HOME GENTER MERGHANT

Bill Fishman & Affiliates 11650 lberia Place San Diego, Ca.92128

THE NATIONAL Retailing Institute*

I has completed a series of Focus Croups on behalf of a manufacturer. The client was interested in opinions and recommendations for the design and potential marketing of 31 innovative products.

Separate groups studied consisted of dedicated d-i-yers, contractors (2 groups), mechanics and merchandisers for buying groups and home chains. Although the proprietary nature of the findings still remains confidential, two general observations can be noted here.

(1) When it came to estimating retail price, the d-i-yers, contractors and those companies selling to professionals (contractors and installers) were close to target. The chain buyers were unrealistically low.

(2) Both the d-i-y group and the con- tractor groups were willing to pay a fair price for quality. They also appreciated full service and preferred shopping in nice surroundings at convenient locations.

However, all these consumer groups perceived that when they found an item at the Price Club (or one of its copiers), it would be piced substantiallylower than at the chains or a full service dealer. Furthermore, they said it's this type of operation they will give their money to when they can save money by doing so.

It seems to me that the time has come for the retail dealers to become merchants! Rather than go head to head with the warehouse operators and buying clubs, the dealer would be better to shop for-and present to his customer-better quality brands and models. the ones that won't find their way onto the price cutter's shelf.

I don't think retailers can give up promotional items entirely. They're needed to create excitement and to bring feet into the iThe National Retailing Institute is a division of Marketing Services, Inc. of San Diego, Ca. It performs market surveys and strategic planning sessions for retailers, distributors and manufacturers, many of whom are in the home center and building supply dealer industry.

The Merchant Magazine store (they'd better be competitively priced).

But retailers must now merchandise creatively and carefully for those customers who know, recognize and appreciate better quality. Remember that customer allegiance to any one retailer goes out the window the minute they find merchandise, brand for brand, model for model, priced lower at the warehouse operator's place.

Manufacturers, too, better recognize this consumer trend. In positioning their product line, they've got to understand that they may have to make a choice to go for the fast turns at the low margin warehouse operation that represents about ?.\t/o of the industry's retail sales or channel the distribution through the more conventional dealers. It's the latter who in the future will change brands when one is too readily available at the discounter, retailing at what is close to the dealer's cost. For some manufacturers, it's going to be a difficult choice.

Pricey Bath Hardware Popular

The market for high-priced bath plumbing hardware, which has been an important segment in Europe for many years, is now developing in the United States and currently accounts for about $4O to $50 million in retail sales

Although the market may be fairly new, it is one that should continue to burgeon through the remainder of the century, offering manufacturers and marketers of high style products a solid sales potential, according to Alex Kalbouss, vice president and general manager for Epic, a division of Masco Corp.

"Based on current trends, we feel there is tremendous growth potential for high style/high tech kitchen and bath productsj' Kalbouss adds. "As long as consumers are interested in making their homes beautiful as well as comfortable and are looking for the very best in quality and fashion, this market can only continue to spiral upwardl'

Montana Dealers Assn. Moves

The Montana Building Material Dealers Association, which is celebrating its 5fth year of activity, has moved to new quarters, according to executive secretary Irv Dellinger.

The new address is lll N. Last Chance Gulch, Suite 2C, Arcade Building, Helena, Mt. 59601. The telephone remains the same: (406) M2-2420.

Wally Lynch

Builders Express, 11550 Plano Rd. Dallas. fx.75243

Wolly Lynch, after two years of writing for thb magazine on delivery manogement, is exponding his monthly column to the wider ronge of operations in general. Hb expertise and experience will provide valuable industry insights for our readers. We are pleased to present the second of his new seria of columns-ed.

was simple because it only had two dimensionsdistance and direction. The Tiiple Crown in major league baseball, consisting of the best batting average, the most runs batted in and the most home runs in a season, has been won by only a few major leaguers. The doing is difficult but the understanding is easy.

Similarly, football people measure skills in terms of blocking, tackling, running, passing and kicking. Easy to identify, complex to implement and manage, but, when effectively blended and applied, desirable results occur on the field.

with another questions"What skills do you think you need to combat them?" Ultimately we get around to the chart reproduced here.

The idea behind the chart is to get companies to look inwardly and collectively at the performance of their PEOPLEtheir team members. Each manager is asked to rate the retail skills of the company by using the chart.

You can ask each of your key people to rate your organization's skills using this chart. You not only will show them where their efforts belong, you will find some real surprises in their answers.

You can get a numerical reading on your company by assigning a rating to each answer. Using a numerical value of I through 5 in the sequence in which the answers are described above, you can compute a grade point both individually and collectively. Such a composite will show management what the organization's people think of their skills. At the same time, it can be compared with what they ought to be, thus revealing where efforts are needed.

understandable.

A great golfer once said that his game

Excellence comes from the skills of the PEOPLE involved. When a dealer asks how can anyone compete with this chain, a particular store or that activity, we answer

Next month we will look at where the competitiveworld stands in terms of retailer skills.