Keeping an Eye on General Merchandise

Something to look forward to this fall will be a report issued by the Global Market Development Center (GMDC) and consultant Radian calling for a renewed focus on General Merchandise to help revitalize center store sales. A preview of the study - Winning in GM: Trends, Insights & Strategies - was recently given at the General Merchandise Marketing Conference. As reported by Progressive Grocer, the report will feature performance benchmarks and an implementation template.

GMDC says that it is time to reevaluate traditional GM categories, not unlike many other categories in the grocery store, to identify successful growth opportunities. In the report, the organization will seek to quantify the value of GM and how it helps build business in the center store.

With dollar stores and other non-traditional food retailers posing an increasing threat to traditional grocers, an increased focus on GM could help balance the scales. While the grocery industry did not start the channel blurring phenomenon, they are certainly going to be forced to deal with it to remain relevant and competitive much like dollar stores increasing food offerings.

Resulting strategy and tactics will most certainly have a strong at-retail component that will involve category and entire GM section remodel and reset. These products may also be driven to increase in-store promotional efforts to include POP, display, end cap and demo activity. All these activities are proven to increase brand awareness and drive sales.

For members of the at-retail merchandising and marketing industry, it might be a good idea to keep an eye out for this report and start to renew talks with your GM manufacturer and retail customers. In the past, too many of these strategic plans never see the light of day due to lack of at-retail execution. It all looks good on paper, but NARMS members can take the best laid plans of the boardroom and turn them into reality at shelf level.

Nielsen Unveils 12 New Product Success Factors

In introducing a new approach designed to improve the chances of new product launch success to 75 percent, Nielsen has revealed 12 criteria that it believes to be critical to achieving a successful launch. Nielsen says that traditionally companies spend on average $15 million on marketing for a new product launch, with some companies spending more than $60 million and generally, new products have a 10 percent chance of succeeding. The new approach is based on tracking 600 product launches and testing 20,000 initiatives.

By identifying the criteria that every successful product meets, the company hopes to help marketers focus efforts both in product development and in-market execution. For members of NARMS, expert at-retail merchandising and marketing service companies, it is no surprise that several of these criteria involve flawless in-store execution.

Here are the Nielsen Twelve Steps to Innovation: 1) Distinct Proposition, 2) Attention- Catching, 3) Message Connection, 4) Do you have a Clear and Concise Message? , 5) Does your product have a substantial Need/Desire?, 6) What is your product Advantage?, 7) Credibility, 8 ) Acceptable Downsides, 9) Findability, 10 ) Acceptable Costs, 11) Product Delivery and 12) Product Loyalty.

Whether the Nielsen claims are true will be a matter for their clients to decide. What is clear is that every approach to new product launch has strong in-store elements that absolutely have to be executed properly. Often times, initiatives fail because there is a weak link somewhere in the chain. Many times, that weak link is the last few feet to the shelf. The members of NARMS can ensure that several of these criteria are met for just a fraction of the new product development cost.

June 24, 2011 IRI/Morning NewsBeat

Below is the list of articles you will find for the week ending 6/24/11 edition of Retail Industry News.

- Walmart’s Chicago Expansion And Express Plans Coalesce
- Drinking A Toast To Own Brand Success
- Fresh Fruits And Veggies Take The Bus To The Inner City
- Private Equity Groups Look To Buy BJ’s
- Sansolo Speaks: Family Ties
- Whole Foods Lays Out Expansion Plans
- Kroger Releases Sustainability Report
- Publix To Enter Knoxville
- FastNewsBeat
- The MNB Wal-Mart Watch
- Executive Suite

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Willard Bishop Future of Food Retailing is Here

Each year since 1983, Willard Bishop Consulting has published an Annual Future of Food Retailing Report which reports and projects market share and sales data of the retail food industry. The report is a handy strategic planning resource for the members of the at-retail merchandising and marketing service industry because it looks at each of the 13 formats that make up the retail food industry and presents a five-year forecast for each.

As far 2010 goes, the report says that the traditional grocery channel enjoyed a mild dollar sales increase, but that market share declined by almost a percentage point. Fresh and Limited-Assortment store formats were the big winners with sales gains in the high single digits. The Non-Traditional Grocery channel experienced strong sales and picked up almost a percentage point in market share. Supercenters, Wholesale Clubs and Dollar formats lead the way.

Looking ahead to 2015, the market share for Traditional and Non-Traditional will continue the trend and move in opposite directions by three percentage points. Non-Traditional will surpass Traditional in market share by 2018. The report predicts that inflation will play a big role in Supermarkets and Mass continuing to lose market share as consumers will go to other formats for groceries.

For the members of NARMS, this is important information. As the picture evolves, retailers are sure to continue their experiments with smaller formats in an attempt to catch up to Non-Traditional formats like Dollar Stores. Non-Traditional formats will continue to add food items to their offerings as they yield the positive sales results and market share. This should all lead to massive activity at shelf level and an increase in in-store promotions as the landscape becomes more and more competitive. You can download your free copy of the Bishop report by clicking here.

Samples are Fresh

Bob Vosburgh, a columnist for Supermarket News, recently provided a link to an entry on the Refresh blog. Refresh is dedicated to interactive discussions on supermarkets, wellness and sustainability. The blog entry was about sampling and was submitted by Matthew Saline of Mambo Sprouts. It looks like natural and organic suppliers have found the magic of samples as an in-store marketing tool.

Here are a few of the key points: Suppliers are seeing a surge in interest from retailers, so it is a great time to promote new products. Retailers are setting up sampling stations and coordinated events. Go Mambo! and other leading manufacturers will hand out over 100,000 samples in just four natural and organic chains this year alone.

