Gourmet News Editorial Retailers Holiday Update 2008

By Joanne Friedrick

In the dog days of summer, retailers have already been plotting their holiday strategies.  This year, of course, the sagging economy adds a wild card to those plans.  So what is a store owner to do?

According to Anne Obarski, executive director of Merchandise Concepts, a retail speaking and coaching service based in St. Charles, Missouri, the economy shouldn’t dictate how a retailer plans for the upcoming holidays.

“I don’t think it makes a difference what economy we are in now,” said Obarski.  “What retailers have to come to grips with is that customers have little loyalty as their shopping experience is global.  (Shoppers) have more options than they have ever had before.  Link that with the economy, and they will save gas and let their fingers do the shopping if we don’t give them a reason to come touch, taste and feel our products.”

James Hallman, owner and operator of The Hallman Company, a retail consultancy near Atlanta, said he is counseling clients to stay positive.  “You can’t control the economy, but you can focus on what you can control,” he pointed out, such as inventory levels, your marketing message and whether that message is reflected in how your store actually operates.  For example, if you profess to have superior customer service, will a customer experience that the moment they enter your store?

The economy will take its toll on marginal retailers, Hallman noted, but that can present opportunities for those who remain.  The question becomes whether your store will be a mere survivor-just getting by in tough times-or become a success.

Hallman said a savvy retailer is able to control the positive, emotional levels of its customers by tapping into one of four emotional triggers-pride, profit, pleasure and peace of mind.  For a specialty coffee shop, peace of mind for customers may be knowing that their favorite brand or flavor is always there, while pleasure is the ability to enjoy that special cup of coffee.

Pride and pleasure can also be related to a customer’s ability to be the first to find a new item, which makes inventory control a key factor in holiday planning.

Hallman said when times are tight, product mix and appropriateness is more important than sheer volume in a store.  He said inventories should be staggered so some new items are released early to accommodate fashion shoppers-those who want to be the first on the block to have a new, hot item.

To make store appear fuller, Obarski said retailers should tighten up their displays and focus on those areas that are the first ones a customer sees when he or she enters a store.

“The cleaner your store and inventory look, the easier it is for customers to shop,” she said.  “don’t confuse lots of inventory with increased sales.  If you really know your customer and buy for their needs and wants, it will be easier to merchandise in depth and not be spread out.”

Additionally, said Obarski, customers are likely to shop in person if the store offers an “experience”.

“Kitchen and gourmet stores have the perfect venue to offer something that addresses all the senses,” she said.

Hallman also cautioned specialty retailers to position themselves away from a low price model and play up the store’s uniqueness, experience and quality.

“Consumers want the highest quality, lowest price and best service,” acknowledged Hallman.  “But no retailer can consistently deliver all three.  You need to decide which one or two you really want to focus on.”

In preparing the store for the holidays, Obarski offered these suggestions:

• Focus and plan merchandising techniques around the highest turning items
• Thin your inventory by offering sales on those items that are poor performers
• Have employees shop the competition, whether online or in person, and have them pinpoint areas of improvement.  Extra training with specific performance expectations that are linked to rewards can help shape how employees deliver customer service
• Meet with all employees and let them know as much as you can about all the areas of the business, from expenses to planned sales to operational issues, so they feel ownership of the store and will work harder because they understand the big picture
• A mystery shopping program can also be used to test how well employees service customers before the busy shopping days occur.  If there are issues, there will be time to address them before the holiday rush.

Hallman also suggests the pre-holiday time is when store’s should get the customer lists in order for marketing programs via mail and email.

Once customers are in the store, it’s important to provide a high level of customer service, even on the busiest of days.

“As (store) leaders, managers must convey the importance of communication skills on the part of each and every employee,” said Obarski.  “No matter how busy someone gets, they need to make sure they either make eye contact, physical contact or verbal contact with customers.  Holiday season is the time to court that new customer so they continue to shop throughout the year.”

Although retailers may be feeling some angst about the upcoming season, Hallman said a dose of reality will put things into perspective.  “The economy is tough,” he acknowledged, “but it’s not the Great Depression.  We know things cost more and we have to prioritize spending, but the customer will still buy what they love from the places they love.  What retailers need to do is look at what people like about them and do everything they can to maintain that position.”

Joanne Friedrick is a freelance writer and editor in Portland, Maine.

Anne Obarski is the director of Merchandise Concepts in St. Charles, Missouri

James Hallman owns The Hallman Company in the metro Atlanta area

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Sell Gourmet vendor Desiree Guillory, owner of Blue Magnolia Products company from Lafayette, Louisiana who makes a wonderful bread pudding mix you bake at home was featured by the website Simple Daily Recipes as one of their top picks.

Jill McKeaver is a mother, wife, teacher, artist, creative genius, and writer. She works daily on her blog at SimpleDailyRecipes.com. When she is not home schooling her kids or writing for her blog, Jill likes to experiment in her kitchen to create new food delights.

