Products Get CBS Boost

I love CBS Sunday morning and you should too. Today was the "Money" edition and housewares products received great PR from Kathy Ireland's home line to Batter Blaster [pancake batter in a 'whipped cream can'].

Correspondent Bill Geist featured interviews with the creators of Batter Blaster and Baker's Edge Brownie pan - these interviews just might result in some Google searches by consumers interested in the product. Create a shelf talker this week to remind other fans of the TV news magazine of the episode.

For more information, check out the show or the products at the following links:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/02/28/sunday/main6252159.shtml?tag=contentBody;featuredPost-PE

http://www.bakersedge.com/

http://batterblaster.com/

Cheers!

Michelle

Preparation is Everything

I'm not usually one to draw upon sports for my metaphors but if the athletic shoe fits... As I was watching the first round of the NFL playoffs this weekend, and as I prepare to go walk the aisles of the Winter Fancy Food Show next weekend, it occurred to me that many of the same preparations for one could apply to the other. Having spent more than a decade as a buyer and now another decade or so as an editor, I have not only walked many, many miles of trade floor aisles in several countries, but I have developed some good working theories about how to make the most of my shoeleather and come away from a show feeling like I found what there was to find. I remember very well when I was a buyer/manager in New York and other buyers would be in town for one trade show or another. We were a destination for many buyers and they would descend on us with note pads and tape recorders in hand, trying surreptitiously to glean the sources of the products on our shelves. Often, some fledgling buyer from the provinces would exclaim over our selection, innocently inquiring, "where ever did you find such a thing?!" I would be amazed - not that they asked, but by the fact that the object in question had been found at the very show they were in town to attend and had attended before. I discovered in talking to these buyers that they get so caught up in meetings with vendors they already do business with, and in seeing their friends that they miss half of what the show has to offer. With that in mind, I humbly offer some tips on working a trade show. Savvy veterans will forgive me as I indulge here, but for those who are new to the business, or have had poor luck in unearthing great new products at the shows, the following is my two cents worth of advice.

First, wear comfortable shoes. I'm being half facitious here because there is some planning to do before you ever get to the show, but then planning one's wardrobe requires advance thinking as well. In fact, wear comfortable everything. You should never be distracted by what you have on. Clothes should be loose fitting and just enough so you are neither too hot nor too cold. Remember, they don't usually turn on the air conditioning until the first day of the show, so if you happen to be in on set-up day, don't be fooled into thinking that will be the temperature. Also, consider the comfort of what you are carrying too. You'll need something to put all the brochures, catalogs and samples you collect and it should be as light weight as possible. It will be heavy enough by the end of the day so don't start out with a heavy leather briefcase. Be sure also to have plenty of the supplies you'll need - paper, pens, business cards, perhaps even a small calculator, and pocket to keep them in. Be sure to always have an extra pen or a refill. Try and develop a strategy for the show. Is there anything specific you are looking for? Is there a department in your store that is weak and needs help? Is there a holiday coming up that needs to be considered? Try to keep appointments to a minimum or you risk spending the show hours criss-crossing the exhibition area trying to make it to one meeting after the next. I believe this is the chief reason why buyers so often miss what is at the show. Start at one corner of the show and walk each aisle. For many it is a good idea to walk in pairs with one set of eyes scanning one side of the aisle and yours on the other. If your manpower is limited, split up but reconnoiter frequently to compare notes, sending your partner back to look at items that you may not be 100% sure about, and to make sure that you are not doubling up on orders. At food shows, be careful with all the samples that are offered to you in the aisles. A good rule of thumb is to only taste what you are truly interested in. Beginning the day gobbling down chocolates and other sweets will have you crashing by the afternoon. Try to stick to savories early in the day and save the desserts for later in the afternoon. Of course, this is not always practical as the exhibitors are not necessarily laid out that way, but you can always take a sample, promising to try it later. Sometimes tasting something back in the privacy of your hotel room is a more enjoyable and a more telling method, without the pressure of the candy maker in front of you. 

Also, know your limit. Don't force yourself to stay until the very last moment of each day if it means you are exhausted and will be in worse shape the next day. Go at your own pace and take breaks when you fell you need them and drink plenty of water. Try to avoid a lot of coffee and sodas as they will ultimately drag you down. The key here is to stay as fresh as possible, to be alert and pain free with nothing to distract you from the task at hand. After the show, sort through and meet with your collegues to review the show as soon as you possibly can, while the show and the products you found are still fresh in your mind. 

