bad as it seems, actually, as research indicates that in-store smartphone users may actually buy more (up to 50 percent more, in fact) as long as the experience is consistent between the brick-and-mortar and mobile website platforms. Smartphone shoppers who have a good mobile experience can be 14 to 15 percent more likely to convert into in-store sales. The educated consumer is looking for the mobile experience to support the expectations they have while in the store. They are looking for an omni-channel experience, of which showrooming and webrooming are obvious manifestations. Omni-channel commerce is when we deliver a cohesive shopping experience that reinforces our brand and unique value proposition to the customer. These are the benchmarks of omni-channel commerce:
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HighTech
`` Marketing channels or silos are indistinguishable: Brick-andmortar to catalog to web, all channels deliver the same content and same message. `` Device Agnostic: Device and location simply do not matter to the user due to responsive design. `` Allows the customer to pick back up where they left off, be it store to web (showrooming) or web to store (webrooming) or mobile to PC to iPad. To complete our picture of omni-channel retailing, we need to understand two other dynamics: MORE (Multi-Directional OmniChannel Retail Evolution) Certain retailers are now recognizing the advantages of a brick-and-mortar presence and are evolving into true omni-channel players, such as Sigma Beauty (store in Mall of America), Warby Parker (store in Manhattan)
and US-Mattress.com (four stores and counting). If these savvy retailers see an advantage to brick-and-mortar and are embracing showrooming and webrooming, you already have an advantage simply by having a store.
use more than one channel (web, catalog, mobile, store) to make a purchase, they themselves don’t see or consider channels. What they do consider is the best solution to their need, which is to get the best total experience for their money.
Responsive Design: According to Google, 2 out of 3 smartphone shoppers start at one device and continue onto another. Responsive design (RD) is important because it further breaks down barriers for the user, not between physical locations, but across devices. There are many challenges inherent to RD, since the objective is to keep the site proportional across all screens, but rapid leaps in programming are allowing even smaller scale operations to move towards RD with relative ease.
Here are a few concrete steps we can take to embrace new educated consumer dynamics:
If the educated consumer is driving omni-channel retailing, our response needs to be one of aligning the customer experience across all channels. We need to remember that even though customers
IMPRESSIVE
1. Mobile is an important tool for retailers to incrementally drive traditional in-store sales. You can do this with on-site coupons, special promotions or other discounts that appear only on your mobile site. But don’t be stingy—let customers know about different cross-channel promotions if they are shopping in your store. You’ll have a customer for life. 2. Use Google Plus and Bing Local to your advantage. If your customer is searching for reviews about your business while in your store, make
Phenomenal Sales Event
Masterful
AFTER MEETING WITH SEVEN COMPANIES, BAKER CHOSE PFP! Professional
Respect
“My name is Jim Van Pelt. I’m the President of Baker Furniture Company (Cramerton, NC)…we recently selected Planned Furniture Promotions to do a retirement and going out of business sale. …we were very impressed with the people at Planned Furniture Promotions and they were very professional and actually most impressive. So, we decided to use their company after we had interviewed seven additional companies. We had a phenomenal sales event. And it was masterminded by a team led by Mr. John Coffey. And his team really did a masterful job and we were so impressed and it was a consistent, professional event. We’d have to extend our highest recommendation to Planned Furniture Promotions because, from the beginning to the end Planned Furniture Promotions actually surpassed all of our expectations. It allowed our company and our family to retire our business in a most pleasant way and a most respectable manner. So, we were just delighted to the way the event ended and the way it started and everything in between. It was just exceptional.”
(L-R) Jim and
Listen to our clients on our website and hear what they have to say about PFP. Visit www.PFpromotions.com to learn more. #1 In High Impact Events. Make that first step. Call or Click today!
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•
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ffey
lt with John Co
Sandra Van Pe
High Impact Events Since 1962
sure your presentation is perfect, with updated pictures, customer reviews, and yes, in-store coupons. 3. Use paid search that is geo-targeted and device-specific. With Google Enhanced Campaigns, you can do this easily. Bid more for mobile devices in your local area (it won’t cost much more). Make your showroom floor device-friendly. You don’t hear too much about QR codes now, but they can be used on price tags to ALLOW for price comparisons when it makes sense. Or send customers to reviews on your site for that product. 4. Offer a Wi-Fi hotspot in your store (obviously not your company Wi-Fi network) named after your store or business, so it will register on their device. 5. Have large-screen TVs tied to your app or website to distract in-store customers from device usage. 6. Offer price matching where you can, but within reason. Offer other specials like financing or free expertise consultations to make up for those instances when you cannot price match. 7. Create grouped products, such as a table and chair set, which can make price comparisons more difficult. It helps to add accessories or other items that you can cross-merchandise, which can make showrooming an impossible task. 8. Stay locally relevant and make sure your customer notices. Display your local accomplishments, such as your BBB rating, your participation in local charities and your length of time in business. The purchasing decision is not always about price 100 percent of the time. Sometimes the “feel good” aspect of a purchase can be quite significant. 9. Break down compartmental thinking in your organization. Sales should think of the customers’ needs and expectations, and not where the customer originated. Additionally, you must have the same high-quality customer service communicating across all channels. Consumers view all facets of your operation as one brand. 10. In-store expertise is everything! Make sure your sales associates understand the competition across all channels. Further educate your sales staff to explain all the advantages of buying local, in-store, from you—it’s not just product expertise and the ability to show the product in-person, but also your ability to deliver and service the product if there is an issue. Remember to keep some perspective during this turbulent time. Marketing channel silos have been disrupted across all industries and, according to Google, mobile use in stores is not category-specific. All retail verticals experience showrooming and webrooming as the natural evolution of the educated consumer. There is just as much opportunity to bring shoppers into your store through your online presence as there are challenges with in-store smartphone use. The savvy retailer will deliver a consistent value proposition across channels and across devices—wherever the customer chooses to engage us! Richard Sexton is the founder and CEO of Carolina Rustica, a furniture and lighting store in Concord, North Carolina. To learn more about the company, visit www.carolinarustica.com.
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the power of design Bring living spaces to life with the power of design. Featuring an expansive range of rugs, pillows, art, throws, accent furniture and merchandising solutions, Surya’s fashion-forward and on-trend accessories deliver the perfect combinations of colors, patterns and textures for every decor style and taste. Explore our showrooms to view our integrated collections and retailer resources.
HIGH POINT SHOWPL ACE 4100 inside this issue...
RUGS
PILLOWS & THROWS
ART
ACCENT FURNITURE
MERCHANDISING SOLUTIONS
rugs and more rugs Our expansive collection of more than 4,000 rugs in 32 unique styles and at all price points
luxury
mid priced
Personal style, enduring quality. An extensive assortment of hand knotted designs crafted by skilled artisans from the finest wool interpreting both classic designs and the newest trends. Made to last - a work of art for the living room and workhorse for high traffic areas.
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Surya Complements:
vignette display program This innovative new system provides retailers with a smart, space-conscious way to maximize ROI on display vignettes. This powerful merchandising tool creates an opportunity for sales associates to engage consumers in an accessory discussion at the key point of upholstery purchase. With its easy to use handle display, consumers are given at-a-glance access to up to six rug designs – selected to enhance the style and color palette of the retailer’s upholstery, tables and other accessories. Surya Complements offers retailers four distinct ways to choose their rug sample packages: Color – Explore selections built from today’s most popular color palettes. Pattern – Spotlight a trend-forward design like chevrons or stripes. Price – Target the consumer according to budget. Upholstery – Coordinate an “a la carte” story based on the your upholstery options.
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HighTouch
Showroom makeovers move stores into the future by Jennifer Billock
Gallery1 interior
“All good things must come to an end.” It’s an unfortunate reality, but it’s also an exciting opportunity. Furniture retailers have a unique chance to stay on the pulse of the changing marketplace and the evolving shopper as they furnish customers’ homes throughout major life events. What used to be standard and comfortable can turn on its head in an instant. And when habits and circumstances change, so too must the environment. Don’t be afraid to tear down, remodel and rebuild. As we move into the future, don’t let your showroom become obsolete. Here, two store owners share their remodel stories and let us know how the new spaces keep in time with the ever-changing retail landscape. 18
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The Atrium; Principle: Nabil Ramia; Dartmouth, Nova Scotia In 1988, Nabil Ramia and his brother opened The Gallery in Nova Scotia, a mall that was home to Gallery1 Furniture and other complimentary stores for the home retail industry. Business was good for a few years until a recession hit in the 90s. All the stores but Gallery1 closed. Ramia knew that in order to keep up with changing times, he needed to reinvent the concept. He rebranded as The Atrium, and began the slow process of remodelling. The construction team added a completely new second floor to the building, taking what was a 60,000-square-foot showroom and warehouse to a more than 200,000-square-foot furniture mall. On October 5, 2012, the first store in the new space, an Ashley Furniture HomeStore, opened. WorldWide Furniture, Gallery1 Furniture and The Brick soon followed, and then Hallmark Carpet One and Crave (a specialty appliance center) came shortly after. A major mattress retailer is currently being added.
HighTouch
Clockwise from left: Ashley entrance; inside the Atrium; WorldWide Furniture; One of Gallery1's vignettes; the front of the building.
The idea behind The Atrium was one of progress and options. “The consumer demands convenience,” Ramia said. “If the research shows they are shopping multiple stores, why not create a space under one roof for inspiration and selection where they are sure to find what they are looking for? We are able to offer a chance to shop all the big brand-name furniture stores in one destination as well as a specialty boutique (Gallery1 Furniture’s rebrand) that carries exclusive high-end lines you won’t see anywhere else in Atlantic Canada. Bringing consumers to one location forces us to strengthen our brand identities that much more. Competition is healthy to have.” Overall, customer response to the new space has been overwhelmingly positive. “We’ve had everything from a 14-year-old opening the door and saying ‘wow’ so dramatically you could see her complete set of braces, to a wife peering in the glass entrance and yelling back to her husband (who was still getting out of the family minivan), ‘Oh my God, there are FOUR FURNITURE STORES here!’ and the man exclaiming ‘Wahooo!’ The consumer can truly shop with confidence and find what they are looking for. We think, as Atrium, we have provided an atmosphere where one can make the right decision for their home based on the level of personalization they want to achieve.”
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HighTouch
The Old Cannery Furniture and Mattress Warehouse; Owner: Sherry Grout; Sumner, Washington The Old Cannery in Washington is steeped in old-world charm. The location was built in 1917 as a fruit and vegetable cannery for local farmers to have their produce processed. When Tony and Mabeth Grout bought the building, they extensively remodelled while aiming to still keep original features of the historic building. The Grouts brought in some of the top manufacturers, including Emerald Home Furnishings, Ashley, Stanton, A-America and Klaussner. The store opened in 1984 with so much space that the slogan “Ten Acres of Furniture” was adopted. After the renovations, the Grout family made sure the store would be more than just a furniture shop—it would be a destination. In addition to the 500,000 square feet of furniture, the store has a built-in fudge shop fashioned out of an old tree stump and seven miles of model train tracks with five different trains constantly rolling throughout the store. Animatronic robots named Jack and Ellwood greet customers in one area of the store, and “Grandma” and “Grandpa” can be found sitting on a porch in conversation. Every showroom in the building has an interactive element to entice both adults and children. Tony and Mabeth passed the business on to their daughter Sherry, who routinely offers special events and sales to keep customers coming in. Occasionally, customers are able to make their own prices on pieces of furniture with the encouragement of management—it’s possible because the store mainly relies on word-of-mouth advertising. For holidays, The Old Cannery offers much-anticipated photos with Santa, a bridge lighting ceremony, fireworks, carriage rides, a petting zoo, a pumpkin patch, appearances by the Easter Bunny and more. Makeovers can be physical building updates or seasonal, store environment changes. The key point is to keep your focus on what will excite and delight your customers.
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From top: The Old Cannery's interior with one of the trains above; the fudge bar, built out of a local fallen tree—fudge is made fresh weekly; another train in the showroom.
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Showroom of the Future
HighTech
by Mike Luna
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HighTech
T
here is a vast sea of technology available to anyone and everyone. Out of that sea, there are some pieces that we, as retailers, can catch and use in our stores to help enhance sales. Some are currently must-haves, while others are the big catches and must be reeled in carefully. Did you catch all those fishing analogies? Did you re-read to find them all? Good! Let’s keep going. By no means do I have a monopoly on the expertise of available technology, but trends have definitely emerged (and will continue to) as that technology becomes more readily available. If you’re doing these things already, great! You can now skim to the advanced section—but sorry, you don’t get to collect $200.
