Thrift Finds a New Groove

Tags

John Archer, retail, retail advising, thrift

It is well known that product placement in popular songs is one tool in the marketing department’s tool chest for increasing awareness and acceptance for brands. This is especially true for luxury brands. Having a celebrity endorse your product or be seen in public carrying complementary merchandise gets the brand noticed. Culturally, music permeates our society today more so than before. Everywhere you go, people on the street have ear buds or flashy headphones attached to their heads. Songs that mention high end luxury brands were popular a few years back. A company tried to keep track using American Brandstand. Mentions such as Kanye West for Louis Vuitton, Black Eyed Peas for Fendi, and Gwen Stefani’s signing the virtues of Vivienne Westwood are just a small sample.

While driving this weekend with the radio on, I was listening to the Number One song for the week – Thrift Store by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis featuring Wanz. I won’t add a link to the song video due to some of the questionable lyrics. However, while the song is firmly rooted in the tongue in cheek genre, and the 200+ million YouTube hits is testament that this is a fun video to watch – it does carry some pretty interesting messages and is more reflective of our post recession attitudes.

The singer makes fun of people for losing their individuality and willingness to shed $50 for a t-shirt that everybody else will be wearing. He extols the fun of finding a pair of awesome sneakers and making them even more cool with his own additions. He even tells you how to do it “bag it, copping it, washing it, bout to go and get some compliments.” Although I am not clear if copping really refers to stealing the item as he does say he has $20 to spend at the store. Finally, the real fun at any thrift store is the thrill that you get from an amazing find. It’s like winning the lottery  – “… brown leather jacket that I found, dig it” and it’s why people return to thrift shops time and time again to see what is new and if there are any undiscovered treasures.

Well I don’t think that luxury brands should be shaking in their boots fretting that their customers are going to ditch their goods and replace them with second hand finds. The song is going against Justin Timberlake’s Suit and Tie song. However, I think stores like Goodwill may get a boost in sales and maybe a good laugh along the way.

Affordable Style with Holt’s hr2 at Dix/30′s The Square

Tags

Holt, Holt Renfrew, hr2, retail, Terry Henderson

A few weeks ago Holt Renfrew opened its new affordable luxury concept hr2 in The Square (pronounced Sqaarr) at lifestyle centre Dix/30 in Brossard, Quebec, near Montreal. We have taken the time to visit the store on a couple of occasions since it has opened. The experience in the store is very consistent with the brand promise. We are quite pleased by what we have seen and by the fact that it is an example of a new Canadian entry into the province.

The Square is the new fashion-centric wing of Dix/30 shopping centre.

In this wing hr2 has some interesting neighbours, which include:

Williams-Sonoma

Pottery Barn

Vero Moda

Jack & Jones

Lululemon (“Yoga. Love. Hockey.”)

Urban Outfitters

Northface Au Sommet

The hr2 Concept

The birthplace of Holt’s was Quebec over 175 years ago thus it seems fitting that the launch of its new concept would be in the same place. The store, designed by Janson Goldstein of New York, is Canada’s first premium off-price store and is over 25,000 square feet on 1 floor and carries over 150 leading brands. These brands include Alice + Olivia, Ray-Ban, Cole Haan, Michael Michael Kors, Diane von Furstenberg, 7 for all, Splendid, Elle Thari, Nicole Millar, Mankind, House of Harlow, Hugo Boss, Anzie, John Varvatos, and Hunter. They also have their own private label called hr2.

The floor space is split approximately 50% for women’s fashion, 25% for men’s, 15% for shoes, and 10% for accessories.

This first of 10 stores, it is a pitch for cost-conscious shoppers and is launched at a time when they want to take advantage of the fact that Nordstrom and its discount chain Nordstrom Rack have not yet entered Canada.

Consumers are becoming happier to claim that they have bought brand names in a prudent manner, even if they have money. The following pictures reveal the true savings that hr2 offers to its customers.

         Hugo Boss Men’s Blazer $399, comparable at $695

        Hugo Boss Men’s Dress Shirt $105, comparable at $185

Inside the Store Itself

The store is very airy, spacious, and bright with plenty of staff on the floor to make sure that the self-service shelves are well stocked and someone is always around to answer customers’ questions. There are plenty of registers at a central cashdesk to ensure shoppers don’t wait too long in line to finalize their purchases.

Getting to the Store

The Square is relatively new and construction is not yet complete. The one inconvenience is the cross-section you have to get around to get to The Square, which is already quite congested and will probably get worse as more stores open. Once you get through the cross-section, there is plenty of free underground parking underneath the store.

What Do the Customers Think?

Other than the logistics to get to the store, everyone we spoke to, without exception, loved the concept.

