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Fighting the Recession with New Products
A particularly interesting article appeared on CNNMoney.com today, titled "Boring stuff coming to stores near you." In it senior writer Parija B. Kavilanz reports that analysts including Marshal Cohen, the chief retail analyst with market research firm NPD Group, are saying that retailers, who are afraid to be stuck with unsold merchandise, are forgoing innovative products in favor of basic and boring items. Andrew Bartolini, vice-president of global supply management research with Aberdeen Group, explains it this way in the article: "Besides ordering fewer products in a soft sales environment, merchants also don't want to sell products that they are unsure about… Retailers aren't going to order products based on speculation that someone will buy them. In their mind, this isn't the time to say 'If we build it, they will come.'"
However, the article points out that while managing inventory is essential, retailers must give their customers reasons to shop by having new products. The NPD Group's Cohen concluded that retailers "can't keep boring the consumer. Any retailer that says it is cutting back on inventory to become leaner and meaner is just lazy. Down times aren't about getting rid of risk but managing risk. New and exciting product is what's going to sell, even in a recession."
As I write this, the Canadian show season is well underway. The CGTA Spring Gift Show, By Hand Toronto and Mode Accessories took place a couple of weeks ago. The Alberta Gift Show starts this weekend and the Montreal and Vancouver shows are being held, as usual, in March. I know from walking the Toronto shows that there are a lot of new products available. Are you going to be using them to get customers into your store?
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Lori Smith, , Editor-in-Chief
Lori Smith is the editor of Gifts and Tablewares, Canada's premiere gifts and tablewares magazine. Written for retailers of gifts, tablewares, housewares, stationery and home furnishing accessories, its objective is to help readers increase their sales and run their businesses more profitably by providing information on new products, merchandising, small business management, customer service, consumer behavior and industry news. The magazine is published six times a year by BIG Magazines, LP, a leading Canadian information company.
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This page contains a single entry from the blog posted on February 13, 2009 3:53 PM.
The previous post in this blog was Six Tips for Boosting Valentine's Day Sales .
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