How to merchandise moulding as a decorating prcduct

I T USED to be that the only place you I could find mouldings was stuck way back in the back of the lumberyard.

But today moulding is moving out of the shadows into the spotlight in decorating product sections, displayed right alongside wallpaper and paint.

Why have mouldings come out of the closet? A variety of factors in the marketplace have brought about thisshift, explains Art Ramey, vice president of marketing and sales for DG Mouldings, Marion, Va.

"Moulding's image has changed," he notes. "Today it's no longer perceived as just a construction material, but as more of a decorator product."

The national trend of renovating older houses has played a part in moving mouldings into a higher-profile position, according to Ramey. "It's being seen as an element of an older home that needs to be replaced during a renovation."

Retailers are learning that grouping various decorating products increases project sales. They can improve the profit margin of each sale with high margin items, like pre-finished mouldings, Ramey said.

Since mouldings are now being displayed in conjunction with wallcoverings, paint and decorator panels, their finishes must coordinate with the currently popular colors of other available decorator products. For example, Ramey cited recent market research on top-selling wallcovering and decorator panel colors. "We're seeing a new generation of nonwood grain decorator paneling and the use of high-gloss, painted mouldings, along with the stained mouldings," he said.

To encourage sales of the full range of decorative products, some retail outlets are offering interior decorator services. "Customers may come in just to buY paint," Ramey said, "but if you have someone with decorating expertise there to help them see how much better their room will look with new crown or chair rail moulding, you are much more likely to make a sale than if the moulding is just

Story at a Glance

Display moulding with paint and paper...coordinate colorc...offer decorating help to customer... stock easy to install products... keep up with latest moulding trends and developments.

stacked there, waiting for someone to buy it."

Where budeet limitations don't allow