Merchandising

Some in attendance at the recent New England Mail Order Association conference in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., were a little taken aback by the presence of Tom Haugen, an executive director with Li & Fung (Trading) Ltd., a $7.1 billion division of the global outsourcing giant Li & Fung Group. After all, this is a conference that’s historically been targeted primarily at small- to mid-size catalogers from the eastern U.S. But Haugen, whose firm represents such catalogers as Blair, Haband and Restoration Hardware, offered some eye-opening trends on product sourcing around the world that can ultimately affect even the smallest cataloger. For starters, he noted that

As the holiday season approaches you’re no doubt battening down the hatches for the season that is both the bane and blessing of every business. According to the National Retail Federation, one-fifth of all U.S. retail sales are holiday sales and with a 5 percent increase expected in 2006, it’s sure to be a busy time for any catalog business. It’s in this pre-holiday calm before the storm that planning, creativity and smart investments will help you get the most out of the season. Here are three tips to help multichannel merchants do just that: 1. Cut down on undeliverables. Whether it’s crazed online

One of the most-asked questions I get is, “What product density is right for my catalog?” There are two main drivers to finding your appropriate product density (or the average number of products per page): your brand and your square inch sales report. Brand. In general — but not in every case — the more upscale the brand, the lower the product density; the more downscale the brand, the higher the product density. So if you’re starting a new catalog and have no idea what density to use, look at competitive catalogs (or noncompetitors who sell to your audience), and take your cue

Like it or loathe it, Federated Department Stores continues to rename its acquired department store chains with the Macy’s moniker across the country. And Margaret Getchell would be proud. Believed to be the first female retail executive, Getchell changed Macy’s from a fancy dry goods store into a department store with sales in 1870 totaling $1 million. She was quoted as saying back in 1866, “Never forget to astonish the customer.” And today, her statement is an integral part of Macy’s new marketing campaign and is prominent in all new store displays. Back then, Getchell achievement astonishment by addition. According to Macy’s brand history,

How do you know if your product development process is broken? One good way to assess it is to see if you are getting lots of “no” answers from your team when you suggest new products. As in “No, we can’t do that,” “No, we’ve never done that before,” “No, a custom version will take too long” or “No, we don’t have a vendor for that.” These could be signs and patterns that your process and/or people are stuck. An ideal process is full of yes answers; that is, the right kind of yes answers. Below you’ll find the steps to get your process

I’m often surprised by the answers I get from catalogers when I ask them, “What new products are you featuring?” They usually respond with a round of additional questions, such as “What do you mean by new?” or “How many new products are enough?” Often they’ll simply say, “New products never work for us.” But new product development should be the lifeblood of every multi-channel marketer. And if done correctly, it can be one of the most rewarding aspects of a merchant’s job. To get your product development program on the right track, consider the following: * Reinvigorate your product line all the time. Even if

How to use a warehouse assessment to improve customer service and decrease costs. Your warehouse this past holiday season was near capacity; you made it through the season, but it wasn’t pretty. The marketing plans for the new year and next holiday are up considerably. The executive committee of your multichannel company has made a decision that the company must meet the aggressive sales plan, and you have to find ways to stay in this facility for at least one more year. You have two months to come up with a new operational plan. What are you going to do? A key starting point

A cataloger’s job of presenting merchandise is second in importance only to selecting the right merchandise. Readers decide in seconds whether they’re going to continue to read about a product or move on. The amount of information readers comprehend “at a glance” isn’t limited by their brains; it’s only limited by what we put in front of them. Even those interested in a product will skip over it if they don’t understand it or they’re not “sold” on it. What and how you show product in your catalog makes all the difference in the world. The following list contains the most frequent

Onsite merchandising is the top initiative planned by 75 percent of e-commerce executives to improve site performance, according to the Annual Merchant Survey conducted by e-commerce consultancy The e-tailing group. Among other data revealed by the survey of 190 senior e-commerce executives: * 70 percent of e-commerce executives plan to add or improve onsite search to improve Web sales; down from 77 percent last year. * 64 percent plan to redesign or upgrade their sites; level with last year’s survey. * 60 percent plan to devote resources to content development; up from 53 percent last year. * 50 percent plan to overhaul the online

Regardless of organizational structure or size, catalogers who manufacture their own products are made up of multiple groups that must cooperate if the business is to be successful. Productivity is at stake when the two main players, those in management and production, are not working as one unit. Following are a few ways management and production teams can start working together to gain a competitive edge: * Obliterate false divisions. A recent client often used language that emphasized whether a particular employee was “union” or “company.” I worked diligently to get everyone using the same vocabulary: Everyone is now “WE.” Not only did they unlock the