What’s Your Merchandising Vision
As he notes, to be a successful catalog merchant, answer two questions: Which products in which categories are driving the business? And what’s the contribution of those products? “Successful catalog merchants have an assortment of products that work,” says Howard.
Another way to look at maintaining your merchandise positioning is to ensure that each product earns its way into your catalog before you add it to the lineup, says Andrea Syverson, president of IER Partners, a catalog consulting firm in Black Forest, CO. Before a customer understands and/or believes in your merchandise concept, you as the merchant must ask, “What’s in it for me?” That is, what’s in it for your brand by placing this product in your catalog? And equally important, what’s in it for your customers?
