Helping Make New Year Wishes Come True

If NARMS members had a collective New Year resolution, it would probably include becoming a more effective and efficient retail solution. As your trade association, NARMS has focused on being your resolution enabler in the coming year. So to get 2010 kicked off in grand style, here’s a quick run-down of some the resources and valued programs we are offering to help you.

It starts with our showcase event, the NARMS 2010 Spring Conference on April 17-20, 2010. The agenda includes Connection Sessions with manufacturers and retailers on Monday; five NARMS-U sessions with CEU credits; division workshops and a trade show. While we are on the topic, December 31st is the last day for discounted prices for NARMS Spring Conference Registration and Saddlebrook Rooms. Conference registration before December 31 is $450 and after that date is $500. Hotel Registration before December 31 @ 5:00 EST (Non-cancelable fee) is $199 per night and after that time is $229.00 (still $20 less than original contracted room rate).

We are also featuring STRATCONN on July 28-29, 2010. This is a business to business event focused on retail execution with meetings between buyers (manufacturers and retailers) and sellers (service companies).

2010 will also see the first findings of the Return on Retail Investment (RORI) study, an analysis of in-store retail execution.

Each month, NARMS-U Webinars offer you an educational forum without leaving the comfort of your office. These hour-long sessions run the gamut from business learning experiences to common personnel issues. The sessions are complimentary to members.

We also offer recruitment resources 24/7/365 in the form of JobBank, Career Connection and The Recruiter. These resources have been around for years, but have evolved over time to keep pace with the demanding challenge of operating a decentralized workforce. Also on www.narms.com, we offer Member Discount Programs to help your company find business support resources at great, member only rates.

We could go on-and-on, but the point here is to make sure you take full advantage of your membership by visiting www.narms.com and engaging the many available resources that will help your New Year resolutions become reality.

May you travel the road of prosperity in 2010!

Dec 25, 2009 IRI / Morning NewsBeat

Below is the list of articles you will find for the week ending 12/25/09 edition of Retail Industry News.

- Whole Foods CEO Looks Backward, Forward
- Sansolo Speaks: Small Things Loom Large
- Giant Eagle Strikes Deal To Develop In-Store Medical Clinics
- The “Rare Characteristics” Of Successful Retailers
- Festival Foods Looks to Enhance Food Business
- FastNewsBeat
- The MNB Wal-Mart Watch
- The Balance Sheet

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Help Ring in the New

With the New Year but days away, many of us are taking stock of what we want to accomplish in 2010. This is particularly true for CPG manufacturers who will look for new product innovation to drive consumers back to traditional brands. A report on neilsenwire called, “Innovation Creates Opportunities for CPG Growth,” forwards the notion that success in the New Year will be driven by innovation in the form of new products, new formats and new promotions.

According to the Neilsen story, “winning brands will innovate and differentiate.” This is driven by the fact that sales of store brands have jumped by $12 billion or almost 17 percent. The counter attack is to differentiate with new products, flavors, packaging and social media campaigns designed to build rapid awareness.

Rapid awareness of new products must also be accompanied by rapid deployment on the shelves. It just so happens that this skill is something that NARMS members are exceptionally good at doing. The recently released NARMS Survey of At-Retail Marketing Practices found that manufacturers and retailers grade our group of at-retail merchandising and marketing professionals as very effective in speed-to-shelf activities. They also tell us that the faster sales lift from new item cut-ins can increase sales by 15%.

There seems to be two kinds of approaches emerging. The first is the Wal-Mart “Project Impact” initiative which features cleaner isles and limited assortment. The other is an effort to distinguish by offering a wider selection to cater to variety seekers. In either case, the ability to execute at the shelf will be pivotal in success or failure.

Dec 18, 2009 IRI / Morning NewsBeat

Below is the list of articles you will find for the week ending 12/18/09 edition of Retail Industry News.

