Industry must adapt to change

By Ed LeBlanc Senior Vice President Sales and Marketing Macklanburg-Duncan Co. Oklahoma City, Ok.

lT'S NO secret

Ithat our business has chang- ed, and that many companies had a rough year during 1982. However, there is light at the end of our tunnel, and reason for optimism.

Economically and socially, our country has undergone tremendous change. The days of Mom and Dad, three children and one dog in a large house on a large lot may well be over except for the very wealthy. Money became tight, then tighter, and probably will remain tight for the foreseeable future. The family has changed. According to the Federal Census Bureau, nearly 5090 of the children in our country are being raised in a single-parent home. Families are having fewer children.

Homes that are being built are of smaller construction, with tremendously increased energy efficiency "designed in." Those who are living in older homes are as much concerned with upgrading the energy efficiency of the dwelling as they are with the floors or plumbing. The building materials industry will have to adapt to few housing starts, and smaller houses being built.

On the other side of the coin, however, a new direction has come to light. Do-it-yourself customers are not just buying caulking and weatherstripping. They are seeking out the best caulking and weatherstripping, and they're willing to pay more for better quality in terms of ease of application, product life and product quality.

We've seen the dawn of a new day in sophistication in our industry in the major retailers, and these new tools for buying, inventory control, sales, marketing and retailing are now being seen with more and more frequency in the one or two store retail operations. The smaller stores, like the chains. are more interested in turns, dollars per square foot, and the like.

And most important, we at Macklanburg-Duncan see the beginning of a new turn around in our economy,

Story at a Glance

New economic turnaround has begun gaining economic strength in the South. area should lead the nalion . increasing retailer sophistication. quality more important than price.

and a demonstration of the economic strength in the 13 Sunbelt states. Geography is not and will not be a panacea for all economic ills, but the South and Southwest should lead the nation economically.

We've seen strong growth begin in the fourth quarter and we're bullish on 1983. But it will be product quality and product value, less than product price, that will determine sales success.

Those of us in the producing ends must continue to be more aware of the needs of our retail customers as they try to reach the ultimate consumers of our goods. We must continue to ask ourselves: "What can we do to make their job easier, their efforts more successful." And the companies that do a good job of working with retailers, either chains or single store operations, will be the success leaders of next year and the years to follow. Lip service to dealer efforts will not be enough. Pricing programs, customer incentives, coop, the whole gamut of intelligent dealer programs, will make the difference.

It will be the partnership that has been forming between manufacturers and retailers that will be the growth stimulus for our industry. Manufacturers in 1983 and the following years will realize that the retailers will be the channel of distribution to the ultimate customer-the retail shopper.