To some, this will seem very elementary in scope. But my aim is to make sure we cover the basics before the advanced. Walk before we can run, don’t bite off more than you can chew… I digress. Here we go!
themselves before ever stepping foot into a store. This has been a great tool for us here at Pedigo Furniture. Since implementing accurate product catalogs and pricing on our website, we’ve noticed an overall trend of higher quality foot traffic into our store. Customers know what they want when Websites they enter our store because they’ve already A website is the digital front line of your browsed our merchandise online. They can store, and is a must-have if you have any zero in on the product they have in mind hope to keep your business thriving in the and our skilled sales associates can upsell next 20, 10, even 5 years! When the search them by accessorizing the purchase. Boom! engine of your choice (*cough*….Google) We added ecommerce to our website about generates the “search engine results pages,” a year ago because it’s important that our or SERPs, for your potential customer customers can shop however they want—an and you’re not on it, you can forget about idea I outlined in the April 2013 edition of being a contender for that purchase! A RetailerNOW. pair of eyes that doesn't see you online will find another store that has a place for If you’re going to have a website, make them to “digitally window shop.” You also sure you’re tracking your efforts and your want to make sure your website is mobile customers’ digital breadcrumbs. You can use Google’s free analytics tool to track how, Mobile Tablet Traffic and from where, your web traffic is landing on your site, whether organic or paid. Use that information to build a comprehensively tailored strategy to target the audience you currently have, as well as the audience you from last year wish you had! friendly. According to the Q1 report by Monetate, mobile and tablet traffic is up to Be Sociable 21 percent of overall web traffic, compared to 11 percent at the same time last year. Social media is also a must at this point That’s almost a 50 percent increase in just in the game. Your customers are there alone year, and it’s expected to grow rapidly. ready, and you should be also! Social media According to Google’s Executive Chairman, strategies will look different for each store Eric Schmidt, “If you don’t have a mobile depending on where your customers hangstrategy, you don’t have a future strategy.” out online; however, you should always be #dang engaging with your customer community and offering calls to action to drive sales. Digital catalogs of available store mer- Bottom line. chandise are a great way to always keep your doors open. Customers can shop Facebook has been a powerhouse of social online and essentially close the deal for engagement for years and offers great ways
21%
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HighTech
Tracking smartphone users while they shop in your store? Sound crazy? It's already being done.
to engage and promote your social content and experience. However, it can no longer be your only outlet for social media.
a sale anywhere in the store. I’m going to throw out some product names, but I’m not personally saying they’re the best (*cough*…Apple), just popular and easy to Pinterest is a huge traffic driver to websites use. When shopping at Del Sol Furniture that can be harnessed as a powerful tool to in Phoenix, Ariz., your sales associate will help close a sale. Users know when they be equipped with an Android tablet to betclick on a pin, they’ll be directed to the ter serve you on the go. The same goes for landing page for that subject. Whether iPads at Houston’s Gallery Furniture. With sales floor using the Wi-Fi signals from they realize it or not, when they click on both of these, the entire sales process can their smartphones. Sound crazy? According your retail store’s pin, they get caught by be completed while standing next to the to The New York Times, companies like your covert call-to-action, which should customer. The salesperson no longer has to Family Dollar, Cabela’s and Warby Parker, be, “Hey, look at this! Click this! Buy this!” leave the customer to get information from a specialty eyewear retailer, have been exCouple this with an overt call-to-action on a stationary desktop POS (that’s Point of perimenting with this sort of software. It your landing page, and you have a great Sale…not the other acronym). Depending uses images captured from cameras to track start to social strategy that drives potential on the size of your sales floor, you’ll need the number of smartphone users that come customers through your sales funnel. a robust wireless connection to handle into the store, as well as their movements, the bandwidth of those mobile devices, so retailers can identify hot spots and adjust Google+ has made quite a splash in the especially if you’re offering a guest Wi-Fi displays accordingly. No witty joke here, just plain awe. social media realm since its launch in 2011. connection to customers. According to a study by GlobalWebIndex, Google+ boasts a staggering 343 mil- Another piece of hardware making its way Email lion users, which doesn’t quite topple into stores is the shopping kiosk. You’ve Facebook’s 700 million active users… yet! probably seen them at department stores Contrary to what some say, email is not Using G+ will also give you a little SEO like Kohl’s and Macy’s, and they offer dead! It’s a great tool that can help you boost since Google directly indexes its own an interesting way for the store to sell to communicate and engage customers who site—very nice! potential customers. Ever walked onto opt-in. It’s a fast and fairly inexpensive way a sales floor and had a not-so-friendly to get a lot of information to a lot of people. Test these strategies and the ones outlined sales associate borderline stalk you, asking Whether you’re sending sales coupons or on page 32 to see which social media sites questions you don’t want to answer, until DIY tips to your customers, with the right are the best avenues for your demograph- you walk out of the store? No? Us either! metrics, you can track overall efforts or ics, as well as for the markets you’d like (*wink*) The ecommerce kiosk allows the compare individual campaigns. We use to acquire. Determining which users are customer to shop anonymously like they Constant Contact in our store because they on each respective site (Facebook, Twitter, can online, while having the product in offer some great templates, metrics and an LinkedIn, Google+, YouTube, etc.) and front of them for sitting and feeling. You easy-to-use interface. If you’re looking for adjusting the strategies within those outlets may think it sounds like a lot of trouble. It a more robust set of tracking metrics, you will be the key to effective social media. may be. However, for those customers who might try the Act-On marketing automaCoupled with a well designed, user friendly would buy from your store if they weren’t tion and email services. website, you should have the basic founda- pressured by those commission-based sales tion of great information to help your team associates, this is a perfect fix. Website Features close more sales. There are several features you can incorpoIn-Store Tracking rate into your website to help drive your Now that the groundwork is laid, we can dive into some innovative items. By now, most of us are carrying one of potential customers to buy. If you offer those smartphone things everywhere we financing to your customer base, you can go, including retail stores. Companies like try an online credit application process. By Mobile POS Nomi, LightHaus and Brickstream are letting the customer apply for credit online, Although they have been used for some capitalizing on it. These companies have you give them the peace of mind that they time now, mobile POS capabilities give all developed software that can track the don’t have to have all the cash up front beyour sales associates the freedom to close movements of your customers on your fore they come into the store. Pedigo’s offers 24
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HighTech
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A Live Chat function added to your web- customers shop online—being there to ansite allows potential customers to interact swer their questions when they have them.” in real time with an in-store associate. Questions can be asked and answered We’ve come quite a long way from just using before the customer ever comes into the our electronic technology to play “Oregon store. As awesome and cutting-edge as Trail” on a floppy disk. There are a lot of some of the new automated processes can great tools out there that can be very benefibe, some customers prefer to talk to an cial in helping us close the deal, if we would Renaissance Marketing has a credit approvactual person. only take heed and ford that river. (Too al process incorporated into the websites much?) The technology we have available as they build. The customer can fill out their information, submit their application and Seth Weisblatt from Sam's Furniture retailers is constantly changing and evolving. be instantly approved through a third-party & Appliances in Ft. Worth, Texas, says, New hardware and software being developed finance company. That balance can then “Customers love the convenience of chat- is the frontier that will directly impact the be applied to the shopping cart where the ting in real time with one of our associates dollars in our stores and pockets. We must customer can spend it online immediately. to access a whole range of information. recognize where that’s going and be open to Done and done! It doesn’t get any easier It's another way we are working to rep- using what is currently available, as well as licate the in-store experience while our what is coming in the very near future. than that. a 100 percent online application as well as a download-ready PDF for our customers to print and complete. We want them to feel comfortable through the entire buying process, and a lot of the time, that starts with a credit approval process.
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HighTech
An Inside Look at Online Sales by Jennifer Billock
T
he online furniture marketplace is just beginning to boom across the world. RetailerNOW sat down with Dennis Hoffman, CEO of INFURN.com, to learn about his successful online furniture retail business and find out exactly how different it is from brick-and-mortar stores—and why one day, online sales may be more profitable. : What is the current state of the online
furniture industry?
DH: Online furniture is one of the top five strongest growing industries in the U.S. The 2013 U.S. furniture market is a $30 billion market and is expected to double by the year 2020. Today, roughly 20 percent of all furniture sales happen online. I believe that this will increase to 35 percent within the next five years and perhaps to 50 percent over the next 10 years.
: How does INFURN overcome the perception that buyers need to be able to sit down and test out the furniture before they buy? DH: While that may have been the case, many consumers are in fact willing to take the chance of buying from a virtual store, as proven by the numbers. Online, the strongest impetus to buy comes from what the customer sees. INFURN.com has emphasized the visual aspect. Large photographs display all products in different angles with close-up views. Customers can see even minute details of any product, down to the quality of the stitching. To assuage any customer qualms about the physical experience of their products, INFURN.com offers exchange services and a fiveyear guarantee. : Do you think this is the future of retail furniture stores? DH: I personally think that there will always be brick-and-mortar stores. In addition, more and more traditional furniture stores will start their own online presence and generate greater revenues that way. Admittedly, though, some traditional brick-and-mortar stores will close because of fierce competition from online sales. Online stores are able to sell the same or similar products at lower prices due to lower operating costs.
do you use?
: What marketing and advertising strategies
Consumers enjoy sitting at home at the computer browsing through thousands of options to find just the right pieces for their homes. Convenient though it is for buyers, however, the fact is that there are not many professional online furniture stores in the market. Most of the larger American furniture companies are used to their brick-and-mortar businesses and still have not tapped into this huge opportunity. They’re stuck in the perception that customers want to walk into a store, see the product, touch it, sit on it and make their choice on the spot.
DH: The success of INFURN.com is based on its online marketing activities. The store has a massive marketing department that is structured in dedicated teams for every country we target. The teams focus their energies on four different online marketing channels: pay-per-click marketing (PPC), affiliate marketing, email marketing and search engine optimization (SEO). Every team is committed to monthly revenue goals.
To create a successful online furniture business, it is necessary to rethink that assumption! Selling furniture online needs to be treated like its very own business. Sellers have to change their way of advertising, displaying and selling their products. And it’s not just about taking pictures and making the products available online. It’s about building a state-of-the art online store, displaying products in an emotional way that makes visitors want to buy. It’s about advertising the store in the right online venues. It’s about giving extraordinary customer service via telephone, email and live chat.
DH: The first priority is to grow revenues; building a brand comes second. In my opinion, social media is a fantastic channel to spread the word and to build brand awareness, but it does not generate high revenues. Since conversion rates on social media activities are low, it is therefore not a high priority. In our blog (www.infurn. com/blog), we concentrate on content that is relevant but fun, communicates important information about the products and talks about INFURN events. The blog builds strong trust with visitors, as they can look behind the scenes. This trust is recognized in
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: How do you incorporate social media?
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HighTech
Retailers should not wait to see if others might do it first—make a decision now and get in early on this high-growth business! revenues: The number of people who make purchases at INFURN. com is three times higher among those who read our blog versus those who do not. : What advice do you have for retailers who are hesitant to enter the online world? DH: Do it now! In business it is always the same—you need to do the right business at the right time. Every one of us has heard that before. But sadly, most people wait until it’s too late, by which time there is too much competition, or there are established market leaders who have grabbed most of the revenues. Retailers should not wait to see if others might do it first—make a decision now and get in early on this high-growth business! The fact that companies like INFURN.com and FAB.com are producing and growing revenues is proof that people are, in fact, already buying furniture online in record numbers. If you are interested in starting to build an online business, I would decide on a niche product line that has good potential. Build a professional online store, upload your products and start advertising. Most retailers have little or no experience with online business. I recommend they find experienced people in web design and online marketing and develop a strategy with them on how to best market your products to your target group. Online business is very different from traditional retail. It is necessary to rethink your years of experience and adjust to the online world. The beauty of the online business is that it is much bigger than any local business can be. Within the same period of time, you can reach many more people than you ever could with your local advertising activities. When you advertise your products online, you have analytic tools that show you exactly how many people read your ads, how many people clicked to enter your store, how many of those visitors finally purchased and how much they spent. This information shows you advertising costs and your return on investment. You can quickly learn where you should advertise and where there have been poor results. : What tactics do you use to focus on customer service without face-to-face contact? DH: Customer service for an online furniture business is very similar to brick-and-mortar. People need to ask about product
quality, available variations, payment options and additional services you might offer. The main difference is how people contact you. Instead of walking into your store, they will be contacting you mainly by phone, email and live chat via your website. Your customer service works similar to a call center. I suggest having customer service available at similar times to the opening hours of a traditional store. When the number of visitors to your online store grows, your revenues grow, and so will the need for additional customer service—so you can grow the team with the needs. : What, if any, are INFURN’s plans for standard brick-and-mortar showrooms? DH: We wanted to open up an INFURN.com showroom in London one year ago. We found the perfect space. We had the lease in our hands and we were ready to sign. At that time we were thinking that INFURN.com had to show people the products so that they could experience the quality. But, honestly, how many people could we expect to reach with one traditional store? Not many. Would people travel from Paris to London to check out our products? Of course not. People might not even drive from outside the city to see the products. And how many showrooms would we need to reach out to all the people? Thousands. We woke up and understood that opening showrooms cannot be part of the development of our group. INFURN.com needed to find ways to convince people to buy furniture online, not offline. So we started taking close-up pictures of products that customers can zoom in on and see the details of each product. Customers were allowed to order free material samples to check the quality used. We created the five-year guarantee. One year later, we have demonstrated that this was the best decision INFURN.com could have ever made. : What has INFURN done online to create a brick-and-mortar feel? DH: INFURN.com tries to give customers the best shopping experience possible. The site is easy to use and very airy in look and feel. Customers find the products they are looking for quickly and easily. The pictures display all products in high definition from different angles. There is a very detailed product description for each item—much more detailed, in fact, than you’d get from live sales representatives in physical showrooms. So, it’s not the same feel—it’s better.
