| By - Steve Davenport, Commercial Director, Bartuf Systems.
Wednesday, December 6, 2006
It's Christmas time again, and for the retail industry it seems to start earlier each year. Whilst the Royal Mail's announcement of the postal deadline might fill last minute Christmas shoppers with dread, it should serve as a reminder for those in the retail industry of the profit opportunities available for greetings cards in the run up to Christmas.
The UK greeting cards market is worth over 1.2 billion annually, proving that despite the advent of e-cards and text messages, as a nation we still love to say we care with a card. In the face of these new technologies, increasing market saturation and ever-changing consumer demand the card industry remains a growth market, and the relatively low production costs involved mean that there are still good profit margins available for retailers.
The card industry is an industry renowned for its creativity and innovation and publishers have continuously fought back against new technology by expanding into new categories and introducing new products that add incremental sales or target specific markets to bridge the gap between big seasonal promotions. The greeting cards business even has its own design awards in the shape of the Henries, which were named after Sir Henry Cole who introduced the first commercially produced Christmas card over 150 years ago. These Awards began some ten years ago to celebrate the creative vitality of the industry and despite this, in many cases once the carefully designed cards hit the shelves, they are let down by inadequate or bland merchandising. The value of effective merchandising continues to be underestimated in the pursuit of increases sales, particularly by independent and multiple retailers. The rapid approach of Christmas is the perfect opportunity for retailers to re-assess the quality of their retail display solutions, together with their standards of merchandising.
At key seasons such as Christmas, specialist card retailers are actively sought out by shoppers and can easily maximise on the profit opportunities presented. In contrast, smaller retailers of mixed goods need to work harder with their display in order to capitalise on the impulse purchases which will make up a significant percentage of their overall card sales. Customers need to be prompted into their buying decisions so placing an effective display fixture near a cash desk or entry point; and perhaps complementing this with external signage which reminds customers of forthcoming postal deadlines, will ensure retailers maximise on the Christmas season.
With retail space at a premium, providing retailers with fixtures that enhance product visibility using concise presentation is key. A simple one-piece slatwall unit provides the retailer with a mobile and versatile display unit in one piece that can be placed in store hotspots to maximise sales without dominating the whole store. Intelligently situated display will provide an in store cue to the customer by highlighting the product and adding to its status, automatically inducing more impulse sales and improving productivity for retailers. As a temporary display it will also allow the retailer the versatility of 'demoting' the unit to a lower footfall area once the key card season has finished and binging it to the forefront again when the next season arrives.
Effective merchandising can be used not only to supplement card sales during peak periods but also to maximise sales during key sales times such as Christmas by persuading customers to upgrade to more expensive cards or, perhaps more importantly, to purchase additional items such as gift wrap or gift tags at the same time. Merchandising can help companies to capitalise on every selling opportunity by displaying all products related to a single occasion together. This ensures that the consumer will find virtually everything he or she needs in one place and the result for the retailer is a multiple purchase and increased sales.
To maximise on multi sale opportunities, the display should also be tailored to the particular clientèle that it serves. For example, the more affluent customers tends to prefer to purchase gift bags and soft tissue warp over rolls of wrapping paper, so a store situated in an affluent area should consider this in choosing the design of its fixtures. Where possible displays should be tailored towards encouraging multi purchasing not only by offering everything the customer will need in one place, but also by suggesting additional useful items. At Christmas this means gift wrap, cards, gift tags, but also stationary items that are must-haves at this time of year like cello tape, scissors and decorative pens.
Developments in retail display means that publishers can operate more control over how their card lines are merchandised. The increasing use of coloured PETG means that displays can now be matched exactly to brand colours. On a merchandising level one brand often sells more when displayed on its own and custom designed units ensure that a particular card line is not merchandised with other lines or lost amongst many on a fixture. Branded display also allows the retailer to put new products and card ranges into the limelight, tells a company's story and reassures the shopper, tempting them in to investing in a new product. As quality tends to be aligned to price and brand, the customer will assume that the item in the most prominent display is the best that money can buy.
It is therefore important that the display solution used fully complements the products it holds as even the most expensive, well designed cards can be let down by poor merchandising. In an industry as artistic and fashion-led as the greetings card industry, it is vital that the display is innovative and appealing. A good display designer should be able to create a display that can harmonise with the store, tell the story of the product and make clear the quality of its design. This will result in an effective visual presentation of the card to the consumer that will in turn increase sales and create repeat custom.
There are more than 800 publishers in the UK producing 2.6 billion greeting cards a year fighting a valiant and creative battle to fend off the ever-increasing threat of e-cards. However, this innovation is in vain if the finished product is to be lost in a sea of other cards or a messy, badly designed display. Challenges to the industry will continue as the current focus on the environment grows and many customers look at ways in which they can contribute to making the planet greener. It is simply not enough in today's climate to expect even a quality product to sell itself without well thought out marketing. Retailers and display manufacturers must work together to ensure that they do justice to the creativity of the card industry and the focus must be to develop better fixtures that enhance product visibility, encourage impulse purchasing and improve productivity for retailers.
Established in 1995, The Bartuf Group incorporates Bartuf Systems; Bartuf Display; Bartuf Europe and Bartrux. Based in Holbeck, Leeds, the company now has a substantial national presence, a multimillion pound turnover and is recognised as a leader in the field of high quality display solutions.
Bartuf Systems is a small to medium sized business and boasts extensive experience in the design and manufacture of display solutions for both the UK and international markets.
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