HOME GENTER MERGHANT

BILL F]SHMAN

Bill Fishman & Affiliates '11650 lberia Place

San Diego, Ca.92128

fll ONNn earned a black belt in shop- Y ping. Since the mall opened only one highway exit north, she can pick up her catalog purchase at Penney's, do the May Company cosmetic counter, grab lunch at Broadway and make it back to her desk on a one hour lunch break.

Occasionally, on a weekend Donna will invite me along for the ride. The minute we hit the mall I head straight for Brookstone's. I'm intrigued with their merchandise mix. It's interesting that the average Brookstone Co. store is about one-fifth the size of the average home center or hardware store, but I find that I can spend much more time browsing through one. Maybe there is a lesson to be learned by their product mix, their merchandise presentation and their store locations.

Typically, home center and hardware stores shy away from shopping mall locations. The higher rents, the poor receiving facilities for bulk merchandise, and the limited merchandise pick up areas for customer purchases are the primary disadvantages. But I've begun to wonder whether the traffic that a mall delivers doesn't more than compensate for the added rent and inconveniences. Sears does a great job of merchandising bulky hardwares at malls. So do the major department stores and anchor mass merchandisers.

The merchandise selection for mall location home centers might have to be tailored back. Lumber could be limited to shorts and eight footers. Take-withyou paneling could leave through the back door. Delivery might become the most important store service. But there would also be room for expanding the merchandise selection.

Take a good look at some of the interesting home items at Brookstone's and The Sharper Image. Upscaled sundials, flat garden hoses, unique flashlites, unusual garden tools, sonic gopher chasers, etc. By the way, these are some of the household items that keep the Brookstone stores jammed between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

It's the merchandise presentation that makes shopping so inviting at Brookstone. Most items are /?ot mass displayed on the selling floor. Products are given lots of room for display and the merchandise is delivered to a pick up counter after a ticket is written. The signing for each item is magnrficent. The copy is carefully written so that even the most mundane product appears as an exotic one-of-a-kind-find.

There are higher operating costs for a mall operation: rent, high tech displays, material handling, etc., but I'm sure that every home center operator also would be envious of the mareins that mall merchants record.

Future Dates

Check our Calendar on page 20 tor information on upcoming conventions, meelings and trade shows in your region.

WAYN E GARDNER executive vice president

THE first quarterly meeting for the I general membership and board of directors was held in Death Valley, on Feb. 3-5.

The group of 35 people left City of lndustry at 9:15 a.m. on Friday and arrived in Death Valley about 3:30 p.m. The bus was stocked with lunch and refreshments. It was a great opportunity to get to know each other.

The weather in Death Valley was cool and windy, but there is little that diminishes the indomitable spirit of a group of people in the lumber industry.

After the meeting on Saturday the group hiked up into one of the more scenic canyons. Some of the members were quite hardy, while others exercised due restraint so that their energies could be utilized for less strenuous, but equally enjoyable pursuits.

Saturday evening the entire group boarded the bus to visit the Amargosa Opera House. A trip to Death ValleY would not be complete without seeing Marta Beckett's Opera House and the performance. It's a real tribute to the woman's dedication to the arts.

Scotty's Castle, with all its clear redwood beams is an excellent place for any lumberman to spend some time. A't 27" Fahrenheit outside temperatures, the desire was strong to be inside.

The return trip to City of Industry via the westerly route gave everyone an opportunity to see the Navy's finest pilots make some low level runs through the valleys. It was almost as if the show was especially for the LASC bus.

Immediately following the Death Valley Trip, president Martyn Temple, lst vice president George Swartz, and yours truly along with wives went to Monterey lor the "Cowboys" meeting. This is the "handle" given to the association officers from the West who meet annually to exchange ideas and develop co-operative programs for Western, Mountain States. Texas. Northern California and Southern Calilornia groups.

The meeting was excellent with a lot of discussion on national issues. lt was emphasized that this coming Congressional Session would be quite active and it would be essential for the lumber distributors to be acutely aware of what is going on. There really needs to be more pro-active than re-active effort from everyone. The respective associations will be the vehicles through which all the information will be channeled. Watch your individual association bulletins, so that you can keep abreast ofwhat's happening.

Lumber Merchants Association of Northern California which was the host organization this year, did a magnificent job. In 1990 LASC will be host in Palm Springs.