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A Visit With the Board
Sharron Bradley, CEO
Howard Haimsohn, Chairman
Mary Frye, EVP
The merger of HFIA, NHFA and WHFA was a complicated and exquisitely planned action. We all watched the gathering of minds as the North American Home Furnishings Association came to fruition in May. Now
Steve Kidder, Vice President
MF: All the conversations from years before, mutually admiring
one another’s accomplishments, enjoying one another’s friendships, being in meetings together, gently competing with one another for members—all those things led up to the opportunity to find a way to work together, to give up our territories and our hard-earned positions for the greater good that could be accomplished together.
SB: It was a huge accomplishment with so much hard work con-
things are going. RetailerNOW listened in as
tributed by many people within our organizations. Fortunately there was a lot of discussion up front and then when we really got down to the business of it we were able to do it fairly quickly because of the commitment by all three organizations to make it happen in a timely manner.
board members Steve Kidder, Vice President;
SK: And now, we have one association that speaks with one voice.
that it’s October, you may be wondering how
and Howard Haimsohn, Chairman; along with staff executives Sharron Bradley, CEO; and Mary Frye, EVP, had a roundtable discussion of where things are, the association’s accomplishments and where we’re headed in
Secondarily, merging three staffs into one was a big accomplishment. There’s one association and one professional staff. With everybody I meet, I’m just totally impressed with the staff and how much work they get done and how serious and engaged they are. We’re very fortunate to have the staff we have. You can volunteer to be on the board but when it actually comes to cutting the mustard, they’re the guys doing it.
HH: The other amazing thing is the dedication of 36 volunteers
the future.
from the three organizations. These volunteers have made a strong commitment of time and energy to work for the benefit of the members.
HH: I think the biggest accomplishment so far was orchestrating
SK: Something that occurs to me is that all of the board members
the actual merger. Three great organizations all saw the wisdom in becoming one. Setting egos and personalities aside, everyone realized they would be in a far better position to provide benefits to the membership by working as one.
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serve without compensation. They pay for their own travel and their own lodging to go to meetings. Some retailers are not huge and they are board members. They commit to doing this for the industry for free because they believe in it.
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Looking to the future, I envision an organization that is strong with information sharing, an organization that members can interact with through technology and find answers and ideas with a click.—Howard Haimsohn
HH: And they have good reason to. This association is uniquely
between members, whether it’s regional, online, working with other positioned to focus solely on how to benefit home furnishings groups, working with vendors and partners—we can facilitate the retailers without the need of worrying what the other two big connection. retailer associations are doing. By combining assets, NAHFA has the resources in staff and finance to discover opportunities, react to MF: The association’s flexibility to move to these challenges and change and provide the greatest benefits for their members. There opportunities, and to stay as much ahead of the curve as we can is a commitment to connecting retailers in regions for networking, through investigating how new and not-so-new ideas apply to the sharing of best practices and camaraderie. Facilitating the connec- home furnishings business effectively, is a great asset we offer. We tion of people and ideas has always been one of the most powerful will be a catalyst for all the best that the home furnishings industry can be. We’re going to look at as long a period of time as we can and aspects of membership in these organizations. we will be taking vital signs all along the way to tweak processes and SB: To that end, one of the most important things we’ve done so continue to be a successful organization. far was the formation of our seven collaborative teams, made up of board members and other association members. The teams are HH: Looking to the future, I envision an organization that is strong working on multiple initiatives for members. Two of the big ones with information sharing, an organization that members can interact we’ve already started moving along are events and programs based with through technology and find answers and ideas with a click. I in different regions of the U.S. so members have the opportunity see opportunities for members to save thousands of dollars through to meet and share best practices, and also government relations efficiencies in services and make much more through marketing, nationally and in individual states. From a grassroots standpoint, sales and consumer interface enhancements. Leveraging the strengths we can help affect change. We’ve already begun that process; we of the best home furnishings retailers in North America will provide have people on staff working on legislative issues now and that’s everyone with a strong association that can serve its membership something that wasn’t happening to any large extent in any of the efficiently and effectively. organizations before. SK: I think the future of the industry is like a pendulum. A penSK: I can already see the results. One of the things that’s very dulum swings in both directions, and as we march along, there will clear to me is that we now speak with one voice in Washington. be a greater need from individual retail stores to be members of an Our lobbyist has access to a broad cross-section of retailers from association that can provide them things they can’t negotiate on their all over the country. And those retailers have access to a guy in own. The total package of benefits that the association offers will only Washington who understands the industry. The other thing that’s get better over time, and any reasonable retailer should be able to beneficial from my selfish perspective is we’re now exposed to recoup their membership costs quickly. It should be a moneymaking retailers from all over the country where previously it was regional. proposition for anybody wanting to invest in it and try the programs. Now, it’s easy to get a lot of different ideas from a lot of different people. It’s a much more broad based exposure to the brightest MF: We need to be a link in an effective chain. The long-term plan of the association is whatever the members need and want it to be. people in the industry. We’re very much interested in moving to those opportunities where SB: And with input from all of those great minds, we’re focusing we can make a difference. It is a work in progress and it always will on three of the most important things that need to be looked at. be because this is a living, breathing community. Our success is only One is technology and accelerating the pace of technology adop- based on member success. tion in retailers’ businesses. Another is to help them understand their customers better and create a more meaningful experience in SB: I agree. People are the most valuable asset of the association. their stores. We have to make the store experience better. We can I’m talking about our staff, our board, our members, our partners, help retailers do that. The third thing is connecting our members everyone that makes up the association. That’s what makes it strong together in the best way to build their success. The interaction and valuable.
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HighTech
Know Your Audience
Social Media Tactics to Increase Sales
T
by Brooke Feldman
here is no doubt social media can make an impact for your store, but it takes a bit of practice and creativity to make a post go a long way. The biggest questions retailers ask are how social media
is going to make me stand out among the crowd, and if tweeting, posting or pinning is going to gain
me more sales for my business. As someone new to the home furnishings industry, my experience with getting people to talk about a product comes from interaction and thinking outside of the box.
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HighTech
A mentor of mine told me any job you take on is like trying to keep kittens in a box; sometimes the simple KISS (keep it simple, stupid) method is the way to go, and other times it’s about taking a bit of risk. Compared to other marketing platforms, social media is the best way to experiment and play with your audience. Start a conversation and see how it evolves. There are three rules I follow when using social media.
Rule #1: Know your audience, know your product: I’ve worked with many arts organizations that, like retailers, are looking to drive people to their theatre as well as motivate an audience to tell their friends all about a production after they leave. It was especially challenging and interesting to work with an opera/ballet company; how do I get the Millennial generation excited about opera? Getting people to talk about an opera production took two things: Knowing the nuts and bolts of what I was marketing, and understanding my target audience. In order to sell a product to an audience, you need to know it backwards and forwards. From the touch of the material, to where it was made; every little bit of detail is going to bring you more content to talk about. At my company, I like to walk our in-house showroom and then meet as often as I can with my coworkers to learn about a product backwards and forwards. Today, trends are the biggest way to start a conversation. A simple hashtag of #wool or #polyester will attract a variety of audiences— which leads to the next part of my first rule: Knowing who your audience is on your social media platforms. When I was promoting the opera productions, I was targeting people who enjoy opera, people who are on the fence and local news partners to help me spread the word about the performance weekends. Three different audiences, but all were targeted with the same goal in mind. Understand who is buying your furniture and why they should want to buy it for their apartment or home; know your competition and how your product stands out.
Rule #2: Utilize your partners: Social media is not a one-man/woman show. It takes collaboration. Out there it is a dog-eat-dog world, but through social media, it doesn’t have to be. Reach out to the manufacturers of products you sell. First, see how they are utilizing social media to attract customers and then, see how you can team up to promote your store as well as their product at the same time. It then becomes a win-win situation on both sides of the table.
If you have licensed brand partners, the same rule applies. I enjoy speaking with the social media manager of Barclay Butera Lifestyle on a regular basis. We constantly bounce ideas off each other and come up with ways we can promote the Barclay Butera line. For example, I posted a whole nautical theme one #TrendingTuesday to showcase Barclay’s Oxford collection; Barclay Butera personally loves using classic stripes of blue and white to make things “a little happier.” You’ll be surprised on some of the material you come up with collaborating with people.
Rule #3: Don’t be afraid to start the conversation: It’s the worst feeling in the world seeing bigger named brands have more followers than you do when they are putting out “simple” content, like a room scene here and there. Face it, their name and image is what got them this far. Social media to them is just about keeping up with the trends. Rather than get discouraged, take action and be heard. Coming up with original content can be daunting. Don’t think about coming up with something original every day. Post about things that are related to you and the industry you are a part of; engage with followers, post things happening in the news, show you are present. A way to work with your partners and start a conversation is through markets. Be present and open to meeting with others in person through social media. Be a part of what is going on and comment. A stagnant social media account is just wasting space.
Lastly, follow through with your audience. It’s good to remain interactive with your followers on social media. I always say thank you to any new follower, or hello when I meet someone at a market. It adds a touch of warmth and personality. You don’t want to be a robot on social media. You have feelings too! So how do you keep the kittens in the box? Well, you try your best that’s how. Social media may seem daunting, but it really isn’t. Know your product, develop an understanding of your audiences, collaborate and start talking. Brooke Feldman is the Digital Marketing Coordinator for Nourison Industries. She recently completed a Masters degree from the School of Environmental and Public Affairs of Indiana University. She operates the blog ArtSeed (artseed. typepad.com) focusing on growing and grooming the next generation of arts appreciators. Follow her on Twitter @BEFeld13.
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This is a High Point Market your next generation can’t afford to miss!
YOU have a tremendous opportunity to help shape the future of this industry! Meet young industry enthusiasts Find the biggest opportunitiies NOW
INAUGURAL
NEXTGEN Day at HPU & HPM
Monday, October 21
Learn how to leverage your strengths Schedule of Events 8:00 – 11:00 AM Shuttles to and from HPM & HPU 9:15 – 10:15 AM Morning at High Point University Fashioning a Career in Home Furnishings 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM Lunch and Panel Discussion
3 Guys and a Mic – Insights & Anecdotes with Industry Icons
Ray Allegrezza, Editor-in-Chief, Furniture Today, Leads a lively discussion with Industry Icons helping the Next Generation navigate in deep waters.
Benefactor Sponsor:
Pre-Event Party…
BASH
Sunday, October 20, 2013
NGN Bash at the Surya Party
Showplace 4100, 5:00 pm
Market Seminar…
Additional sponsors: Coaster Co. of America, FurnitureDealer.net, GE Capital, MicroD, Inc., Surya
Monday, Oct. 21, 2013
1:00 – 2:00 pm
Marketing Strategies for Attracting Gen Y
Retailer Resource Center, Plaza Suites
For more information or to register online go to: www.ngnow.org/next-gen-day/
Next Generation Now is a hosted community of the North American Home Furnishings Association.
Join the Event—Join the Discussion—Shape the Future
New forYou
Refresh... Relax!
We’re new & improved to help you grow.
Stop by for all the services & face to face connections you need... without all the hassle you don’t.
First Floor - Plaza Suites Building South Main Street, High Point October 19-24, 2013
Additional sponsors: Coaster Co. of America, FurnitureDealer.net, GE Capital, MicroD, Inc., Surya
NOW Market Highlights NAHFA MARKET SEMINARS SERIES
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19
1st Floor of Plaza Suites - 222 South Main St.
Retailer Resource Center at High Point Market
8:30 - 9:30am
The Effective Salesperson’s Checklist
When your salesperson can answer all the questions presented in the seminar, thoroughly, they are true professionals. Phil Gutsell, a forty-year veteran of the home furnishings industry, has compiled the ultimate checklist for salespeople. Even professionals need periodic retraining to make sure they are still practicing the techniques that got them where they are today. Attend this seminar and return to your store loaded with the skills that create Super Salespeople. Presented by: Philip Gutsell, GutSELL & Associates, gutsellassoc@gmail.com
10:00 - 11:30am
IMAGE AUDIT: What Decade Does Your Store Display Reflect?