If you can make a plan before the show, be as comfortable as you can during the show, collect as much information as you can, and once you are home again, organize your findings and document what you intend to do, you will no doubt find these trade shows much more interesting, more fun, and a lot more productive for you and the store. And did I mention comfortable shoes?

  

It's Your Turn

I'm loathe to admit it but every year I find myself making NewYear's resolutions, or goals as someone suggested, a far less daunting term. Fortunately, mine aren't of the I-want-to-become-a-completely-different-person variety. My goals tend to be somewhat more realistic, such as make more soup, improve my Spanish (notice how I didn't say "master" Spanish), and be more disciplined about my work (my editor will like that one). No triathalons, no 300 situps a day, and I'm not going to set out to complete the Great American novel by summer (it will take at least until the end of the year). In fact, my loftiest goal is to re-read the entire Shakespeare canon, also not unrealistic considering how much I read anyway and how much I like the Bard, and I've attached no specific time frame to the goal so I can take as long as I want. If I were still a retailer, however, my professional goals would be quite different. These are tough times and although I believe things are slowly getting better, the key word here is slowly. We're not out of the woods yet and in all likelihood we will never again see the unfettered spending of pre-2009 economic meltdown. Therefore I would resolve to communicate better with my customers through signage, blogs, social networking sites, newsletters, and personal contact. As an owner or buyer I would resolve to spend more time on the sales floor fluffing the merchandise, talking to customers and staff, and even rotating through the departments once in a awhile. I would resolve to run my business lean and mean, culling out superfluous items in the store and focusing on my core business. I would resolve to strengthen my realtionship with vendors, negotiating better deals, getting more exclusive products, and learning everything I could about their products. I would resolve to streamline my operations, cutting out needless paperwork and procedures and simplifying the flow of goods through the store as much as possible. I would institute on-going staff training, including information about new products, old products, and cross-training people in different departments. I would be certain to have an extensive library of food books - cookbooks, reference books, and essays about food - and then share it with the staff, perhaps even making some of it required reading. I would resolve to become more active in my community, seeing how I could participate in local functions, street fairs, etc., all with the aim of giving my store a higher profile and keeping in step with the beat of the city. I would resolve to travel abroad more, both to trade fairs like SIAL and Anuga, as well as holidays wherein I might learn something new about a foreign culture and their table. I would resolve to travel more within my own region, seeking out artisans and purveyors of locally-grown and produced goods. And, of course, I would resolve to read The Gourmet Retailer every month to keep up on new products, merchandising ideas, and everything else one needs to know in this business. Last season on "Dancing with the Stars" (yes, I watched DWTS - it was either that or leave the house), one of the contestants compared the dancing competition to his own milieu when  he said, "it's like riding in the rodeo. You're never really ready, it's just your turn." Life can be like that, and in retail it's your turn everyday to make a great impression on your customers, on your staff, and in your community. I wish everyone a happy and prosperous 2010 and I look forward to seeing all of you this year in the aisles of one trade fair or another. Cheers.

Less Grinch, More Giving

Now that we're deep into the fourth quarter, you know, the season formerly known as Christmas, I am forced to reflect on my own somewhat precarious relationship to the holiday. It started out okay. My memories of Christmas morning are all good, waking up to the excitement of knowing that Santa had come during the night and that there would be alll sorts of wonderful toys under the tree (my apologies to all our Jewish, Muslim, and other non-Christian friends, you'll just have to bear with me a moment). Even as I got older and no longer believed in Santa Claus, the morning of Christmas lost none of its appeal. Part of what made the day special was my father's talent for putting together stockings. We weren't wealthy by any stretch of the imagination but Mom and Dad always managed to make the holiday very special and there would always be that one great gift that was exactly what we wanted - even if we hadn't even thought of it. But it is my dad's stockings that are the highlight reels of my Christmas memories. He would fill them with all kinds of silly things - note pads, pens, candy, little games, small books, and any number of other stationery items and toys and it was always the first thing my brother, sister and I would go for. One of the items he would usually include was a "book" of Lifesavers, the little ring-shaped candies. It was a set of several flavors inside a package that opened just like a book to reveal the wondrous assortment inside. Anyway, every memory I hold of Christmas past - that is my pre-retail existence - are as glowing as the sappiest Christmas movie.

