Management

The Boston Proper catalog has come a long way since it was liquidated back in 1991. So, too, has the company that bought its name and list for a song at that time ($100,000) and propelled it to greater heights ever since. That firm — once known as The Mark Group, so named after its former flagship catalog, Mark, Fore & Strike — renamed itself Boston Proper three years ago, based on the success of the catalog and divestiture of the country club apparel title, Mark, Fore & Strike, as well as the gifts and home furnishings catalog, Charles Keith. Through it all has been

TORONTO — For a good many years, I’ve periodically covered the Canadian catalog/direct/multichannel market — all, of course, from a U.S. perspective. Dating back to the early 1990s, I reported on catalogers’ experiences in expanding into Canada, usually focusing on brand-new efforts. More often than not, the results looked encouraging, the outlook appeared great. Most surveys showed that Canada was the number 1 logical choice for international expansion among catalogers. Yet, here we are in 2007, and finding catalogers that do any sort of truly significant business in Canada is just about as challenging as getting a ticket to a Stanley Cup playoff hockey

Earlier this month, research firm Leadership IQ released a survey of 7,209 executives, managers and employees to assess trust in the workplace. The survey sought to uncover whether trust matters in the workplace, how much trust exists today and which aspects of trust are most critical for improving organizational performance. The survey uncovered three key findings: 1. trust drives results 2. trust significantly predicts employee loyalty, and 3. there’s not enough trust. Among the statistical findings, *32 percent of workers’ desire to remain with a company or seek employment elsewhere relates to their level of trust towards their bosses *20 percent of employees strongly trust top management *36 percent moderately trust

Catalogers who are looking for ways to make changes at their companies and want to get the full support of employees need to avoid what one management professional calls “the commitment dip.” A new research report by New York-based OnPoint Consulting gives managers tips on how to avoid the commitment dip so a company can not only launch changes but also keep employees engaged so that the action plan is carried out successfully. Richard Lepsinger, president of OnPoint Consulting, says the survey found that if an organization doesn’t take measures to get a faltering change initiative back on track within one to three months, it

As catalogers, you know the importance of search engine marketing for your Web sites and ultimately on your revenue. But technological advances and users’ preferences can make a difference in search engine results, page algorithms and spiders, as well as search engine optimization and overall SEM strategies. Manoj Jasra, director of technology at Enquiro Search Solutions, a search engine marketing firm in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada, recently shared his thoughts on SEM changes in a blog entry. He warns marketers of some key factors to watch for: *Growth of personalized search. Because this is becoming more prominent, Web site operators have to work hard on Web

If your catalog’s back-end operations are suffering from the”blame game” -- that is, contact center and distribution center (DC) reps have gotten into the nasty habit of pointing fingers at one another when problems arise -- try this team-building tactic offered by Liz Kislik, president of Liz Kislik Associates, a management consulting firm: At least once a year, bring your contact center reps to your DC and have them actually work there for a day, picking orders, packing boxes, etc. “This helps minimize the ‘they’ scenario. When reps are talking to customers about fulfillment problems, it helps the reps to understand the difficulties encountered

Head: Lillian Vernon: Back to the Future Lillian Vernon’s year-plus road to recovery has seen a mix of return-to-roots and get-with-the-times changes. Many have worked, as president/CEO Mike Muoio reports. Here are three additional improvements the company has made: 1. Change the catalog size to preserve the brand. In 2004, Lillian Vernon changed the trim size of its catalog from its traditional 8-inch-by-8-inch format to an 8.5-inch-by-11-inch size. But the change had almost no impact on sales, and since the brand had been associated with 8-inch-by-8-inch books for more than 40 years, Muoio and his team reverted back to the old format last October. “People recognize

Having topped out at $287 million nearly six years ago, Lillian Vernon’s sales have been falling ever since; it’s expected to finish out its fiscal year at about $170 million. But the bleeding could stop soon. A public company until 2003, the general mer-chandise cataloger was sold to investment conglomerate Direct Holdings, led by media company Zelnick Media. But despite an aggressive game plan to broaden Lillian Vernon’s reach, Direct Holdings’ initiatives largely backfired. Direct Holdings bailed out in May 2006 and sold Lillian Vernon to investment firm Sun Capital Partners, which installed former Miles Kimball CEO Mike Muoio to turn the company

As an executive recruiter, there was a time not too many years ago when a CEO of a direct marketing firm would call my office, and the conversation would go something like this: CEO: “Hello, I’d like to talk with you about a search.” Recruiter: “You bet. How can I help you?” CEO: “I am looking for a vice president of direct marketing.” Recruiter: “OK. What key skills are you looking for?” CEO: “I want someone who really knows direct mail.” Recruiter: “Are you interested in candidates who have some exposure to this new channel they call e-commerce?” CEO: “Not really. Our customers have

This is part 2 of a series begun in last week’s edition of Idea Factory. You can build a sustainable and successful big catalog business without playing accounting games or engaging in financial manipulations. And you can do it without commoditizing and devaluing your employees. Continuing last week’s discussion on how to grow your catalog in an organic and sustainable way without underhanded manipulation, here are three more keys to successful growth. 4. Be a humble, passionate and focused leader. CEOs at high-performance organic growth companies don’t fit the stereotype of the high-flying, bigger than life, charismatic, all-knowing corporate leader. Like the leaders of