Explore new ideas for affordable change that will improve your image in the market. It’s hard to keep up with retail trends, but Connie Post will simplify and distill down what is more important to your customers today, and how to achieve it in an affordable way. Presented by: Connie Post, CEO, Affordable Design Solutions, conniepost@conniepost.com
1:00 - 2:00pm
Performance Review — Straight to the Point: What Your “Numbers” Should Be to a Top Quartile Retail Operation
Unfortunately, there are some metrics that you need to be successful. You can’t argue with your doctor and the lab results. The same is true of your business. These metrics cover all areas: Marketing, Finance, Sales Management, Advertising, and Merchandising. We will give you the numbers and how it impacts your success. Register for the seminar on www.furniturecore.com and we will give you instructions on how to calculate your numbers, so you can compare during the seminar… But make sure you want to know. Presented by: Bob George, FurnitureCore/Impact Consulting, robin@furniturecore.com
2:30 - 3:30pm
21st Century Marketing
With the proliferation of cell phones, tablets, laptops, and all things digital, your potential new customers are spending less and less time in front of “traditional” media. The digital age is upon us and the most successful businesses will be the ones that embrace the change and adapt their marketing strategies to fit changing media dynamics. Join us for an overview of the changing face of marketing and how your store can take advantage of these trends. Presented by: Tim McLain, Netsertive, Inc., tradeshows@netsertive.com
4:00 - 5:00pm
10 Ways to Increase Sales & Your Bottom Line!
This will be your most profitable hour at the market. John Egger will show you real processes and tried and true systems that will add both sales and your ability to have a much better bottom line. Just adding more sales without systems and processes that make you more profitable is a common mistake in our industry. Mr. Egger and his team have helped over 800 furniture stores increase their profits! Presented by: John Egger, Profitability Consulting Group, johne@profitabilityconsulting.com
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Market Highlights
NAHFA MARKET SEMINARS SERIES
1st Floor of Plaza Suites - 222 South Main St.
8:30 - 9:30am
NOW
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20
Retailer Resource Center at High Point Market
The Outlook For The Furniture Industry
Furniture industry guru Jerry Epperson will once again enlighten us with his furniture research expertise on the current state and future of the furniture industry and how it affects your business. Presented by: W.W. “Jerry” Epperson, Jr., Mann, Armistead & Epperson, Ltd., wwe@maeltd.com
2:30 - 3:30pm
The Challenge of Change
Retail stores must be responsive to the changing world of retail. Demographics, variations in consumer needs, evolving technology and lifestyle innovation continually challenge our brick-and-mortar shops. Online mega-stores like Amazon and in-store/on-line combo kings like Apple are fierce opponents and successful crusaders. But for our furniture retail consumers, for example, preferences can change quickly from coordinated 3-piece suites and 5-piece bedroom sets to al à la carte selections. Stores need to adapt—store appearance, number of entrances, planning, layout, design center and overall interior. Should it be a “lifestyle” experience or a “gallery” exhibition? What departments are now considered to be a “destination”? Which are now “impulse” buys? Martin Roberts Design has worked on more than one million square feet of retail store space this year alone and has faced many of these challenges. How do you keep your store enticing and contemporary? Let’s discuss keeping up with change. Presented by: Martin Roberts, M Roberts Design, martin@mrobertsdesign.com
11:30am - 12:30pm
Power Retail Advertising: Proven Winners & New Ideas
We will present examples of television, private mailers and internet advertising utilized by furniture retailers across the country. You’ll see proven “winners”with a track record of driving traffic and increasing sales as well as out-of-the-box ways retailers are utilizing marketing dollars to retain current customers and gain new ones. Presented by: Charlie Horich, Brad Lebow, Chip Hector, David Weinstein, Horich Hector Lebow Advertising, tproper@hhladv.com
1:00 - 2:00pm
Marketing Strategies for Attracting Gen Y
Join us for an open question and answer forum featuring some of our industry’s most well-informed retail leaders. Learn how their marketing strategies are attracting the next generation of shoppers and increasing sales. Panelists will answer questions, review strategies, and share business insights that have been successful in reaching this influential demographic. #Millennials #MicroD #NGnow Presented by: Joshua Camden, MicroD, Inc., in partnership with Next Generation Now, Monanigam@microdinc.com
2:30 - 3:30pm
Maximizing the Potential of Your Salespeople
What makes one salesperson succeed while others fail? What is the magic profile for the top salesperson in our industry? Where do I find my best candidates? How do I recruit them to come to work for me? How do I increase the probability that I can position salespeople to succeed? How do I ensure that I have the right number and floor coverage? What are my alternatives for compensating salespeople? People buy from people, not stores. Beautiful Store! Great merchandise! Great location! Huge differences in the performance of salespeople dramatically limits your potential. Presented by: Joe Milevsky, JRM Sales & Management, Inc., Joe@jrmsales-mgmt.com
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NOW Market Highlights MONDAY, OCTOBER 21
Retailer Resource Center at High Point Market
8:30 - 9:30am
NAHFA MARKET SEMINARS SERIES
1st Floor of Plaza Suites - 222 South Main St.
Sales Meetings: Are Yours Exciting or Avoidable?
Why do sales meetings always seem to be boring and uneventful? This is your opportunity to excite your team about their jobs and to help them close more sales. A boring dissertation about goals, metrics and this week’s ad is a sure snooze fest. Learn how to have meetings that are more productive and are fun to attend. When you attend this seminar you will get a concise, entertaining and inventive guide to improving meeting structure, participation, and results. Put these ideas into practice and your meetings will never be the same! Presented by: Shelley Parlin, ProfitSystems, shelleyp@profitsystems.com
10:00 - 11:00am
That Easy Buying Feeling
Desi Miller will explore quick easy ways to use retail displays and point-of-purchase materials to improve your closing ratio. Find out the tips and tricks mass merchants are using to control customers’ gaze and purchasing focus. Walk away with a step-by-step hand out on how to start changing the consumer retail experience in your store. Presented by: Desi Miller, VP of Sales and Marketing, Moso Graphics, desi@mosographics.com
11:30am - 12:30pm
Your Employees Have Quit—They Just Haven’t Left
In this seminar you will learn how to recognize what it takes to succeed in both calm and turbulent times, understand how to successfully apply the fundamental principles necessary to build committed and loyal work teams and develop action steps—both on an organizational and individual leader level—for how to create a more engaging work culture. Presented by: Rich Schlentz, EXTRAordinary, Inc., rich@extraordinaryinc.com
1:00 - 2:00pm
Marketing With Very Little Money to Capture Today’s Clients
Margi Kyle will help you understand “hue” you are through color and how to approach your marketing effort. She will identify areas where you spend too much time and areas where you don’t do what you need to do to capture today’s clients. This session will teach you how to brand yourself and your company, develop mission statements, use social media to your advantage, get published, get on TV and do a radio show. You will walk away with new ways to WOW your clients and gain new ones. Presented by: Margi Kyle, The Designing Doctor, designingdr@gmail.com
2:30 - 3:30pm
Reduce Delivery Costs & Provide Better Quality of Service Using the Latest Technology
This presentation will show you how technology can help you simplify the delivery process while reducing your costs. You will also be able to see how building customers’ trust, and maintaining that confidence through an exceptional delivery process, can create a repeat customer for years to come. Presented by: Satish Natarajan, Dispatch Track, satish@dispatchtrack.com
4:00 - 5:00pm
Manage Your Salespeople by the “Numbers”
The best sales managers train their salespeople to manage themselves. To manage themselves they must know how well they are performing each day. In this seminar, you’ll learn how to get your salespeople to track their own ups, sales volume, average sale and closing rates. When your salespeople know how well they’re doing they’ll be able to improve their selling behaviors. Participants will receive our Sales Tracker tool to share with their salespeople. Presented by: Mark Lacy, The Furniture Training Company, markl@furnituretrainingcompany.com 38
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Market Highlights
NAHFA MARKET SEMINARS SERIES
1st Floor of Plaza Suites - 222 South Main St.
8:30 - 9:30am
NOW
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 22
Retailer Resource Center at High Point Market
Old School vs. New School Marketing
A lot of people talk about old school vs. new school marketing. Which way works better? Social media is for the younger crowd, newspaper is for the older customer, and what the heck are Pinterest, Vine and Instagram? Brothers Kyle and Kevin Doran dare you to take on the long-standing battle of older brother vs. younger brother. However, this time the spat is over how to utilize old school media vs. new school media. You might just be surprised how this one ends up! Presented by: Kyle & Kevin Doran, R&A Marketing, kyle@ramarketing.com – sponsored by RetailerNOW Magazine
11:30am - 12:30pm
Benefits of Outsourcing Home Delivery
In this engaging seminar, you will learn the ease with which utilizing third party home delivery can streamline your business, use your money more efficiently and create a rewarding experience for your customers. Using a third party delivery service can elevate a huge burden from your shoulders and you can focus on running your store better. Presented by: Richard Klein, Cory 1st Choice Home Delivery, RichardKlein@corycompanies.com
1:00 - 2:00pm
Hear Customers, Focus Resources, Grow Profits
Learn how to leverage the most important asset your business has, your customer base. Let them tell you what is working, what is not working, how to improve your advertising efficiency, how to improve your merchandising and how to improve your operations and service. Al Wight, President of industry research at consulting company Strategic Decisions guides you through a way to learn exactly what is going on in your market, who your competitors really are and how to get more customers like those you have. Presented by: Alvin Wight, Strategic Decisions, awight@sdiresearch.com
2:30 - 3:30pm
5 Ways to Increase Mattress Sales
Emboldened shoppers are not paying as much attention to what manufacturers and retailers are saying about their products or themselves. Instead, they rely on customer reviews and word of mouth from their peers to determine what, and where, to buy. Mattress retailers can’t afford for these savvy shoppers to have bad experiences. Attend this informative and entertaining seminar to learn five ways to turn wary shoppers into satisfied customers that will spread the good word about your store. Presented by: Gerry Morris, Inner Spring, gmorris@innerspring.net
NAHFA MARKET SEMINARS SERIES
Every High Point Market in the Retailer Resource Center 1st Floor of Plaza Suites | 222 South Main St., High Point, NC
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NOW Market Highlights See us at RRC booth 39
See us at RRC booth 35
Looking for more customers? Go to Banner Marketing (Booth #35) at the Resource Center for solutions to help accelerate your business.
Enter to win an iPad mini.
See us at RRC booth 43
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See us at RRC booth 4
www.retailerNOWmag.com
Market Highlights
See us at RRC booth 25
See us at RRC booth 13
See us at RRC booth 36
See us at RRC booth 37
www.retailerNOWmag.com O C T O B E R | 2 0 1 3
NOW
41
NOW Market Highlights See us at RRC booth 5
See us at RRC booth 42
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See us at RRC booth 3
See us at RRC booths 6 & 7
www.retailerNOWmag.com
Market Highlights
See us at RRC booth 11
See us at RRC booths 20 & 21
See us at RRC booth 15
See us at RRC booths 1 & 2
1993 - 2013
NOW
2
YEARS
+ web design & hosting. + mobile iPad app. + ecommerce solution. solutions@microdinc.com www.microdinc.com 800-964-3876
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NOW Market Highlights See us at RRC booth 9
See us at RRC booth 12
Retail Displays & Point Of Purchase Signage For The Furniture & Mattress Industry
Sales are up
30%
* Sofa Select, Google Case Study (8.13)
Our online ads work. 77.770.MOSO 503.719.6867 | 1.8
| Shop.MosoGraphics.c
om
See us at RRC booths 40 & 41
800.940.4351 netsertive.com/furniture
See us at RRC booth 17
THINK MOBILE
1-800-676-4243 • sales@myriadsoftware.com • www.myriadsoftware.com
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Market Highlights
See us at RRC booths 22 & 23
NOW
See us at RRC booth 12
Your complete lighting source
We bring life to your showroom through experience and innovation. We provide lighting design, fixtures and lamps from the world’s best manufacturers. Service Lamp is your complete lighting source for new construction, remodeling, maintenance and operations.