      Happy hr2 shoppers!

According to the retailer’s website, the second Canadian location for hr2 will be opening at Vaughan Mills shopping centre on May 10, 2013, so Torontonians too will soon get to enjoy the savings that hr2 brings to luxury retail.

The Devil is in the Details – AllSaints Opens Its Doors in Canada

Tags

AllSaints, retail, Suthamie Poologasingham, Yorkdale

To the delight of Canadian consumers, who have long been envious of their counterparts to the south, major Canadian cities are rapidly becoming home to several foreign retail brands. And it’s not only to American retailers like Target, which are expanding northwards. Popular U.K. based AllSaints Spitalfields, who have been in the U.S. for four years, opened their doors at Yorkdale Mall on Thursday, April 4th. Like many new retailers, they hope to partake in the resilient economy and obtain a strong Canadian consumer following.

AllSaints, as they’re better known, was founded in the early 90s, provides high end fashionable men’s and women’s apparel and footwear. The name stems from the initials of one of the founders Stuart Trevor (ST) and his connection to AllSaints Road, a hub of music and design in the U.K. The brand takes this connection to heart, collaborating with emerging talent and established artists. Its ties to the broader cultural scene has been authenticated by popular artists including Justin Timberlake, who makes reference to the brand in his latest hit (“Suit and Tie,” 2013).

Rightly locating in Yorkdale Mall, AllSaints is not for the faint of heart when it comes to price. Compared to brands like Aritzia, it provides similar to higher price-point, quality apparel. A very soft and stylish tank-top can cost US$60. The brand exudes the notion of individuality sans arrogance, with its edgier, distressed styles targeted to a niche market.

To give you a look at what to expect from AllSaints, we’ve visited one of their U.S. stores to find out what makes this retailer right for the Canadian market.

You can identify an AllSaints store by the impressive collection of sewing machines lit up in its windows.  Mainly Singer machines dawn the display, but other well-known brands like Minerva can also be found.

The devil is in the details and this appears to be AllSaints’ philosophy.  Using several reclaimed artifacts, like a clothing ringer and old school, shoe sewing machines, the brand marries old world charm with high end fashion to present unique displays.  Their stores are a reflection of the brand, with the retailer investing little in traditional marketing.

            

AllSaints’ collection provides a modern take on a vintage and rock look. From distressed pieces and hand-made to hand-embellished items, the brand lets its consumers display a very specific, chic attitude.

The dressing rooms are not missed in the minutia, with a mix of wood and metal, to complement the overall store design.

These AllSaints boots are hand-made, with no two pairs quite having the same look. Others, like their Merit Shoe for men, are handmade and hand polished, with a sticker tag of US$495. Most of their men’s footwear online is burnished and hand-finished by craftsmen.

Canadian consumers are not shy about what they want or where they’re willing to go to purchase items that 1) make a statement and/or represent them, and 2) provides them with quality or value. In fact, their expectations are on the rise, having shopped American brands online and across the border for several years. 

AllSaints looks to be a promising new addition to the northern retail scene, bringing an understanding of high fashion, culture/music and individuality straight to the Canadian consumer.

If AllSaints can forge the connection with the Canadian consumer and tap into the healthy music scene across the country, the Queen won’t be the only welcome Brit in town.

As a bonus, we got a chance last weekend to visit the Yorkdale store! Below are a few pictures taken from the recently opened store which had tech-savvy staff, plenty of products and the signature AllSaints design.

AllSaints’ elaborate sewing machine display is sure to grab shoppers’ attention.

Staff dressed in AllSaints attire armed with tablets to ensure a true cross-channel customer experience.

 

News Headline: JCPenney Sales for 2012 Down 25.2% for Comparable Stores and $985 Million Loss for the Year

Tags

JCPenny, John Williams, retail, retailing

Walking into the newly renovated Victorville, California JCPenney store was literally a jaw-dropping moment. Totally gone is yesterday’s JCPenney.

In its place is an astonishingly contemporary store that looks fabulous. The build-out is terrific, simple, and white. Lighting is “right-on.” Displays look great and merchandise presentation is definitely shopper friendly. Departments are well signed and adjacencies are good. There are lots of national brands (e.g., Levi’s, Sephora, Fieldcrest, etc.) and private brands—and the Joe Fresh shop (located at the front entrance) is under construction for an opening in a few days. There were lots of strategically placed “value priced” hot items, too. And JCPenney’s handling of online is terrific!

It’s like a budget Bloomingdale’s?

So what the heck has gone wrong? The wheels have definitely come off this bus!

Mistake #1  They abandoned their old JCPenney customer and have not replaced them with new shoppers. Switching customers takes years to do. They have missed some of their market. This particular store is too sophisticated and contemporary for this “farm land, middle-American” community.