A dozen years in retail later and my Christmas spirit was all but exhausted. Oh sure, I wished customers a Merry Christmas, but in reality, Christmas to me came to mean a month of 14-hour days, crowds, pushy people and all too often rude and angry customers. Let's face it, retailers often see the worst side of shoppers at this time of year. I would look forward to Christmas day as merely a day off after working myself to the bone. As a manager I was the first one in and the last one out every day during December, sneaking out for an hour here and a half hour there to do my own shopping. For years, if I couldn't find the right gift in Soho within a couple of blocks of the store, or in the store itself, I didn't get it. The fact is I did very little Christmas shopping at all. My then wife and I would spend Christmas day at home eating our favorite foods whether they went together or not - shrimp cooked with butter and garlic, chicken liver pate, and so on - and then go to the movies. Not exactly "It's a Wonderful Life."

My life changed in the following years. I left retail, I left that marriage, and I left New York. When my current wife and I got together I inherited 4 step-children, only one of which still believed in Mr. Claus during our first couple of Christmases together. The very first one had me in a conundrum. Suddenly I was going to be a part of a family Christmas and my Christmas spirit was almost on a par with Scrooge and the Grinch. I say almost because I didn't actually go as far as stealing the presents from Whoville, and no, I was never visited by any ghosts of Christmases past. I helped buy some gifts but my main job became putting together the stockings. I must have found a small glimmer of old spirit somewhere deep down inside of me because I started to get into it. Each year the stockings would have a theme and I would carefully hang them on the fireplace so that things seemed to burst out of the top of the brightly colored stockings (maybe that was the problem before - I had no fireplace in New York!). The kids are all grown now, and one of them has a nine-year old son, my grandson (when you start a new generation there is no more "step") who is just beginning to question the existence of Santa Claus but is still clinging to the belief. This year my wife and I decided to pare down the gift giving, to be a bit more conservative, especially in light of the fact that we went to England for three weeks this fall and spent a small fortune. I decided though that the stockings would be as grand as ever and have been slowly, methodically assembling the components - small books, CDs, candy, and other little gifts. As I was buying the last of the traditional candy for the stockings - Hershey's Kisses, M & Ms, etc. - I saw on a display something I hadn't seen in many years, since I was a child actually, a "book" of Lifesaver candy. Of course, this modern version is festooned with a picture of Spongebob Squarepants holding a giant wreath, but it was essentially the same. Now I don't know if Lifesavers have been doing this every year or whether they just brought it back, but it sent me reeling in much the same way Proust must have felt when he bite into his Auntie's madeleine. Needless to say, my grandson will find one inside his stocking Friday morning when he comes over. I'll bet somewhere my dad is smiling. Happy holidays everyone.  

No More Discounting!

Lately many business owners are telling me they are tired of discounting their wares.  The “sale” ploy has run it’s course and by now I hope most retailers have the right merchandise mix and the right level of inventory of goods that people want to buy without having to cut prices as the primary step to build traffic and cash flow. 

 The risk of sale pricing is that you are subject to commodity pricing rules- the low priced goods prevail.  I’m starting to see a new trend of limiting the quantity of merchandise  (primarily in the soft goods market but equally applicable to specialty retailing) to get full prices for goods that are considered valuable.

 The door busters used to draw holiday shoppers this season had some interesting conditions… one national chain had a limit of 500 items at the low price but spread that limit across the country at all their stores rather than having a per location limit.  With 136 stores only 3-4 items were available per location.  And...  sorry no rainchecks! 

Actually that's good for specialty retailing... consumers will start to migrate to quality having been subjected to such tactics.

What about value?  It’s something customers used to trust you with.  If the product is fairly priced and will met their needs then it has value to them and will help you build repeat business.  However the word “value” has been promoted interchangeably with “sale” nowadays so I caution using that term in promotion.  Improving service, creating events and fun tastings and cooking demos will improve your value more than advertising a sale.

Ron Jakubisin

Jakbisin.com

 

Our Friend Bill

I’ve been staring at this blank computer screen for a while now since I got the call. A friend in the industry let me know that we lost a superstar this week - Bill Snyder of William Glen in Sacramento, Calif. passed away on Tuesday.

When I think of Bill all I can do is smile – if he were here right now, he’d be giving me a big hug, teasing with a playful joke and telling me with perfect Irish brogue that everything would be all right.

For those of us who were blessed to know Bill, well, it was like getting to know joy. Bill embodied joy. When he walked into a room, happiness and laughter were his companions.

I’ve been speaking with lots of people today about Bill, reminiscing, sharing our gratitude that we were able to spend time with him in San Francisco this past August. 

And no matter who I spoke with – above the sadness – the joy of knowing Bill is what resounds. He was a gentlemen’s gentleman, a businessman ahead of his time, a father, a husband, a grandfather, and a friend.