LEDs in stock for immediate shipment! Call us today at 800-222-LAMP
See us at RRC booths 16 & 31
See us at RRC booth 24
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NOW Market Highlights See us at RRC booth 10
See us at RRC booth 32
HIGH POINT MARKET
FEATURED VENDOR for Merchant Services
Please contact the (NHFA) National Home Furniture Association or the representative below for more information. Trekstone Financial Corporation Rob Oliver PH: (480) 385-7513 CELL: (480) 203-9934 FAX: (888) 488-8842
Endorsed by
www.trekstonefinancial.com See us at RRC booth 14
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See us at RRC booths 19 & 28
www.retailerNOWmag.com
At the RETAILER RESOURCE CENTER you’ll find benefits & business solutions from industry service providers to help grow your business and your bottom line. RETAILER LOUNGE
STAIRS
Plaza Suites | 1st Floor | 222 S. Main Street
ADVERTISING/MARKETING/WEBSITES
TO RESTROOMS
Advertising Concepts of America . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 15
14
16
31
17
30
Banner Marketing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 B&B - Banker & Brisebois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Fisher Printing, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
12
SEMINAR ROOM
11
STORAGE
13
CONF A
10
9
18
29
32
8
19
28
33
7
20
27
34
6
21
26
35
5
22
25
36
4
23
24
2
40
1
39
BUSINESS CONSULTING FurnitureCore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 JRM Sales & Management, Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Impact Consulting Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Profitability Consulting Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
FINANCIAL SERVICES GE Capital . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Trekstone Financial. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
PRODUCTS & SERVICES Furniture Training Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Knorr Marketing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 North American Home Furnishings Assoc. . . 18, 29 Service Lamp Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
SOFTWARE 37
3
Flonomics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 FurnitureDealer.net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Mail America . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20, 21 Moso Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Netsertive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 R&A Marketing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16, 31 Tropic Survival Advertising & Marketing . . . . . . . 14 VividWorks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19, 28
Dispatch Track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Furniture Wizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 MicroD, Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1, 2 Myriad Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40, 41 PROFITsystems, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22, 23 STORIS Management Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
41
WAREHOUSE & DELIVERY
42
Cory 1st Choice Home Delivery. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Diakon Logistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 United Steel Storage, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
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ENTRANCE
Brought to you by
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NORTH AMERICAN ASSOCIATION
HFA
New England Chapter
Serving a Nationwide Network of Furniture Retail Businesses Designed to Ensure You Are Profitable, Informed & Heard Created and Led by Retailers for Retailers The Best Choice for Your Business! www.nahfa.org Come see what we’re all about! Retailer Resource Center First Floor - Plaza Suites Building South Main Street, High Point October 19-24, 2013
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"Having the traffic they (Wayfair) brings to the site, I wanted to capture those leads into our store. I've been tracking it with Google Analytics. We've definitely gotten some traffic from it." —Seth Weisblatt, Sam's Appliances & Furniture, Fort Worth, Texas
The NEW North American Home Furnishings Association Now offering you MORE than ever. Call today 800-422-3778 for a FREE savings calculation!
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"Within the last three weeks, I have responded to three of the emails on member programs and taken advantage of the particular benefit/savings being offered. You all are doing a fantastic job with the promotions and I just wanted to say “thank you” from a retailer perspective and “kudos” from a board member perspective!! Keep up the great work!”
Casey Evans Davis, CPA, Pedigo Furniture, Inc.
Join or renew your Association membership today and start enjoying the benefits of belonging. Whether you are looking for great financing rates, first class education or a community of peers, your Association provides it all.
(800) 422-3778
nahfa.org
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Market Preview
Special Advertising Section
Merchandising Omnia
The timeless design of the Stetson is the focal point of any room setting. With its classic yoke design, personalized comfort is achieved by offering a designer leather inlay. The numerous leather options combined with different seating comfort options gives the Stetson the attention it deserves in any setting. Sofa dimensions are 92L x 39H x 42D.
Omnia Phone: (909) 393-4400 Fax (909) 393-4401 Founding Member: SFC: Sustainable Furnishings Council Website: omnialeather.com Website: americanelegancefurniture.com NEW High Point Showrooms: IHFC Main Bldg D1102 & D1141
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Cresent Fine Furniture
Hudson is an urban contemporary design in solid wire-brushed oak featuring a cantilevered platform bed with floating pier nightstands. Paired with sleek cases on inset plinth bases, Hudson is available in two textured finishes, a light cerused Sand and a Black Tea with graphite cerusing. Custom T-bar pulls in a white bronze finish complete the look.
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• • • Being portable for sales, inventory or business analytics is key for any Home Furnishings retailer. Using a PC, tablet or smart phone to work inside or outside of your store is critical in this day and age of technology.
THINK MOBILE
Your designer meets in the customer’s home to create the shopping cart and check inventory availability for delivery. The warehouse staff needs to quickly receive an item to load it on the delivery truck. The owner or manager is traveling and wants to get a quick glance of their daily or monthly business analytics. All of this can be done with a tablet or smartphone. Myriad Software understands how important it is to be mobile. Whether it’s to close a sale or review the important aspects of your business, a tablet or smartphone will provide access to your business management system in or outside of your daily operation. So if you’re looking for a business system that allows you to work when you’re in your operation and on the go, think Eclicktic™ and Eclicktic™ BE Mobile. Contact a Myriad Software sales representative @ sales@myriadsoftware.com
Please stop by and see us at the High Point Market Plaza Suites, 1st. Floor NAHFA Retailer Resource Center
October 19 - 24, 2013
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Next Gen NOW Member Spotlight
Getting to Know the Next Gen Next Generation NOW (NGN or Next Gen NOW) is a community of young, passionate and engaged home furnishings professionals. Next Gen NOW seeks to give a voice to the unique needs of future generations entering the workforce to educate the industry on how to attract and keep young talent. Connect with members online at ngnow.org or on twitter @ngnow.
T
he furniture industry gets younger every year. In order to embrace the new generation of retailers and welcome them into the business, RetailerNOW features a different member of the Next Generation NOW social network in every issue. Next Generation NOW is the premiere social scene for the new era of furniture professionals. Join the conversation at social.ngnow.org!
For this month’s spotlight, we introduce 30-year-old Matt Huber, of Belfort Furniture in Dulles, Virginia.
: Tell me about your industry history. MH: Like a lot of people who grew up in a family business, I have
been around it for most of my life. I got into the business very briefly after college doing sales, then I left and went to work for the U.S. Green Building Council to get some outside work experience. I came back and have done various merchandising and ecommerce website related projects for the past six or seven years now.
: Do you think your experience outside the industry has been more beneficial to you than if you had stayed? MH: I think so. I was glad to have some outside experience. It was in the non-profit world; I ended up working with a number of people who had their own businesses. A lot of them were architects and engineers, and it inspired me to want to be involved in the side of the business where you actually get to make some decisions instead of just advocating for things.
: How is Belfort’s blog and website different from what other stores may be doing? MH: Having a good social media presence is a lot of work. We
have someone on staff that writes content for our blog and will work with all our different departments to learn what customers are asking about, as well as manage campaigns, and really tries to think about how to turn everything into content for the website, Facebook, and all of those things.
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Furniture retail is still a fashion industry; there are so many good stories to tell out there. But if you don’t focus on that, you don’t look good on your website. And if you don’t look good on your website, customers aren’t going to come into the store. That’s one of the things I’ve seen that’s really changed since I’ve been involved. Before, a lot of people would start looking for furniture by going to a couple stores they’ve heard of before. Now, so much time is spent looking at pictures of product on a website. A lot of our focus is trying to figure out how to get people over the hump to come try the furniture out instead of flipping through at 2 a.m. saying, “Wow, I wish I had that sofa!” We know people want these things, but how do you get them excited and eager to make the purchases? For our ecommerce (we started this year), almost 100 percent of the sales have been within our local trading area. The things people are buying online are really straightforward and inexpensive; it only fills a need. But for the majority of our sales as a store, we sell at higher price points. Customers really want to sit on that sofa and see what the difference is between $1,000 and $1,500— because there are major differences. Everything looks the same on the computer screen, so you end up selling the cheaper item there.
technology?
: How else does your store integrate
MH: All of our sales staff have iPads, so they’re able to reference
price lists, check inventory, look up manufacturers’ websites and get all the specs right there while they’re working with a customer. We have public Wi-Fi access throughout our whole campus because everyone has their smartphones with them. They want to look up product information and know if they’re getting a good price and if the stuff has positive reviews or a reputation online. If they don’t do it in your store, they’re going to go home and do those same searches. We’re trying to make it as transparent and straightforward as possible and adapt to that reality. A very simple thing we’ve done was centralizing all of our price lists onto a main server for everyone to access. It’s made holiday weekends a lot easier because people aren’t scrambling around
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looking for catalogs. That minor tweak has made the back-office stuff a lot easier. We also have a lot of prices and stock status listed on our website. It’s something that consumers can look at but even our salespeople use the same tool.
:What do you think are the biggest challenges that store owners face today? MH: There are so many! There are so many opportunities, too. How quickly the retail landscape is changing is affecting how we do our sales training and how the consumer is shopping on all of the different avenues. We have to choose where it is important to actually invest and make the efforts versus just spinning our wheels and spending all this time on a website that doesn’t make a difference. It feels like the speed of change on the retail side has been pretty quick. With something like furniture, it’s so big; we haven’t been affected as quickly as something like booksellers with Amazon.com. I look at other retail industries and try to figure out what it is these physical showrooms do. What makes them important to the buying process? And that’s something we keep our focus on. What’s the best consumer experience going to be? It’s having a nice showroom, having an educated staff and having the best price you’re going to be able to find in all different channels. Having that mix is hard to do. You have to invest, but at the same time you have to be there to compete.
: What challenges have you personally faced as part of the next generation? MH: The retail schedule in general, working a lot of weekends, if
not all weekends as a salesperson, is hard when you have friends who have 9-5, Monday-Friday jobs. A real barrier for our industry in general is trying to figure out how to get people to see furniture as a career and get the next generation involved when a lot of retail jobs aren’t seen that way anymore. They’re seen as something you do for a year or two until you get some other job. On our HR and recruiting side, we’re trying to figure out what the retail job of the future looks like so people have a work-life balance, but you’re also getting top staff and skilled people who care about design. That’s one of the harder things we face.
:What led you to join Next Generation NOW? MH: I found out about the organization through different
retailers who are trying to engage with this whole multichannel retail thing and get a grip on it in general. A lot of times it’s something given to the younger generation to figure out how it will impact the business and what we need to do. We were all trying to figure out some of the same challenges of how ecommerce and social media impacts a retail store. I think having those conversations is important. It’s a diverse ecosystem and we still haven’t figured it out. That’s why Next Generation NOW is important—because the furniture industry needs to really have serious conversations about these things. I don’t want furniture to turn into a commodity like a book, and if everything goes to websites, that’s what could happen. But I don’t think we’re going to go there.
:What advice do you have for new retailers? MH: The most important thing is to visit a lot of different
stores, and that’s not just checking up on your competition. I always get excited and inspired by displays at boutique stores, and then also at a warehouse club. See how exciting it feels to say, “Wow, there’s a pallet of this book that seems like a great deal, even though I don’t want to buy this book!” You still feel like it’s a great deal. What’s important is to learn from as many different retailers as possible and bring back the best ideas from across all different industries.
One thing we’re trying to do at Belfort is to bring in younger folks, a more diverse group, into all different aspects and departments of our company. We certainly are starting to sell to these younger groups of people and we need to have employees who know what it’s like. All generations are still going to want to have beautiful homes, and I think it’s really important that our industry keeps making furniture as exciting as possible— because nothing’s as exciting as buying a new house and really being able to make it yours. Our stores need to be as exciting as that experience. Retailers will be successful if we can match that feeling.
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Team up with an agency that knows furniture.
USA
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Fresh Perspectives
OK, wait a minute here. This week only? I heard the same ad last week! And come on, selling below cost? That has to be the worst business strategy on the planet. People are smarter than that. There is no credibility in loud claims that defy logic. Over the years, I have seen a general distrust of any advertising claim made in the furniture industry because they are inundated with information that simply does not make sense. People are skeptical, and with reason. So what does any of this have to do with word-of-mouth? The concept is nothing new. In fact, it has become a cliché. “There’s no better form of advertising than word-of-mouth.” We’ve all heard it. We’ve all said it. Word-of-mouth is about one thing: Trust. When someone you know and trust makes a recommendation of a business, there is an inherent credibility.
Word of Mouth 2.0
Just like any form of advertising, word-of-mouth needs a welldeveloped plan. One of the biggest misconceptions about WOM advertising is that it is free. While it may not have a dollar cost associated with it, there is plenty of sweat equity that goes into developing a campaign.
As much as I hate to say it, the furniture industry is known for loud, over-thetop, obnoxious advertising. Furniture retailers large and small have adopted the Monster Truck Rally-style ads screaming, “This weekend only! We’ve slashed prices below our cost! Don’t miss this once in a lifetime opportunity!” Then we hear the same ad, week in and week out.