Mistake #2  The store and merchandise is predominantly “contemporary.” The “traditional lifestyle” merchandise emphasis is missing—and that is the biggest segment of the market.

Mistake #3  There are “great value” offerings; but these are isolated—particularly when compared to a Walmart’s emphasis on value. JCPenney caters to middle and lower income people. This has been hit by recession and unemployment. So value, sales, and deals are what they shop for. These people are essential to this type of retailer’s success.

Mistake #4  Some departments lack excitement and value offerings that you would expect from a JCPenney type store, e.g., jewelry. They cannot possibly generate high sales per square foot!

Store Exterior and Entrance—Very Nice!

     

Enticing apparel visual presentation and brands

     

     

                                

Great feature displays

     

Under-merchandised, low impact and depth

     

     

Lack of assortments

     

Value prices

     

Shops: Sephora

     

Joe Fresh—to come

Online, gift cards, careers

     

      

The UK is the Canary in the Coal Mine for Cross-channel Retail Effects

London in January is not really at its best from a tourist’s point of view. Since ICSC chose to have its Global Research Conference there this January, it gave us an opportunity to see this amazing city from a different point of view. We were also able to see the impact of the internet that was discussed at the conference.

A very hot topic of the conference was the impact that the internet was having on retail real estate and how it has multiplied the challenges of the economic downturn. In fact, one of the panel sessions was “Is There Too Much Retail Space.” The general consensus is that certain kinds of retail developments are in real danger (e.g., power centers and undifferentiated malls) while the best high streets and shopping centers will continue to thrive as shoppers look for experiences that they cannot get online.

The fact that the UK is a laboratory for these kinds of effects did not come as a surprise to us. We participated in a global study on cross-channel retail with our international partners at the Ebeltoft Group. The US and UK came out as leaders in retailing that links the online/offline experience. What did wow us was the work that has been done by some of the staid UK retailers that we really did not expect to be leaders. Two great examples are Marks and Spencer and John Lewis.

Marks and Spencer makes it clear that customers can shop, buy or return anyway they want.

John Lewis shows in the store that online shoppers are welcome.

It is not just these large department stores that are telling customers that they can buy anyway that they want. Dorothy Perkins, a fast fashion UK chain, encourages their customers to use the web in the store. They even use their security stanchions to reinforce the message as you walk in the store.

The new Burberry store on Regent Street is a great example of a store that sees their online business as just another way to provide great service. The sales people here are armed with tablets that they carry around with shoulder straps. They can find any style, color or size you want and send it directly to your home, wherever you live. They can show you how products were shown on the runways using their tablets and the interactive screens in the stores. Make no mistake though, the in-store experience makes a trip to the store worthwhile.

While we did not see a lot of vacant space in the center of London, we were told that there are serious vacancy issues in less desirable retail estate. Retailers and retail real estate owners around the world should look carefully at the UK. They are leading the way in internet impacts. They are the canary in the coal mine.

Too Much Control… Is Bad for Business Health!

I know, I know—someone got hurt. And a kid got a stomach ache. But why can’t a bit of common sense come into play?

Just look at this fabulous street market in Cape Town’s central walking street. Venders brighten up an otherwise pretty dull situation with their amazing craft stalls.

And the slow-cooked fast food stalls were jammed with downtown workers enjoying an extraordinary array of homemade cooking. And look! No sneeze guards, no electronic registers. Just fabulous looking food and happy customers. I’m sure there are incubator cooks who will progress into their own full-shop businesses from these events! Hey New York, Toronto, Philadelphia—time to loosen up!

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

Simple is Better Messaging

Often the simple, straightforward way is the best. Looking at the Woolworth’s Department store in Cape Town, South Africa (2012 International Responsible Retailer of the Year) demonstrates this communications principle.

We’ve all seen fancy or complicated packaging. And the ingredients information on jars and boxes requires a magnifying glass for reading ease. Too often, one has to strain to get the message.

This is not the case at Woolworth’s Grocery Department! Their food floor has a powerful and arresting series of posters that have strong, simple statements about food quality.

J.C. Williams Group thinks these are great examples for other stores to emulate!

Store of the year!

Saving the environment doesn’t have to end

Woolworth’s plans sustainable food

    

    

Great messaging…

Done with a bit of humour

    

Woolworth’s tied in this power product quality campaign with WRewards (10% off), Taste magazine and The Daily Difference newspaper. Very nice!

There is no place like New York at Christmas!

Barneys had show-stopper windows and an in-store promotion called “Electric Holiday,” which featured Disney characters.

The Disney windows featured NYC media, movie, and fashion personalities.

Tie-in a 9^th floor cafe.