Someone said to me that to see him in his natural habitat – on the sales floor- was something to witness. He had an instant rapport with customers, with anyone. 

Bill’s passion for retail is evident in his store. William Glen has been at the cutting edge of retail for decades. The store was founded in 1963 by William Snyder and Glen Forbes as a decorating studio and candle shop. William Glen was one of the first cooperative independent retailer catalog services. Beginning in 1976, the company offered services to independents across the country, printing catalogs as a collaborative effort.

Although the catalog service stopped in 1999, it's just one example of Bill’s innovation and forward-thinking business sense. 

Bill embraced technology. At William Glen, gift registries have been in use since the 1970s. In 2003, William Glen launched a proprietary registry link that serves as a bridge between the point-of-sale system and the web-based gift registry itself. 

When Bill began venturing into cyberspace, he again relied on his own inventiveness to create a site deserving of his customers. He launched “Bill’s World” blog – [http://www.williamglen.com/billsworld/default.asp] a place, he told me this summer, he created to live on long after he was gone. I recall responding to him that nothing could ever go on without him.

He said only, “Ah but it will.” And he smiled that great grin that always made whoever was so lucky to be there to see it smile right back.

And he gave me a squeeze that let me know all was right with the world.

Bill will be missed by us all, by grateful individuals and a grateful industry. And most of all by his family, who we send our most heartfelt condolences and thanks for letting us all share in his life.

[William Glen was selected as the Global Innovator Awards with the International Home + Housewares Association. You can read about this fantastic store and retailer here.

http://www.gourmetretailer.com/gourmetretailer/esearch/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002276460]

Showtime!

Before I was an editor and before I was in retail, I was in the theatre. I began as an actor (doesn't everyone?) and then turned my focus to directing when I discovered it was far more interesting. My influences were a couple of very good directors and teachers I worked with, and perhaps more importantly, some very bad directors I worked with. In any case, it was a hugely fullfilling endeavor and a very special and memorable time of my life. Recently, while hanging up some theatre stills of productions I was in (you can take the actor out of the theatre but you can't take the ego out of the actor) to spruce up my office walls. Not everyone would agree, I'm sure, that the pictures were an improvement to the walls, but it's my past and my walls so up they go. As I was musing on my days treading the boards and trying not to tread to heavily on the Bard, I was once again reminded how like theatre is retail. In fact, at the beginning of my retail career, working in an upscale and rather cutting edge housewares emporium, we used to have a brief staff meeting every Saturday morning after we dusted, swept and generally readied the store for business, and before we opened the doors. As customers would begin to line up out on West Broadway, we would hear from the buyers about new products or from the store manager about new developments in the store and so on. When we would finish our meeting, and they were always very short, the owner would say, "OK, it's showtime!" 

It was actually a reference to a film we had all seen called "All That Jazz" by Bob Fosse, in which the lead character (who was playing Fosse's alter ego), everytime he is about to go out to either perform or to direct his cast, says to himself in the makeup mirror, "It's Showtime!" We all understood what Gregory meant when he said. Of course, half the staff was connected to the theatre in some way, but nevertheless we knew it meant it was time to leave personal baggage at the door, focus on the customers, and really give them a show. If you are a store owner, especially in the specialty food or housewares business, you are the producer, director, set designer, and prop master (or mistress). Your staff is your cast, the merchandise accounts for the set pieces, and the script is your product knowledge and your ability to inform and inspire both your staff and your customers. This is especially true during the fourth quarter when stores typically do a majority of their business for the year, but it should be standard operating procedure throughout the year. Set the scene by displaying your goods in a thoughtful and compelling way, and not just at Christmas. Continually re-evaluate your signage and general merchandising. Is everything up to date? Is the information clear and easy to understand? Are your signs concise so that shoppers can digest the information quickly and easily? How about the lighting, the music, and your staff uniforms? No matter how long a play runs on Broadway - 2 days or 2 years - the preparations each night before the curtain goes up are exactly the same. The stage manager goes through an exhaustive checklist to make sure everything and everyone is ready before finally letting everyone know it's showtime. This holiday season, especially in light of the current economic situation, get your staff motivated like a good stage manager and go out there and put on a great show. Then you can stay up and wait for the reviews to come out.

Cheese & Beer

This week's fabulously delicious segment on TGRTalk.com focuses on cheese and beer pairings. Join Gourmet Retailer Senior Editor James Mellgren and his guest, Anheuser Busch Brewmaster George Reisch, as they sit down to talk about beer and cheese pairings. This is the second segment in a series of live discussions on TGR Talk Radio so tune in and be sure and send us your comments and suggestions.