An effective WOM strategy begins with having a strong customer appeal. If a customer likes and trusts the people they deal with, they are more likely to spread the word. There are several ways to build trust and likeability, or conversely several ways to ensure a lack thereof. A fair price is typically one of the first things a customer will look for, and recommend based on. It’s not necessarily critical to have the absolute lowest price, but if a customer finds the same item for half price elsewhere, all credibility is instantly shot. The interaction with the salesperson is possibly equally important. High-pressure sales tactics and rude or apathetic employees are an immediate turn off to most customers. Finally, once the sale is complete, providing a high level of service is critical. With furniture, there are often several interactions after the initial sale. Customers’ expectations for deliveries and assemblies should be set. Deliveries should be timely, and if any issues like delivery delays or back orders occur, customers should be communicated with. Things can and will go wrong from time to time. If handled properly, customers will typically be very forgiving. Sometimes, this can even form a stronger bond with the customer if they see the issues being handled and resolved.
by Gates Adams
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Fresh Perspectives
Gates Adams, owner of GAC Furniture in Orange County, Calif., opened his first small furniture shop in the Dallas, Texas, area in 1999. His focus in the furniture business has always been to operate as efficiently as possible, keeping costs very low, and always being in control of customer service and satisfaction. With the effectiveness of traditional print advertising waning, one of Gates' primary focus over the last several years has been harnessing the power of the internet to generate free and low cost traffic to his business.
Adopting this “do the right thing” policy may seem obvious, but a business that truly implements these concepts will stand out from the competition. While this is critical to an effective WOM campaign, it is only the foundation. It may lead to the occasional referral, but truly developing a WOM campaign is about taking a satisfied customer and driving specific actions from them that will lead to measurable traffic and sales. Just like any other advertising campaign, it must be adhered to on a daily basis, and the number of impressions is directly proportionate to the campaign’s success.
free delivery, would you be willing to like my Facebook page and post that you got a great deal here?” Even if they don’t ask for a discount, an offer of an upgrade or free sheets can work. Offering free low-cost products or low-cost upgrades can cost as little as $10 to $20, but can provide a personalized and trusted recommendation to hundreds of people, maybe more. Even a business that has as little as three or four customers a day can reach 1,000 new potential customers daily with a consistent effort towards this strategy.
A direct recommendation from a friend is obviously very powerful, however these recommendations are typically only sent out once per customer. Online reviews can carry almost as much weight as a recommendation from a trusted friend, as the reviewer is viewed as an impartial source. Although a review may not reach as many people immediately, they are permanent testimonials that can be seen by new potential customers for years. Review sites like Yelp! and Google Pages offer an opportunity for customers to independently review a business and even tell their story. More and more shoppers will look to these sites first when considering a purchase, An effective WOM campaign will never reach its potential in today’s and many will say that these review sites are the primary decisionworld without the use of social media. Modern technology has cre- making tool for major purchases. ated an opportunity that has never before existed. Ten years ago, a typical person might communicate with a handful of people on In an industry like furniture, there is so much competition out a daily basis. Now, through Facebook, Twitter and other forms of there, and such an overwhelming amount of advertising, that social media, most of us communicate with literally hundreds, and it’s hard for customers to know where to turn. By implementing a consistent WOM strategy to be used in conjunction with sometimes thousands of people every single day! traditional advertising methods, retailers of any size can add a Harnessing the power of social media is truly as simple as asking. measurable amount of additional business to their bottom line. Modern phones allow users to access their social media accounts In today’s market, any small advantage can mean the difference any time, anywhere. Often, during a transaction, customers will between success and failure. There is a huge opportunity to take ask for a discount or free delivery or assembly. This is a perfect op- advantage of, and businesses that proactively utilize the resources portunity to respond with something like, “If I was able to give you that are at our fingertips will learn to thrive in any economy. Many years ago, I was taught to communicate with customers after a sale. A short but personal thank you note with a few business cards tucked inside would give the then satisfied customer a reminder to pass your information on to their friends and family. I’d love to say I have stacks of thank you cards sitting on my desk and that I make my daily run to the post office to send them out. I’d be lying if I did. In 2013, there are much better ways to drive the same behaviors, more effectively and consistently, and with less effort on the part of the business and the customer.
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Grant Laidlaw VP of Sales Eric Clarke President
Locations: Puyallup, WA Mira Loma, CA • Morganton, NC Fax: 828-764-4461 • Phone: 855-208-6377 Email: sales@NWFXpress.com
The Northwest Furniture Transportation Leader
Please contact Grant Laidlaw VP Sales at 778-549-3188 or glaidlaw@nwfxpress.com to reviewO your transportation needs. www.retailerNOWmag.com 60 C TOBER | 2013
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Product Focus
All images courtesy of Organic Mattresses, Inc.
Organic Mattresses Could Spark New Trend En route to your friendly neighborhood supermarket
chain, you are bound to spot a handful of small, local fresh food markets, organic wellness centers and larger health-conscious chain stores like Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s. In recent years, it has become undeniable that consumers are more and more aware of the need for healthier options in the marketplace—so much so that the organic industry accounts for a whopping $33 billion in sales each year.
With the Organic Trade Association reporting more than 70 percent of families in the country regularly purchasing organic products, there is a massive and relatively untapped opportunity for retailers and manufacturers alike to bring those options to bedding and mattresses. Simply put, consumers have a clear understanding of the immense health benefits associated with organic product. The food industry currently offers organic options on a widespread scale and, slowly but surely, other niche markets are expanding their product bases to give consumers the healthy options they seek. So, why not the home furnishings industry? There is no question that consumers choose organic products when they are made available to them. However, the issue is that consumers aren’t actually offered that choice when it comes to sleep products. Retailers often do not fully understand the value of certified organic materials and many consumers—90 percent—aren’t fully aware that organic mattress options are even available to them. Many products on the market attempt to pass at being “green” without having the research or certification to back up those claims. A truly organic product is one that is third-party certified,
by Walt Bader
guaranteeing that from the factory to manufacturer, the material conforms to specific sustainable and humane processing and practices. A definite barrier to large-scale organic mattress availability lies in the price of pure products, as any consumer who walks into a Whole Foods can attest to. Even so, the chain recently reported a downshift in pricing on their products, as well as efforts in implementing discount deals and flash sales to increase traffic. Overall, the organic sector is shifting toward a more mainstream foothold in the consumer market and has been growing at a steady rate of 20 percent per year. While organic materials tend to drive prices higher than those of non-organic product, the key benefits of the materials are worth the added spending. Innovation, comfort and sustainability are at the heart of every organic mattress. The purity of these materials as well as the environmental impact balance out the price. The bottom line with mattress shopping lies in comfort—combining comfort with health lets consumers sleep easier at night. Pure, certified organic materials eliminate harmful toxins, chemicals and gases, and tend to be antibacterial and hypoallergenic. If recent trends are any indication, consumers are calling for a more diverse marketplace. If given a choice, consumers will put their money and their health into certified organic products. Walt Bader is president and founder of Organic Mattresses, Inc. (OMI), an author and a pioneer in bringing healthier, organic sleep products to the bedding market. OMI is the largest seller of U.S. sourced and manufactured organic mattresses on the continent. In 2013, OMI became the first mattress manufacturer to obtain the Global Organic Latex Standard, certifying the company’s latex mattress cores are fully organic. For more information, visit www.omimattress.com.
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What's Selling
What’s Selling Every month, What’s Selling Now features best-sellers from across the country, in different styles, categories and price points. Here’s what’s selling now. Submitted By: Marty Cramer Store Name: Cramer’s Home Furnishings Location: Ellensburg, Washington Manufacturer: Porter International Designs Product Name: Brookside Dining Set Is the product: Made in America: No Warehouse Ready: Yes Retail Cost: $1,999.99 for a 7-piece set Why do you think it is a successful seller? It is well made, has a great finish and is a good look for our market. How soon is the product available from the manufacturer? Ships in 2-3 days
Submitted By: Tom Slater Store Name: Slater’s Home Furnishings Location: Modesto, California Manufacturer: Century Furniture Product Name: Cornerstone Upholstery Program Is the product: Made in America – Yes Retail Cost: Sofas start at $2,799 Why do you think it is a successful seller? It’s completely special order with almost unlimited options.
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KINCAID FURNITURE
M O R E T H A N Y O U M AY T H I N K .
With our traditional craftsmanship and attention to detail, Kincaid Furniture is the #1 solid wood furniture maker in the country. But did you know we also have casual-transitional styles, beautiful upholstered furniture, customized furniture options and new collections for 2014? Visit us at High Point Market (IHFC H1204) or at KincaidFurniture.com to see for yourself.
SOLID WOOD
NEW STYLES FOR 2014
UPHOLSTERED FURNITURE
LEADING SALES TOOLS
Community Today
Conversations
Technology-Assisted Sales
I
n an era where technology is the name of the game yet face-to-face is still an important part of the business, is there a way both can live happily ever after? Technology has become so ingrained in our culture that customers expect retailers to be on top of everything—and technology is often the tool used. We asked two experts to weigh in on how they feel technology has helped furniture retailers manage their business and, more importantly, helped deliver outstanding customer service that can be realized in their bottom line.
Meet the Experts Martin Fischbein, president of Furniture Wizard Software, provides software and technology solutions to furniture retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers. He has been involved in the retail furniture, television and appliance industry for more than 30 years. Charley H. Darsey is president of George E. Darsey & Co., a furniture retail operation in Grapeland, Texas, celebrating 127 years in business this year. Darsey is the fourth generation to own and operate the business his great-grandfather opened. Fittingly, Darsey spoke to us using his iPad on the sales floor. : How do you feel the best stores use technology (whether it's an iPad, iPhones, etc.) to help in the overall customer experience?
MF: Stores taking advantage of technology today are delivering a customer experience that’s unparalleled. The ability to have timely and relevant information at the sales associates’ fingertips adds to the efficiency of the furniture buying experience. CD: I agree. We use technology in almost every aspect of our business. My salespeople have iPads that we furnish and we have an iPhone in our delivery truck that is connected to our blog. Customers love to see photos of homes on our blog with new furniture we’ve delivered that are taken by our delivery teams. On the sales floor, the iPads are used as a tool, not a crutch, for several reasons:
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by Megy Karydes
The sales staff can easily look up all inventory stock. Sales can write up a temporary invoice and print to a wireless printer from the iPad so when the customer comes to the register to pay, all of the items are already on paper. When we are really busy, that is extremely useful. My best salespeople can keep selling and I have designated people to finish the paperwork and do the magic of collecting the money from the customer. From the iPad, we use our website to build a wish list on the sales floor for the customer when they need to "think about it." We can send them a copy electronically and we include manufacturer model numbers because at that point, if the customer wants to shop, we are confident in our business to provide them the best product at the best price out there. Our website also includes the measurements of the item so a customer has that information to measure the space to be sure it will fit in their home. We stock around 120 different sofa sets, 30 different mattress sets and more than 35 bedroom sets, so we have a huge selection for a small town. We feed off other larger towns around us. I hope we don’t have to go to a catalog but when we do we keep them up-todate on our Network Attached Storage (NAS) that we have connected to our iPads so we can all share those files whether it is a price sheet or a catalog. With the iPad, my salespeople can contact me directly if I am on vacation or on the sales floor with another customer and ask me any question they need to help that customer, without the customer knowing.
Community Today
I can tell you exactly what our best selling day is and what the best selling hour of the week is and that’s very useful to any retailer. —Charley H. Darsey, president of George E. Darsey & Co.
: What do you think retailers could do better in terms of technology and the customer experience? CD: The furniture industry seems to be the slowest industry to move toward technology. Manufacturers that have the ability to purchase online sell more furniture (to me anyway). That does not mean you cannot sell a piece of furniture without the technology—technology just helps both the manufacturer and the retailer.
have to abandon the customer to retrieve catalogs or call the warehouse to inquire about availability, your customers are not receiving the fast, efficient, informative experience they desire. CD: I agree, but I also think it’s important not to let technology get in the way of talking to a customer and learning what the customer wants to buy from you. I felt so strongly about this that I took the iPads away from my salespeople for a while because I wanted them to listen to the customer. I think they like the fact that we use the latest innovation available to help them make informed decisions, but that does not replace the human factor. It has to be used as a tool, not a crutch.
MF: Many furniture retailers we talk to are hesitant to take advantage of technology because they are under the impression that it will be too expensive. With hardware costs continuing to drop, the upfront costs of implementing technology have never been lower. If a retailer does not take : Do you feel incorporating technology helps the time to learn about, implement and embrace technology, a retailer’s bottom line, even though there may be a costly they are giving their competitors a huge advantage. investment during the initial set-up process? : What are some easy, cost-effective ways retailers can incorporate technology into the buying CD: Yes! Pick a program where the start up costs are not excessive and the learning curve is not that steep. At a minimum, experience? it should offer inventory tracking, customer tracking so you CD: That’s the hard one. First, you have to appreciate tech- can learn when you’re busy and can plan help to cover your nology before you can appreciate the cost and benefit. In busiest times, what sells the best and which manufacturer 1994, my wife and I converted a 108-year-old family-owned sells the best. business from the old huge posting machine and ledger to a computer system. In 2000, we purchased Furniture Wizard MF: The main benefit technology provides is quick access to and QuickBooks and now we can say we have a great way timely information. Your inventory can work harder requirto track our business, our customer purchases and how well ing less warehouse space, and then turn faster, generating a manufacturer or item sells. I can tell you exactly what our more profit. best selling day is and what the best selling hour of the week A final word from Darsey: “By the way, I am no expert. I just is and that’s very useful to any retailer. get to enjoy great customers.” Darsey may rely heavily on : What do you feel customers appreciate the technology but he and Fischbein know that customer service most when it comes to technology? Is it access to infor- is and always will be the best way to earn your customer’s mation, fast processing, the ability to make informed business and loyalty. Technology is just one great way to provide exceptional customer service. decisions or something else entirely? MF: All of the above. Today’s younger consumers have grown up with search engines and Google. When sales associates
Megy Karydes is a freelance writer who is always on the hunt for great stories. Contact her at KarydesConsulting.com.