I wasn’t a bread pudding fan until I ate Blue Magnolia’s Cinnamon Bread Pudding. Oh mercy, was it GOOD!
I was over shopping in my favorite little town of Winnsboro, Texas. Winnsboro is such a cool little place with great live music, awesome restaurants and fun shopping. Oh, and the spa! (pause for a moment of daydreaming)

ANYHOO! This bread pudding is AWESOME! EASY! and anyone can bake it, even me. All it takes is one normal size loaf of french bread, some milk, a little butter, and a bag of Blue Magnolia’s Cinnamon Bread Pudding.

I haven’t made the Lemon-Chiffon, yet. But I will soon and post it.

Here’s what it looks like straight from the oven.

Being the first time to make bread pudding, I baked the simplest version offered and topped it with homemade whipped cream leftover from the Strawberry dessert I made days ago. (I told you in that post that you would have extra whipped cream for other desserts. I wasn’t just making that up.)

Oh and just so you know: I’m not getting paid to talk about this product. I sampled it in a tasting at Ladles to Linens, bought a couple of bags for myself, and baked it up. Now, I’m sharing my experience with you. It’s good stuff, Maynerd. You ought to pick up a few bags for yourself online and see for yourself.

If you are a work or own a retail store, you can buy Wholesale Blue Magnolia Bread Pudding Mix at our wholesale website www.wholesalegourmet.net.

HOUSTON – 9/17/2008 Sell Gourmet, Inc., (www.sellgourmet.com) the destination site on the internet for gourmet products and specialty foods, is a Houston, Texas based internet technology company that has maintained business operations throughout the hurricane Ike disaster.

“Thank goodness we had the foresight to have our servers based in Orem, Utah and our backup servers elsewhere”, stated company president, Jerry Gabbert. In the virtual environment of internet based businesses, “servers” are the physical location of the computer(s) where the website is housed. From this access point, internet users across the globe are able to do business, shop or perform a myriad of other functions with the company’s website.

“It was critical for us to maintain operations as we have over 100 clients from all over the USA and Canada.” Mr. Gabbert added, “It is our fiduciary responsibility to make sure that a local or regional disaster does not affect the business operations of our clients in the non-affected areas… and in our case it did not. In fact, from September 12th – 17th over 21 orders were placed with our clients that are in other parts of the country.”
Sell Gourmet, Inc. functions similar to an online portal. Specialty food companies advertise their products on two dedicated wholesale and retail websites (www.WholesaleGourmet.net and www.RetailGourmet.com), but the online orders are actually placed with and fulfilled directly by each individual merchant.

According to Mr. Gabbert, the company has purchased a power generator and will loan the equipment to relief agencies to use for a family that has no power. “The storm and its aftermath are having a terrible effect on families in the Texas heat as we were fortunate to use our generator until our electricity came back on. Those not as fortunate need help and we’re happy to do what we can.” Gabbert said.
“There are a lot of relief agencies that are focused on individuals that have been affected by the lack of power. It is a mammoth task in itself to restore power to nearly 2 million people in a reasonable amount of time. The Houston area is home to many medium to large specialty food businesses that contribute heavily to this industry.  We are offering free online memberships to all Houston Metro area based food companies throughout the rest of 2008.  We want to offer something to local small businesses that may be impacted by this storm as a way to offer their goods for sale across the country.”

If companies have unique and high quality products with a great story to tell… we want to speak to them about joining our site for the upcoming holiday season.

The folks at The Sell Gourmet Network will be happy to discuss how our multi-channel approach to wholesale ordering can benefit all of your sales channels while having a positive impact in restoring the lives of those who have suffered so much. Sell Gourmet would like to encourage companies across the country wishing to help in the hurricane Ike relief effort and in enhancing their online presence to fill out a Prospective Vendor Form.
The Sell Gourmet Network (Sell Gourmet Inc.) is the revolutionary new business portal that connects all business-types in the gourmet and specialty food industry in one easy-to-find, easy-to-use location. The Sell Gourmet Network is designed to bring everyone in the industry together in a way that is efficient, cost effective, and, ultimately, your most valuable sales and information tool. With just a few clicks of the mouse, manufacturers can find co-packers and brokers; brokers can find distributors and retailers; co-packers can find potential clients, and so on, all in one, very easy to understand and easy to navigate site.

Company Information:
Sell Gourmet Inc. is a privately held corporation located in Houston, Texas. Our mission is to revolutionize the way business is conducted in the fragmented gourmet and specialty food industry. We bring years of combined experience in the industry including sales and marketing management, business operations management, e-commerce/internet business, and wholesale distribution & logistics.

Contact Information
For more information, media should contact
Jerry Gabbert, President
The Sell Gourmet Network

Sell Gourmet, Inc.
17611 Empress Cove Lane
Tomball, TX 77377

Additional Contact Information

email: info@sellgourmet.com
phone: (832) 559-7317
web: http://www.sellgourmet.com