- Randy Edeker Named Fourth President In Hy-Vee’s History
- Frugality Is Back In Fashion, But There May Be Hope
- Hispanic Shoppers More Committed Than Ever To Private Brands
- Sansolo Speaks: “Questions, Questions”
- Coborn’s Buys Two Cub Stores, Will Convert Them To Cash Wise Units
- 7-Eleven Testing Mobile Marketing In California
- Price Chopper Looks To Acquire 22 P&C Stores For $54 Million
- Procrastination Factoring Into Holiday Shopping Habits
- Ahold Buys Ukrop’s For $140 Million
- FastNewsBeat
- The Balance Sheet
- Executive Suite

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Survey of At-Retail Marketing Services Released

What if you could read the minds of decision makers at leading packaged goods vendors and retailers in regards to at-retail merchandising and marketing services? Well now you don’t have to! This week, NARMS distributed the findings of the Survey of At-Retail Marketing Services to its members via a broadcast email. In case you missed it, the document is also available in the members area of www.narms.com.

Every couple of years, NARMS contacts key leaders in the manufacturer and retailer community to gain their insights and perspectives on the marketplace in which we do business. These trading partners ultimately make up the customer base of NARMS members who perform at-retail merchandising and marketing support activities in stores around the world.

This attitudinal study collected data from manufacturers and retailer contacts doing business in multiple channels of trade. The participants took part in an on-line survey during the first half of 2009. Here are just a few of the key messages contained in the numbers:

*Vendors realize that at-retail companies can help them reach their shelf-support goals and improve their customer service perception with retailers. Surprisingly, trading partners use at-retail companies less in speed-to-shelf than for other tasks even though they identify this as an area that needs improvement and they rate at-retail companies as effective at speed-to-shelf.

*The percentage of spend on service is closely tracking with the percentage of sales in almost all channels. This may indicate a realization that a proportionate amount of support is necessary in all channels.

*A big opportunity exists in the execution of new item cut-ins and category resets.. Activities that fall into the core competency of NARMS members.

*A significant amount of trading partners believe that key shelf support activities help drive incremental sales growth between 5-20%. Among these include regular coverage at 20%, new item cut –ins at 15% and store set-up at 10%.

*While at-retail services have evangelists in the marketplace, there are still many trading partners that need to be sold on the long term, brand and sales building benefits of excellent in-store execution. In general, vendors view at-retail services as defensive action while retailers view at-retail services as an investment.

*NARMS members are seen as effective members of the go-to-market process. Their profile has risen in the past 4-5 years. Grades for at-retail companies in key areas are higher than in 2004 with the highest grades received in speed-to-shelf, regular coverage and store set-up.

From its very earliest days, NARMS has been committed to research and sharing gained knowledge with stake holders in the industry. The Survey of At-Retail Marketing Service Practices 2009 is an opportunity to view the battle field that is at-retail from a high vantage point. We encourage you to download this report and include the findings in your strategic plans and marketing efforts.

A New NARMS Today Preview

By now, the link to the December issue of NARMS Today is waiting for each and every one of you in your email in box. As you recall, NARMS Today is now a strictly digital publication. In case you missed it amid a flurry of incoming mail, here is another link. Make sure you follow the link and take a few moments to read and make note of all the great industry information and updates that make up this quarterly publication that is a valuable part of the NARMS communication program.

This issue starts off in high gear with a message from NARMS Chairperson, Don Koller. His article entitled, “The Finish Line is the Bottom Line,” is a great synopsis of how NARMS and its member benefits can help you reach ultimate success in your business.

In, “Quality is Now More Than a Hope and A Prayer, NARMS President/CEO Dan Borschke discusses how the new NARMScertifyU will help the industry achieve a high level of quality and consistency by offering learning modules to field reps.

Is today’s retail industry economy “bucking you around”? Check out Ken’s Keystrokes where NARMS Vice President Ken McKenzie takes a lighter look in, “Can You See Yourself at a Rodeo?”

In case you have not been keeping up with association events and happenings, you will want to review NARMS News and the Spring Conference Highlights pages which will get you caught up in a quick glance.

As always, our Divisional Committee heads have contributed to the issue with a review of division activity and recap of recent divisional meetings. Included are articles by Steve Workman and Carlos Rocca of the MSO division, Gregg Morrison of the PIC division, Kelly Baker of the Manufacturer’s division, Carolyn Weiland of the Associate Member division, Jim Hall of the IFBA and Julie Nichols of the Event Marketing division.