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New Media Best Practices
I
t seems that almost every generation has talked about the old-school against new-school mentality. We have all heard our grandparents and even our parents talk about what it was like when they were kids and how easy the generation before them had it. Come on, we all know the famous saying, “When I was a kid I had to walk five miles uphill through five feet of snow to school.” I’m sure this next generation will say, “When I was a kid I had to wait for AOL to connect through dial up.”
What does this story tell you? It says a lot. It points out the differences in the current generations and the old-school vs. new-school marketing mentality. For the first time in our nation’s history, we are proactively advertising to five unique generations. All of these generations shop and communicate differently. We all understand how old-school marketing works and what it entails, however, we need to understand what new-school marketing is. It can be defined as “any vehicle where the consumer controls the end message to the marketer and where the feedback can mean money and interaction.”
What media does this entail? • Social Media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Google Plus) • Review Websites (Yelp, Google Places, InsiderPages) • Consumer comments and reviews on websites
Start out today with your new-school marketing with the following helpful new media best practices:
Attract social leads with offers • A like, tweet or pin is not free—talking to them after is free
Use social media to engage with your email subscribers • The single greatest way you can get fan/follower growth: Your email signature. Add your website and social media links to the end of every email.
Ask your audience anything
• Asking taps into the human nature of people who are online and participating in social media—the urge to be heard.
Like your customers on Facebook • Facebook and brands are less about advertising and much more about creating, nurturing and developing a more direct relationship between individuals and the brands that serve them.
Listen 100 percent of the time • Talk about yourself 10 percent of the time, engage with others about what matters to them 90 percent of the time and listen 100 percent of the time.
Share content that resonates with your audience • Everything should resonate and strike a chord, in one way or another (usually in a positive way), with your audience.
Remember, it is not just about driving your customers to your social media it is about establishing the interaction once you get them there. Quick-Fire Marketing is brought to you by R&A Marketing. Armed with more than 25 years of furniture retail marketing experience as a full-service traditional and digital marketing company, R&A is the industry’s premier agency for retailers in the home furnishings and appliances/electronics industries. Visit us on the web at www.ramarketing.com or email us at info@ramarketing.com.
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THANK YOU
Our Association gratefully recognizes all of our supporters whose dedication and committment has strengthened our industry. Advertising Concepts of America AICO/Amini Innovation Corp. American Express American Leather Ashley Furniture Industries, Inc. Aspenhome Associated Volume Buyers Becker Designed, Inc. Bernards, Inc. Best Buy for Business Best Home Furnishings Braxton Culler, Inc. Cargo Consolidation Services Century Furniture Coaster Company of America Cory Home Delivery Service DĂŠcor-Rest Furniture Ltd. Diakon Logistics DSI Companies Ekornes Elements International Elite Leather Emerald Home Furnishings Fairmont Designs Flexsteel Furniture of America Furniture Wizard FurnitureDealer.net GE Capital Great American Furniture Services Guardian Products Guardsman/The Valspar Corp.
Harden Furniture Company High Point Market Authority Holland House Homelegance USA HFB Magazine Horich Hector Lebow Advertising Consulting Services, Inc. Innovative Delivery Systems Jofran Sales, Inc. Julius M. Feinblum Real Estate, Inc. Kincaid King Hickory Furniture Co Lane Home Furnishings Lazar Industries Lea Leggett & Platt Liberty Furniture Lifestyle Enterprises Linon Home DĂŠcor Products Magnussen Home Mail America Massood Logistics Med-Lift Mobility MicroD, Inc. Mohawk Finishing Products, Inc. Myriad Software Natuzzi Americas, Inc. NetSertive Nourison Industries Okinus Credit Solutions Pacific Furniture Dealers
Phoenix A.M.D. International, Inc. PROFITsystems Protect-A-Bed Restonic Mattress Corp. Sandberg Furniture SAP Retail Serta Mattress Companies Simmons Shock Watch Sleep-Ezz Source International, Inc./4 Sales Finance Sphinx by Oriental Weavers Standard Furniture Steve Silver Co. STORIS Surya The TV Shield The Uttermost Company Tidewater Finance Company Trendwood, Inc. Tropic Survival Advertising & Marketing TruckSkin, LLC Twin Star/Classic Flame United Furniture Industries Valassis, Inc. Vaughan Furniture Co. Versatile Systems Wahlquist Management Corporation World Market Center Zenith Global
To become an industry partner contact: North American Home Furnishings Association 800.422.3778 or email: cwilliams@nahfa.org
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The Scoop
Described by company executive Jason Harris as the “nucleus” of the Furnitureland South business, the re-engineered Design Center is where customers select and customize furniture products, determine room layouts, and coordinate their furnishings purchases.
the scoop What’s going on with our retailers across the country
vvFurnitureland South Opens State-of-the-Art Design Center Furnitureland South launched its state-of-the-art Design Center filled with a range of sophisticated new high-tech tools and unique high end-styled, spa-inspired services, with a ribbon cutting on August 23. Described by company executive Jason Harris as the “nucleus” of the Furnitureland South business, the re-engineered Design Center is where customers select and customize furniture products, determine room layouts, and coordinate their furnishings purchases. The newly conceived and branded Design Center is a key selling point for prospective and targeted customers. “There’s nothing in the world like it,” said Harris, executive vice president. “We believe it’s a revolutionary concept that will improve the process of turning customer dreams into beautiful home interiors.”
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The Scoop
They now have the most creative environment possible in which to make their design selections. “We’ve created an Apple technology platform to ease information clients get a truer sense for how products will look in their gathering for our clients and staff, and which will additionally sup- own rooms when making design decisions. port our manufacturer-partners who are moving toward digitizing their catalogs or creating apps for viewing their products,” added The new Design Center offers a variety of workspaces to fit Harris. “Faster and easier are the key words for driving customer any design process or need, including large tables, countersales today.” height peninsula desks and casual conversation areas. The Located on the third floor of the main showroom building, the 17,000-square-foot Design Center consolidates all the resources that clients need to complete a home design project into one easy-to-use spot. The center provides instant access to hundreds of product catalogs as well as thousands of fabrics and finish samples from Furnitureland South’s 500-plus manufacturing vendors. In addition, the new Design Center incorporates a host of new electronic hardware, including interactive televisions that enable several people to conveniently view images and information together at the same time. Positioned at eye level in a number of collaborative workplaces, the TVs will be used to display images and videos of inspiring interior design applications and provide instant internet access for viewing manufacturer websites and other online resources. This technology provides a powerful resource for idea gathering, product selection, space planning and more, enhancing the design discussion and decision-making process. “We’re using technology and other enhancements to bring an entirely new level of service to our clients,” said Jason Harris, executive vice president of Furnitureland South. “Even details such as lighting and wall colors in the design center were selected to ensure the best design experience possible.” Lighting for the new Design Center was custom manufactured and balanced to deliver the most accurate viewing of colors and fabrics. The use of indirect light reflected down into the workspaces helps 70
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Design Center also features four private workrooms for use by clients on extended shopping trips or who are working large projects. Frosted glass doors in these workrooms let in natural light while the diffused glass ensures complete privacy. Along with improving the shopping experience, the new Design Center will enable Furnitureland South’s expert team of Design Consultants to be more efficient and ergonomic as they work. “But it’s our clients that ultimately benefit the most from these changes,” said Harris. “They now have the most creative environment possible in which to make their design selections. And they’ll receive the full, undivided attention and guidance from the best Design Consultants in the industry.” Furnitureland South’s new Design Center provides an ideal setting in which to help clients build a dream home, according to Harris. “We offer all the latest tools a client needs to make a confident choice about their new furnishings, backed by our unique Southern hospitality, which includes a Guest Services team that will do whatever it takes to help our clients feel at home,” he said. The retailer has posted a behind-the-scenes "Designing the Design Center" video on its website at www.furniturelandsouth.com/visit-us/design-center.aspx, providing visitors with an insider's look at the new space.
www.retailerNOWmag.com
The Scoop
vvBoyles Furniture and Rugs Opens New Connecticut Store Boyles Furniture and Rugs opened its second store since May, this time introducing the popular furniture retail brand to the Northeast U.S. A ribbon-cutting ceremony featuring local dignitaries and a public grand opening was held in August in Avon, Connecticut. With the U.S. economy recovering from its most recent downturn and a successful relaunch of the Boyles brand in North Carolina this spring, the revitalized brand and company are positioned for growth. “The North Carolina store is off to a great start, and we’ve been overwhelmed with the positive response from the community and surrounding areas,” said Mark Bannon, president of Boyles Furniture and Rugs. “We’re delighted to see and welcome our former friends and clients at the showroom, as well as many new customers. In the two-and-a-half months since the Mocksville grand opening, we’re excited to report strong sales that are exceeding our expectations.”
underwent renovations under the guidance of a partnership that includes Chad and Alex Hendricks, sons of the original owners of Boyles Furniture, and a group of investors headed by Gene Rosenberg, co-founder of Top 100 company Bob’s Discount Furniture and Planned Furniture Promotions. Gene Rosenberg is a current American Furniture Hall of Fame nominee. “The Farmington Valley area in Connecticut is a perfect location for the Boyles brand, concept and merchandise,” said Rob Rosenberg, executive vice president, Boyles Furniture and Rugs. “Several of the company owners reside locally and are aware of the unmet demand for mid- to high-end furniture at a value,” he added. “We’ve gathered a highly talented group of designers and sales personnel to serve and accommodate our customers’ needs.”
“It’s clear to us that the Boyles brand reputation and name resonates throughout the U.S. and abroad,” added Bannon. “We are working with customers as far away as the Middle East.”
The Avon store will carry many recognized brands in the upper-middle to high-end tier, including furnishings from Sherrill, Henredon, Maitland Smith, Drexel Heritage and Heirloom bedding, as well as Boyles-branded products. The Boyles Rug Gallery features high quality, hand-woven rugs.
The new, 22,000-square-foot store is located in central Connecticut, 20 minutes west of Hartford, at the corner of Rt. 44 and Rt. 10 in Avon. The former Nassau Furniture location
Plans for additional Boyles Furniture and Rugs locations, including free-standing and licensed rug galleries are in progress, according to Bannon.
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vvCity Furniture Opens “Green” Ashley Furniture HomeStore
“If you don’t hire us for your next promotional sale, your competitor will.” Chris Lynch, Co-CEO For nearly 100 years, the Lynch family has set the standard for honesty, integrity, and results by which other promotional sales companies are measured. So when it comes time to hold a promotional sale to clear out inventory, sell your business or exit it, look no further than Lynch Sales Company. After all, wouldn’t you rather hold a Lynch Sale than compete against one?