We've really had a great time pulling these conversations together - it's simply another element in our mission of reporting great stories and research to you in a new and innovative format. Next week you can tune in to hear 2010 predictions for gourmet retailers from industry expert and TGR columnist Phil Lempert! So visit tune in and turn on to TGRtalk.com

http://www.tgrtalk.com/2009/12/beer-and-the-cheeseboard/

Shop (and eat) local!

I adore the holiday season. The smells, the food, the holiday spirit. And I cringe at the holiday marketing and terminology. It's difficult for me to read and report on Black Friday Sales and Cyber Mondays, it is afterall the media who creates the hooplah behind these events measuring the success of the entire retail world against minute-by-minute reports of sales. Alas, the marketing and messages are here to stay.

And yet, there were few campaigns that garnered my attention. Target sure did with its scary woman ad campaign. I am not sure the image of her getting primed for Black Friday sales really did much for the brand. Well, I do remember the advertising although the message did not make me want to shop. I did however appreciate Target's followup campaign with crazy lady's tired, not-in-the-mood-to-shop-sister the following day. That made me smile. But I still didn't run out shopping. For me the day after Thanksgiving is a day to relax.

And sleep off the turkey.

I will admit I surfed the Web to check out the deals online during the weekend. But I did not buy. Probably won't spend much online this year. My goal is to stick with the 3/50 Project, which was brought to my attention by my retail friends in Sonoma during a recent segment of TGRTalk.com. I love this project, check it out here  - www.the350project.net

It's smart, simple and what specialty retailing is all about. I plan on bringing this plan into action in my local business community next year and I am kicking it off this holiday by practicing what I preach. But for the moment, I am simply trying to figure out what is on the holiday lists for the year - aside from restaurant equipment [don't ask], sleep, and two lengthy children's lists to fulfill. So while you are all bustling with customers at your doorstep, breaking last year's sales numbers and proving the independent retailer is the heart of this country, we'll be resting up here at TGR and getting our resources ready to help you be even more successful in 2010.

An odd aside, one book I might have to buy is this year's Eat This, Not That! Restaurant Survival Guide, which highlights the good, bad and ugly of restaurant dining. It's amazing to see the calories in some entrees you otherwise might consider healthy, makes me realize how simple it is packing on the pound over the holidays or say...at a trade show samplling products. It'll be a good book to have on hand as I head out on the road again in a few weeks to start the 2010 trade show circuit, discovering great new products and visiting with retailers across the country. To check out the book - or at least the full list of 20 foods by category that you should not eat with nutritional information for each item, visit: http://eatthis.menshealth.com/slideshow/20-worst-restaurant-foods-america

Cheers!

Michelle

Kitchen Window Relocates

Kitchen Window in Minneapolis, MN is on the move this week. Doug and Lia Huemoeller moved their store to a new address. Well, it's the same address actually a new location in the mall the store's called home for 25 years.

The kitchenware store and culinary school will still remain at Calhoun Square, 3001 Hennepin Avenue, but as of yesterday - the greatly expanded store occupies the space at the main entrance of the mall and features two cooking schools - the upper level cooking school upstairs overlooks the main pedestrian area.

The old location provided 5,500 square feet of retail, while the new location is comprised of 7,800 square feet of retail in an overall space of 17,000 square feet.

“I am extremely excited and feel really good about the new location. The way it turned out is amazing,” Doug Huemoeller said. “We’ve been working on this for five years.”

Some of the changes include a cutlery assortment that’s doubled, Huemoeller explained there is now a knife sharpening station in the front window complemented with three water wheels and traditional water stones.

The expanded outdoor cooking area gives the store the ability to feature their annual events in a fabulous setting with plenty of room for items such as 200-person paella pans and 150 pots for lobster boils. Kitchen Window is heading outside as well with its own private sidewalk area in the mall’s pedestrian way allowing for truly outdoor demonstrations.

“It’s just a great event space for us,” Huemoeller said.

Cheers to Kitchen Window – for a much anticipated move and expansion. The TGR team looks forward to the grand opening celebration in January!

Doug, Lia, Gavin and Cole Huemoeller in the new store before the move. Come back tomorrow to see the new store - fully loaded!

You can see more of their move on their Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Minneapolis-MN/Kitchen-Window/85315323221?ref=ts

We'll be posting the completed store soon on The Gourmet Retailer's Facebook page so become a fan!