The issue ends with another value packed article by frequent contributor Jim Pancero in his, “You Can Always Sell More,” series.

NARMS Today is an important building block in the further development of our industry. You owe it to yourself to find a few minutes in a busy day to take a break and get caught up on NARMS happenings. We know you will enjoy this issue.

Dec 11, 2009 IRI / Morning NewsBeat

Below is the list of articles you will find for the week ending 12/11/09 edition of Retail Industry News.

- Report: Tesco Plans To Bring Loyalty Card Program To Fresh & Easy
- Supervalu’s Herkert On “The New Normal”
- Sansolo Speaks: “What People Notice”
- Green Is Good
- A Different Kind Of CFO
- The Other Frugal, Family-Owned Retail Empire
- FastNewsBeat
- The MNB Wal-Mart Watch
- The Balance Sheet
- Executive Suite

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Next Webinar Explores Merchandising Performance Management

Implementation means to carry out; to give practical effect to and ensure of actual fulfillment by concrete measures. In the next NARMS Webinar, James Tenser will take a look at new considerations in the ever important issue of implementing marketing plans at retail. The hour-long session is another event in the NARMS-U educational platform titled - What is Merchandising Performance Management? The webinar, sponsored by Natural Insight, will take place next Thursday, December 17 at 1:00 P.M. CST and is brought to you through the technology of ReadyTalk.

James (Jamie) Tenser, Director of the In-Store Implementation Network, will take us through what he describes as, “The next frontier for retail financial performance, the stores themselves.” The question of whether plans can be implemented at store level remains vexing for brand marketers and retailers, but a new wave of inter-organizational solutions promises to restore control and combat the intricacy that results from Shopper Marketing and segmentation. Tenser will show how adopting Merchandising Performance Management tools and methods will define success in a new competitive brand marketing era.

The In-Store Implementation Network is an industry group dedicated to the collaborative advancement of merchandising compliance and performance monitoring at retail. Tenser is a career analyst covering the Retail Consumer Products industry, he writes extensively on topics related to the merchandising, sales and marketing of consumer goods. His consulting practice, VSN Strategies, works with solution providers and brands to refine and communicate their thought leadership.

The session if complimentary to NARMS members as a membership service but is also made available to other interested persons at a non-member rate of $99.95. We encourage you to share this invitation with other co-workers and anyone else who might gain value from this information-sharing opportunity. To register for this webinar, click here.

Retail Sales Gained 1.3% in November

U.S. retail sales rose 1.3% in November, the Commerce Department reported, nearly double the 0.7% increase Wall Street had predicted. October sales were revised down to a 1.1% increase from a previously estimated 1.4% increase.

Car purchases and rising gasoline prices played a part in the November increase. Spending by consumers during the traditionally busy shopping day after Thanksgiving, meanwhile, was a little higher this year than in 2008.

Excluding sales of gasoline and cars, other retailers’ sales increased 0.6% last month.

Read the article on WSJ.com

Keeping an Eye on Generational Shifts

We know from our day to day duties as at-retail merchandising and marketing companies that there are certain categories that contract for our services more than others. We also know from our vast experience that some brands and lines only require a minimum of attention on the shelf. Factors such as volume, frequency of purchase and price all play a significant role in driving the need for at-retail support. But according to a new study from NPD Group, as reported by Progressive Grocer, these barriers are not necessarily etched in stone.

The study says that each generation, “Makes a distinctive mark on how and what Americans will be eating 10 years from now.” There are differences in preference from one generation to the next due to behavior that happens with aging and the developing patterns of different life stages.

NPD Group says that, “Understanding the effect of aging on the various generations’ eating habits and preferences helps food and beverage companies develop long-range plans in terms of their overall product portfolio, positioning and innovation.” As a major part of these companies go-to-market strategy, it’s important that we understand the effects as well.

So what food groups are the fastest growing as far as consumption in the next ten years? According to the report they are salty/savory snacks, easy meals, center-of-plate proteins (meat entrees), sweet snacks/desserts, and heat-and-eat breakfasts. Increased consumption means rapid product movement and more innovation in the category. That’s bound to lead to out-of-stocks, speed-to-shelf and a whole range of shelf level support opportunities.