For a confidential reply of how a Lynch Sale can help your business, visit www.lynchpromise.com
Uncompromising integrity. Unparalleled resUlts . Serving the U.S., Canada and the U.K. Call (800) 824 - 2238 or www.LynchSales.com Copyright 2013 Lynch Brothers Licensing Corporation
City Furniture is adding new jobs and an industry-leading “green” showroom to the resurgent Palm Beach Lakes Blvd. retail corridor with the opening of a 35,000-square-foot Ashley Furniture HomeStore at 2101 Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard. “With the rebound in housing sales and prices, plus some key changes we’ve introduced in recent months, our sales are growing at the fastest rate since 2005,” said City Furniture President Keith Koenig. “We’re seeing all types of home buyers out shopping for new furniture—more first-time buyers and people finally able to sell their existing home and move into a larger or smaller one, depending on their stage in life,” he added. The new store is the third in a five-store regional expansion now underway by City Furniture, which is Ashley Furniture HomeStore’s licensee in southeast and southwest Florida. The company is moving its sales team from a smaller, temporary Ashley Furniture HomeStore location on Okeechobee Blvd. and adding 13 sales and support positions. The new store adjoins the existing City Furniture store that’s at 2121 Palm Beach Lakes Blvd., with a walk-through for customers’ convenience. The company will donate a portion of Grand Opening sales to Habitat for Humanity of Palm Beach County. Koenig said the new store’s high-value location was one of several the company purchased years ago on the belief that growth would come in its key markets. Construction of the nearby Palm Beach Outlets is confirming that vision, and Koenig said he expects the revitalized mall will be a major draw for the Palm Beach Lakes Blvd. shopping district as the economy recovers. City Furniture, South Florida’s top selling furniture retailer, has made strategic moves this year that Koenig said has helped drive sales up about 10 percent year-over-year in the region—the most competitive furniture market in the U.S. and globally. “We’ve added e-commerce so shoppers can purchase all City Furniture merchandise through our website, and our online business is the fastest growing segment,” he said. “We added Bernhardt galleries to our City Furniture showrooms and completely revamped our mattress line, adding Sleep Specialists to help customers get a better night’s sleep at the best values in Florida.” Another competitive factor: For all its City Furniture and Ashley Furniture HomeStore showrooms, the firm offers its hallmark Same Day Delivery 7 Days a Week. Locating City Furniture and Ashley Furniture HomeStore showrooms on adjoining or nearby sites in its existing
The Scoop
markets is City Furniture’s long-term strategy—an approach that’s already proving on-target, according to Koenig. “Our customer wants exceptional value, real respect for her time, and inspiring ideas in a range of styles. Opening Ashley Furniture HomeStore locations just steps from our City Furniture showrooms lets our customers and guests ‘drive once, shop twice’ for a richer shopping experience, with far more choices.” Reflecting the City Furniture team’s longstanding commitment to environmental stewardship, the new Ashley Furniture HomeStore was built by Miller Construction Company to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The retailer now has four locations built to stringent LEED standards, including its highprofile Boca Raton showrooms along I-95. A new City Furniture store, the firm’s fifth “green” location, opened in Cutler Bay in September. Send your latest news stories to jennifer@retailerNOWmag. com. We love to hear what’s going on with you.
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The Scoop
vvStarcke Furniture accepts Texas Treasure Business Award (This story originally appeared in the Seguin Gazette.)
State Rep. John Kuempel has recognized Starcke Furniture Co. of Seguin with a Texas Treasure Business Award from the Texas Historical Commission. The Texas Treasure Business Award program was created in 2005 to recognize well-established Texas businesses and their exceptional contributions to the state’s economic growth. Accepting the award were Hilmar H. Starcke III, Frank Starcke and their sister, Lalla Schmidt, and those attending included their children and grandchildren. Starcke Furniture Co. is a locally owned business that has had the same name, been the same company and has been operated by the same family as a furniture store for more than 100 years. The company regularly attends NAHFA’s annual Home Furnishings Industry Conference, and was previously involved with the Home Furnishings Independents Association before the merger with WHFA and NHFA.
Hilmar Starcke, Sr., grandfather of Hilmar, Frank and Lalla, started in the business in 1910-11 with Weisskopf & Starcke Furniture. He launched Starcke Furniture Co. in January 1912 with the store originally located in the 200 block of North Austin Street, a block that later became a parking lot for the bank across the street. Within a couple years of the store’s opening, Hilmar Sr. hired Atlee B. Ayers, the noted San Antonio architect, to build a store at 300 S. Austin. Company leadership went from Hilmar, Sr., to his son, Hilmar, Jr., and eventually to Hilmar III. “We’re at the tail end of all of it,” Hilmar said. The Starckes were presented a special plaque from the Texas Historical Commission and a proclamation presented by Campbell’s office. A special decal identifying Starcke Furniture Co. as a Texas Treasure also was awarded and will be displayed in the window of the furniture store.
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Find the RetailerNOW photo booth and join the fun.
Monday & Tuesday October 21 and 22 2 p.m. until 5 p.m. Pick up your photos and your invitation to Nourison's Martini Bar Cocktail Reception
Monday
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Government Relations
Government Relations
Swipe Fees and Your Business
Flash back four years ago—the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 was passed with the goal of amending the Truth in Lending Act and establishing fair and transparent credit card reform. Among other things, the Act called for a study on interchange or “swipe” fees—the money retailers pay each time consumers use a credit or debit card. A year later Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Consumer Protection and Wall Street Reform Act and the Durbin Amendment, which required the Federal Reserve to set regulations to reduce the debit swipe fees. Up until that point, the average fee per transaction was about 45 cents and industry estimates say the combined credit/debit swipe fees banks were raking in were triple the rates of the previous decade—a whopping $50 billion a year. Swipe fees can vary depending on the card and the retailer’s card volume. Regular, traditional cards have lower fees than premium and rewards cards. Fees are set by Visa and MasterCard and banks that issue those cards to consumers as either debit or credit cards agree to charge the same rates. Many in the retail industry have argued that this is a form of collusion to fix prices. The Federal Reserve was directed to set rates that were “reasonable” and “proportional” to the banks’ cost for processing transactions. Initially the proposed cap was to be 12 cents, but the Fed was persuaded by information provided by the banking community to set the cap at 21 cents for debit card swipe fees. Swipe fees are in place to cover the transaction costs, the banks’ overhead and the risk of fraud. Interestingly enough, about 80 countries, including those in the European Union, not only have lower swipe rates (.3 percent for
By Lisa Casinger
credit cards and a proposed .2 percent for debit cards), their cards also include chips, rather than our magnetic strips, that greatly reduce the risk of fraud.
been cited as one of
Why it matters
the fastest growing
Swipe fees have been cited as one of the fastest growing expenses for retailers, and the second highest operating cost behind labor. Retailers either have to absorb these costs (which, given the state of the economy and low margins, is nearly impossible to do) or pass the cost on to consumers by way of higher prices. It is estimated that the average household pays about $400 a year because of high swipe fees. For most businesses it would be suicide to refuse to accept Visa or MasterCard cards— be they debit or credit—because the majority of consumers today use plastic for their purchases. Some smaller businesses, however, have found ways to evade the swipe fee system altogether by using mounted card readers or online services. Each of these options have their own fee structure and they all transfer money through the Automated Clearing House.
Swipe fees have
expenses for retailers for the 21-cent cap to remain in place until the appeal process is complete. Retailers feel having the certainty of the 21-cent cap in the interim is better than creating the possibility that card issuers could try to charge whatever interchange fees they wish during the appeal process. By the time this issue goes to press, we may have a better idea whether the Fed will be required to revise the regulations. Watch the website for more information.
What’s happening now? This summer, U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon declared the Fed’s 21-cent cap too high and said it didn’t follow Congress’ directive as it was intended. Leon left the existing rates in place until the Fed could come up with a new plan and new lower rates. Leon had been pressing the Fed for quick action, stating he wanted revised regulations ready by the end of October. The Fed has decided to appeal his decision, and both the Fed and retailers have asked
Lisa Casinger is NAHFA’s government relations liaison. You can reach her at lcasinger@nahfa.org or (800) 422-3778.
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Calendar
Atlanta International Gift and Home Furnishings Market
KEM Furniture and Accessory Market
January 7-14, 2014
February 3-5, 2014
Atlanta, Georgia www.americasmart.com
Edison, New Jersey www.kemexpo.com
imm Cologne
Stockholm Furniture Fair
January 13-19, 2014
February 4-8, 2014
Long Beach, California www.kemexpo.com
Cologne, Germany www.imm-cologne.com
Stockholm, Sweden www.stockholmfurniturefair.com
ZOW Moscow
Dallas Total Home & Gift Market
Tupelo Furniture Market
November 18-22, 2013
January 15-21, 2014
February 6-9, 2014
Moscow, Russia zowmoscow.ru/en
Dallas, Texas
Tupelo, Mississippi www.tupelofurnituremarket.com
Showtime
Las Vegas Market
December 8-11, 2013
January 26-30, 2014
High Point, North Carolina www.showtime-market.com
Las Vegas, Nevada www.lasvegasmarket.com
High Point Market October 19-24, 2013 High Point, North Carolina www.highpointmarket.org
KEM Furniture and Accessory Market November 13-14, 2013
Poufs and Pillow by Nourison
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MARK YOUR CALENDAR FOR THESE INDUSTRY EVENTS
www.dallasmarketcenter.com
Ad Index
Image from Kincade Furniture
ADVERTISER
PHONE
WEBSITE
FACEBOOK facebook.com/220elm
TWITTER @220elm
PAGE#
220 Elm
(336) 884-8220
220elm.com
Cargo Consolidation Services
(828) 459-3160
cargoconsolidation.com
31
Connie Post
(304) 736-7283
conniepost.com
17
Cresent Fine Furniture
(615) 452-1671
cresent.com
facebook.com/cresent.furniture
Diakon Logistics
(703) 530-0677
diakonlogistics.com
facebook.com/DiakonLogistics
Furniture Wizard
(619) 869-7200
furniturewizard.com
facebook.com/furniturewizard
GE Capital
(800) 888-9590
nahfa.org
High Point Market
(336) 869-1000
highpointmarket.org
@cresentfurn
11
52 74 21 5
highpointmarket.org/facebook
@hpmarketnews
facebook.com/jaipurlifestyle
@jaipurlifestyle
7
Horich Hector Lebow
(800) 878-8989
hpladv.com
Jaipur Rugs
(888) 416-8600
jaipurrugs.com
Kincaid Furniture
(828) 728-3261
kincaidfurniture.com
Lynch Sales
(305) 444-3939
lynchsales.com
facebook.com/lynchsales
MicroD
(800) 964-3876
microdinc.com
facebook.com/microdinc
Myriad
(800) 676-4243
myriadsoftware.com
http://tinyurl.com/myriadFB
Next Generation-NOW
(800) 422-3778
ngnow.org
facebook.com/NextGenNow
@ngnow
34
North American HFA Sponsors
(800) 888-9590
retailerNOWmag.com
facebook.com/retailernow
@retailerNow
68
facebook.com/nourison
@nourison
Northwest Furniture Xpress
(828) 475-6377
http://nwfxpress.com
Nourison
(201) 368-6900
nourison.com
Okinus
(855) 330-3958
okinus.com
Omnia
(909) 393-4400
omnialeather.com
Picture Us Now Photobooths
(336) 703-7315
pictureusnowphotobooth.com–
57 Inside Back 63 72 @microdinc
Back Cover 53
60 9 25 http://tinyurl.com/omnialeather
@OmniaLeather
52 76
Planned Furniture Promotions
(800) 472-5242
pfpromotions.com
PROFITsystems
(800) 888-5565
profitsystems.com
facebook.com/profitsystems
@PROFITsystems
16 29
R&A Marketing
(888) 225-0776
RAmarketing.com
facebook.com/RAMarketing
@RAMarketing
66
Serta
(888) 557-3782
serta.com
facebook.com/sertamattress
@sertamattresses
3
STORIS
(888) 4-STORIS
storis.com
http://tinyurl.com/STORIS
@STORIS
56
Surya
(877) 275-7847
surya.com
facebook.com/SuryaSocial
Truckskin
(877) 866-7546
truckskin.com
facebook.com/TruckSkin
IC, CS @TruckSkin
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A quick dose of fun facts, random trivia and useful (or useless) bits of info
The Now List One out of every five miles on the national interstate system is straight, so the road can be used as an airstrip in case of war or emergency.
GOLDEN ARCHES McDonalds’ Golden Arches are more recognized worldwide than the Christian cross. The average person sprays about 2.5 saliva droplets per word when speaking. Unfaithful wives in medieval France were forced to chase a chicken through town naked.
Sesame Street’s Bert and Ernie were named after Bert the cop and Ernie the taxi driver in "It’s a Wonderful Life." Every month starting on a Sunday will have a Friday the 13th.
Fashionable women in 1778 Paris always went out in storms with a lightning rod attached to their hats.
Triskaidekaphobia
Alfred Hitchcock’s belly button
Wrigley’s gum was the first product with a barcode. Thirteen people are killed annually trying to shake goods out of a vending machine.
HORSES CLIMBED STAIRS
is the fear of the number 13. One sufferer, Arnold Schonberg, died 13 minutes from midnight on Friday the 13th. Einstein’s parents thought he was mentally disabled because he couldn't speak fluently until after age nine.
No two lions have the same whisker pattern on their muzzles.
Old firehouses have circular stairways because when engines were horsepulled, the horse stables were on the ground floor and the animals learned how to walk up normal stairs.
COW BELCHES
The U.S. cow population burps about 50 million tons of hydrocarbons into the atmosphere annually—enough to heat a small house and stove for a full year.
Out of all Western names, China most recognizes Jesus Christ, Richard Nixon and Elvis Presley.
was eliminated when he was sewn up after surgery.
Horses Statues
In 1967, the Monkees outsold the Beatles and the Rolling Stones combined.
Leonardo da Vinci could draw with one hand while writing with the other.
80
OC TOBER | 2013
The next time you’re in a park, pay attention to the statues of men on horses. If the horse has both front legs in the air, the person died in battle; if the horse has one front leg in the air, the person died due to battle wounds; if the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes.
www.retailerNOWmag.com
Pea Brain?
An ostrich's brain is smaller than its eye.
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