Saline says that sampling captures consumer interest, triggers new purchases and drives traffic to the store. However, he cautions that event personnel need to be well educated about brands and special offers. They should also be comfortable making suggestions and selling the product. You want them to do more than just hand out samples, you want them to drive sales.

That is where the Event Marketing members of NARMS come in. They are experts at providing people to execute samples, demonstrations and at-retail special events. For retailers and manufacturers who want to succeed with their sampling program, it makes sense to partner with this group of companies who are in retailers around the country everyday providing just that expertise, experience and ability. If NARMS Event Marketing companies are looking for additional training, a hot button for trading partners, they can visit NARMScertifyU where there are modules available on demonstrations and event marketing.

June 17, 2011 IRI/Morning NewsBeat

Below is the list of articles you will find for the week ending 6/17/11 edition of Retail Industry News.

- Study: Recession Continues To Weigh On Shoppers’ Minds And Wallets
- Second Mariano’s Fresh Market To Open Tomorrow In Illinois
- Sansolo Speaks: Tectonic Shifts
- Walmart To Start Rolling Out Grocery Stores Faster
- FastNewsBeat
- The MNB Wal-Mart Watch
- Executive Suite

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Chuck Latham Associates, Inc. Expands Presence in Independent Pet Market with Acquisition of NEMA-South, Inc.

CLA ideally positioned to grow manufacturer and retailer sales and share in independent pet channel.

Parker, CO
June 14, 2011

Sales and marketing agency Chuck Latham Associates, Inc. (CLA), announces the acquisition of NEMA-South.

NEMA-South is a leading pet specialty manufacturer’s rep firm in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Founded by Doug King in 2002, NEMA- South is a team of pet retail sales experts that have earned their outstanding reputation in the markets they serve.
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Filling the Landlord/Tenant Green Divide

Some refreshing news came out of Washington, D.C. this week as DSN Retailing Today reported on a roundtable discussion among retailers and commercial shopping center developers. The topic was bridging the gap that exists among landlords and tenants over creating sustainable, energy-efficient retail stores in the United States. The meeting took place on June 9 and included Wal-Mart, Petco, Ann Taylor, Target, VF Corp., Best Buy, Westfield, Vornado and others.

The story states that both parties are investing in green practices and technologies, but progress has been limited by market conditions. The six-month collaboration is designed to identify barriers and issues that separate the trading partners and find areas in which they can work together.

It is clear that green practices are going to play a larger role as the retail industry looks to expand its presence, and yet reduce its environmental impact. For many years, the members of NARMS, professional at-retail merchandising and marketing service providers, have been bridging the gap between manufacturers and retailers by acting as an enabler of greater collaboration. Green initiatives may be yet another opportunity to play that role.

Building out new retail spaces and remodeling existing spaces to conform to changing industry norms and regulations are core competencies for many NARMS members, specifically the members of the PIC Division. These companies work hand-in-hand every day with landlords and tenants in retail locations across the country.

The resulting outcomes of the D.C. roundtable are yet to be determined, but will play out over the next six months. It makes sense for NARMS members to pay particular attention to this developing story as new opportunities to be of service to our customers are sure to arise.

SN Center Store Survey Reveals Trends

This week, Supermarket News revealed the results of its eighth annual survey of Center Store performance. Perhaps the most compelling finding is the importance that supermarket operators are putting on private label brands to stem the tides of rising costs in order to protect margins. Here are a few of the top line findings from the survey:

Half of the grocer respondents said they switched from national brands to private label in at least one category over the last year. Forty-two percent said they will take that step in the future. Another 42% said that they will maintain the status quo in regards to private label/national brand mix.

Although the Wal-Mart Project Impact plan largely did not work, some retailers revealed they are still contemplating sku rationalization. The twist is that they would not get rid of national brands, but they would reduce the number of facings and expand private label sections to feature big movers.

Wal-Mart still weighs heavy on the minds of grocery operators as a threat to center store sales. Forty-five percent listed the mass merchant as the greatest threat, followed by dollar stores at 17% and club stores at 15%. There seems to be great concern building over dollar stores due to low prices and enhanced product selection in center store items. One-third of the respondents said that private label is the best chance they have to combat these outside forces.

Another way for retailers to fight off the competition is through the use of nutrition shelf tags and signage. Sixty-one percent planned to do so this year. Thirty-eight percent said they would participate in the FMI/ GMA backed Nutrition Keys program.

This summary only scratches the surface of the findings of the SN Center Store Report. It is vital that NARMS and its members, professional at-retail merchandising and marketing service companies, stay constantly in-tune and in-step with emerging trends and thought leadership in order to direct service offerings that match the needs of our retailer and manufacturer clients.

June 10, 2011 IRI/Morning NewsBeat

Below is the list of articles you will find for the week ending 6/10/11 edition of Retail Industry News.

- Walmart CEO Pledges Commitment To Next Generation Consumers
- Wegmans Identifies Second Massachusetts Location
- Hy-Vee Uses A Little Celebrity Juice To Fuel Healthy Eating Initiative
- Sansolo Speaks: Puppy Power
- Dollar General Pledges To Keep Prices Low. Let The Dominoes Fall.
- Walton Family Slowly Taking Back Control Of Walmart
- Groupon Goes To The Grocery Store
- Whole Foods Introduces A New Cooking Coach Program
- Making The Connection Between Food And Health
- FastNewsBeat
- The MNB Wal-Mart Watch
- Executive Suite

Click here to read Retail Industry News