Shopping bags and balloons.

Small theatre.

Electric holiday products.

Rockefeller Center.

 

Rockin’ Salvation Army collectors in front of Saks.

Awesome Bulgari.

Bergdorf’s windows are stunning!

Exploring Online Marketing

Tags

affiliate marketing, online marketing, retail

As retailers seek to gain an edge in the Canadian marketplace, online strategies such as affiliate marketing are being increasingly implemented and all retailers should take note. In the UK, advertisers investing more than 31% of their marketing budget in the affiliate channel rose from 11% (2011) to 16% (2012) according to the Internet Advertising Bureau UK. It’s a trend we are likely to see in Canada due to our high internet penetration and online engagement rates.

Last month, the Rakuten LinkShare Symposium in Toronto brought together retailers and affiliates from the U.S., Canada and across the globe at which J.C. Williams Group’s Suthamie Poologasingham, Director of U.S. Marketing and Research, gave a keynote speech on Retail Trends in Canada and Campaign Optimization for the Canadian Consumer. We have shared a few key points to educate and help you improve your online marketing.

What is affiliate marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a performance-based system, whereby a merchant would pay an affiliate for either a visitor or a customer that is brought to them by the affiliate’s efforts (e.g., blogging, advertising, etc.). The main parties involved are the:

• merchant (aka the ‘retailer’ or ‘brand’),
• affiliate network (that contains offers for the affiliate to choose from and also takes care of the payments),
• publisher or affiliate, and
• customer.

Does this strategy make sense for me?
This is a great strategy for retailers and brands as they can have the option to set the pay criteria. They can choose to only pay per sale (PPS), pay per click (PPC) or pay per leads (PPL). Publishers, on the other hand, have to earn the trust of their visitors, whether they provide valuable coupons or deals for their customers or in the case of bloggers, earn the trust of their followers with unique and relevant content. Publishers typically will have the option to choose which brands they want to show up on their website, making the ad content more relevant to their visitors. For example, the latest buzz about Urban Outfitter’s profanity-laced merchandise in their holiday catalogs may keep some affiliate sites (e.g., blogs) away from the brand’s ads, while others may welcome it. With affiliate networks popping up it’s important to ensure that retailers and publishers do their homework and sign up with an affiliate network that gathers top-notch, performing publishers and have a wide range of retailers and brands from which to choose.

What to watch for in 2013 with online advertising
The Rakuten LinkShare Symposium in Toronto, while meant to allow for affiliates and partners to network, was also a good opportunity to share what types of advertising is needed now and down the road. During my keynote speech, I asked the audience how many retailers were using video advertising. In a packed room, only a few hands went up. Considering that YouTube is the #2 search engine and that 91% of the country’s online population regularly watches videos online (Internet Advertising Bureau of Canada and Brightroll 2012), this is one medium retailers should dive into and affiliates should be preparing their sites for. A new report from Kantar Media found that 77% of brands still use national TV advertising exclusively. Both in the U.S. and Canada a strong marketing strategy will make use of online videos to entertain, inform and educate customers while marketing to them. For ideas on video advertising, you can watch the top rated videos on YouTube trends, by region, gender, etc. While the demographics of online viewers are dependent on the accuracy of the user inputting their information when they signup, it still provides a general representation of specific demographics.

For more information on our presentation at Rakuten Linkshare’s Symposium in Toronto on Retail Trends in Canada and Campaign Optimization for the Canadian Consumer, contact us.

If you are interested in affiliate marketing, check out the next Symposium in San Francisco on January 31st.

About Rakuten Linkshare

• Rakuten LinkShare provides online marketing services to leading and emerging retailers and other companies specializing in Affiliate Marketing, Display and Retargeting, Paid Search, and Lead Generation.
• In 2012 Rakuten LinkShare was ranked as having the #1 Affiliate Marketing Network by mThink and named one of the top ten most innovative companies in the world by Forbes magazine.
• Rakuten LinkShare’s parent company Rakuten is the #1 e-commerce and internet services company in Japan and is now quickly establishing a presence around the world.

Getting “Experience” Retail Right

Tags

books, RED, retail, Rome

On Rome’s, Via Del Corso, a new store has just opened—“RED: Read, Eat, Dream” bookstore, bar and restaurant has got its ingredients right!

Firstly, it’s open at night for strollers on this busy street and the Piazza Del Popolo. Secondly, the store is very simple and engaging. Sections are well organized, with ample comfortable seating and internet connection.

The bar, kitchen, and cafe anchored the store with a dine-in or out-of-doors option.

Combining two different skills (books and cooking) is usually a risky venture, but R.E.D. seems to have got it right! Good books, good wine, good food, good service, good prices. Life is good at R.E.D.!