It is the week that the geeks head to Las Vegas and do not go into a casino, but head for the International Consumer Electronic Show. There is one strong message coming out of Las Vegas this year. SMART, whether it is a phone, fridge, TV or car… it has to be SMART. It used to be that what was displayed in this show was something the rest of us
One of the keys to having a successful business is interaction with the consumer. Most of us rely on face to face interaction and alas if often fails as we are relying on a number of people in a team. This Christmas I received a number of Christmas cards from clients. All of which were appreciated, but one stood out, it was from Brownfalconer, I have included a picture of
This is my “last blog” on the road for this trip. Pantone have just released the fashion colour for 2012. They are promoting Tangerine Tango as the colour of the year. When building displays next year remember if you want to be seen to be tune with fashion, this is the colour you should be introducing into displays. Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year and I will be Blogging
My trip has now brought me to Denver and Pimping.Some of you may be confused by what I am discovering in the Rockies. Happy Canyon Flowers are the leading pimpers in the USA. This is a term used by the car industry when they use 3M adhesive to cover a vehicle in a promotional wrap.This florist has converted a standard white Ford Transit van into a complete promotion on wheels.
I remember when Hamburger restaurants sold hamburgers and nothing else. Then they diversified and you can now buy a latte, breakfast and cakes at my local MacDonald’s in Perth. But, the latest trend is back to specialisation and it will be interesting to see how this develops. In Manhattan in New York the home of thousands of pizza shops there is the Artichoke Pizza shop. A restaurant that just specialises
Research released today looks at what Americans dread about the holiday season that is now upon us 68% dread lines in shops etc 37% gaining weight 37% going into debt 28% gift shopping 26% travelling 24% seeing certain relatives Having just had a nightmare flight across the Atlantic I can agree with one of the above. Ref; Consumer Reports 2011 Holiday Poll reported in USA Today 5 Dec 2011
Around the world there are garden retailers looking at the future and wondering what they need to do to develop their own business in a changing world. Many of them have downloaded the White Paper from our website to look for new trends and ideas. The challenge for many garden centre owners is how do they take a traditional business and transform it into a business that meets the needs
Chladek garden centre in prague are the bioggest single outlet seller of Christmas trees in Czech. This year they have invited Ghristmas tree buyers to decorate their trees take a piture and place it on Face book. They will then judge the bes tree and award a prize. A great way of integrating socila media with traditional retailing.
One of the important elements of retailing is customer interaction. At Chladek Garden Centre in Prague this St Nicholas weekend they hade a Make A Candle session for children. All the staff dressed up as angels or wicked elfs and St Nichiolas greeted all the chioldtren.To malke the candle the children had to collect different elements of the candle from different parts of tyhe store. This encoureged there parents to
The Czech retailers have a special skill when it comes to Christmas decorations in shops. They rely on traditional and local props and use them in different ways. For example they take Birch twigs and spray them in different colours. To see Christmas trees decorated with purple sprayed Birch twigs is simple and effective. With many retailers seeing 30% of their sales taking place in the lead up to Christmas,
I was walking through a crowed train station on Friday in London and all of a sudden a women started singing opera. Then the whole station came alive as actors around the station started singing. The commuters were all of a sudden on a stage. The next day I was at the Gloucester Victorian Market. Whilst there a Victorian urchin stole an apple and was chased by a policeman dressed
I have just presented a paper at a French Retail Conference. One of the other speakers was Lisa White, Trend Specialist. Lisa mentioned that the key trend for 2012 and onwards is cosyness. This means smaller products presented in a cosy way. Be prepared to get cosy and select cosy products.
I often mention QR Codes in my presentations and how valuable they are to retailers. In the Globe and Mail for Canada on 23rd November was an article entitled “From your Smartphone to the big screen”. Research company Stratacache Inc from Ohio showed that there has been a 60% increase in suppliers using QR Codes in the last six months. The research shows that they are used extensively by consumers
I am an advocate of merchandising at an angle when you have a linear retail design as I believe it slows the consumer down, increases the average sale and improves the ambience of the store. My theory has now been supported by Nick Moore, the CEO of the Conran Shop. In a recent article in Retail Week in the UK he said “You learn not to merchandise anything straight on
Now that we are getting used to online shopping, the online shopping companies are popping up on Main Street. eBay have opened a store in Dean Street in London and in New York and they plan to keep them open until Christmas. Customers need a smart phone if they plan to shop. The consumer looks at the product ,scan the QR Code and then purchase the products online. These shops
When I left Canada the other day I had to use the self check in to get my ticket at the airport. I have just been to Sainsbury’s in the UK supermarket and with some hesitation I went to the self check out desk with my goods. Self checkouts in retailing have been around in the USA since around 2005. In Australia they are still looked at as a new
The key to retailing and marketing is to stand out. Take a traditional idea and do it in a different way. The Christmas tree is a traditional icon. At St Pancras railway station they have always had the traditional Christmas tree in the foyer. The same again this year. A 12 metre high tree dominates the foyer. But this year it is a Lego tree complete with lights. The local
I love simple retail ideas. I discovered this one in Canada. A store has a policy of if they see a male and female partner shopping and the women looks at product, but fails to purchase of simply taking a company business card and passing it discretely to the male partner as a Hint card. On the card they mention their partner was showing interest in a specific product and
A few months ago Marks and spencers revealed they were going to redesign the inside of their stores at a cost of 600 million pound. This was exciting news for a depressed retail environment. In the UK Daily Telegraph on 22 November it was announced how this would be financed. Each supplier will be billed a levy of 1.3% as a “strategy for growth” on their annual sales to the
November saw the release of a report by Symphony IRI Group in the USA that showed over half of consumers are now eating out less and cooking more at home. Clearly this is an opportunity for some retailers and a challenge for others. Some of you will be old enough to remember the original Betty Crocker cookbook and recipes plus the Pillsbury man that came from the General Mills stable.
In presentations I talk about the power of the 35 to 40 year old consumer. These are often mothers with young kids and we all know that what mother says must be true. Research shows that what mothers use and recommend as parents are often taken up as products used by the next generation. Mothers are powerful marketers. Business marketers are using this? In Canada, Mom Central Canada Marketing Consultancy
In my presentations I discuss how advertising has become less effective for retailers due to lack of trust. This week the Canadian Advertising Standards released a report which actually puts some figures to my argument. These results are Canadian and I will leave it to you to decide whether Canadians are different to the rest of us; 39% of those surveys believe Adverts are misleading and exaggerate the virtues of
The snow is on the ground and it is minus 10 Centigrade outside. The middle of November and the winter has arrived in Alberta. This creates a challenge for many retailers and in an upcoming Blog I will show you how one street, Whyte Avenue in Edmonton has set about making a difference. The next few weeks are critical for many retailers. 30% of the sales that take place in
Research carried out in Canada shows that in the lead up to Christmas the average Canadian shopper will spend 8 hours buying presents in a shopping mall and 5 hours buying presents online. This emphasises the need for an online retail prescience!
This thought comes from a cloudy and miserable weather day in London. Companies around here are now getting geared up as sponsors for the Olympic games next year. It identifies how important it is for retailers to get behind a cause. You may not be able to support an event like the Olympics, but what local events can you get behind as a sponsor?