Catalog Covers - Lessons of the Holiday Season (828 words)

The simplicity of the dark burgundy cover and the affixed visual image enhances the exclusivity of the catalog of a leading upscale retailer. I believe that this is not a prospect catalog, but one that mails only to the Neiman Marcus customer list. Well done!

Another venerable retailer and direct marketer, FAO Schwarz, produced an attractive, bright "stand-out" cover. Its 1999 holiday catalog cover would be exceptionally strong by itself, but the company added another breakthrough element: a fold-out, dye-cut box under the FAO Schwarz gift. So enticing is this interactive device that the reader (customer or prospect) would have a difficult time resisting opening the box to see what kind of surprise is inside. This is a terrific concept and teases the reader to open the 96-page-plus cover catalog.