Green Retail
While this market segment, as defined by Gallup Management Journal, has household income over $75k the green here isn’t dollars. It’s a commitment to, and interest in, environmental issues. Four out of five (80%) “Mass Affluent Women” consider themselves active in or sympathetic to the environmental movement compared with only 65% of men in the same income group. Here is your green product target group.
Launching this April, Finnish textile company Marimekko is partnering with H&M to do a collection for women and children that will include tunics, dresses, hats, and bags in their signature striking prints. We’re hoping their classic tulip patterns will make an appearance. – IG Central 11/29/07
Sure, you’ve heard of baby boomers, of Gen X and of Generation Y, but what about the youngest of consumers: GENERATION Z? Comprised of youngsters born after 1 April 2006, GENERATION Z is both the most promising and the most ignored target audience in developed consumer societies. Even dedicated youth-marketing agencies prefer to focus on the (by now tired) 3–5 year old demographic (also known as GEN Y+), as their spending power, brand loyalty and influence on household’s purchasing decisions is roughly five times that of GENERATION Z. But don’t kid yourself: GENERATION Z is a marketer’s wildest fantasy waiting to happen.
First of all, no generation in the history of mankind can be made to embrace brands with such eagerness by exposing them to specific brand benefits. Consider this research nugget: a Swiss study has found that when sufficiently exposed to child-friendly brand jingles, tunes and spoken messages during pregnancy, up to 77% of all newborns not only recognize these brand markers, but develop a brand preference that could last until puberty, and probably into adulthood (final results are not yet available as the project only started two years ago). Furthermore, an astounding 23% of infant participants could indicate at least 9 out of 12 favorite brands using rudimentary hand signals. Who said innovation is dead?
by Melanie McIntosh
In this day and age of modern computers, ink jet printers and desktop publishing programs, I am still amazed to see store owners that put little effort in to producing quality signage for their stores.
Signage is one of the most important ways to convey your message to your customers. Your store name, promotions, pricing, and product information may all be conveyed through signage. Are you getting these messages across effectively?
As a customer walks by your store, you have about 3 seconds to let them know what they will find inside. What message are you sending? Professional signage will attract the customer, provide just the right amount of information and invite the customer to enter your store or try your product.
Unprofessional signage is confusing to the customer and sends a negative message about your store and product. Common problems include too many signs, ambiguous or misleading messages, spelling errors or signs that are difficult to read. I don’t know about you, but I avoid stores that have have signs littered throughout the store that scream, “SALE! 9.99″ and in small print at the bottom they add, “and up.”
Effective signage has the following qualities:
1. Quality Production
You don’t have to spend big bucks to get signs that look professional. Having said that, you still need to be willing to spend a few dollars to create the image that you want to represent your business.
Consider the lifespan of the sign. Exterior signage that needs to last several years requires a fairly large investment. The shorter the lifespan of the sign, the less it should cost. If you are running a small boutique, producing your own short term promotional or informational signage is perfectly acceptable, provided you have the tools and skills to do it well. If you are producing signs on your own, they should be produced on a computer, not handwritten. This might seem too obvious to mention, but I still see stores using signs that have been written in black felt marker. Use a desktop publishing or word processing program and quality printer and paper.
If your printer and paper are not good quality, take your computer file to a print shop to produce your image. Mount your final images on a heavy card, illustration board or foam core.
2. Simple Color Scheme
Don’t go crazy with color. Pick a simple, two or three color scheme and stick with it throughout the store. Pick a background color, text color and highlight color.
Make sure that the colors have enough contrast to be easily read. Red on black, while a dynamic and high power combination, does not have enough contrast to be easily viewed. However, if the text is very large, bold and only one or two short words, you might be able to get away with it. Outlining the text with a thin white line will also improve the contrast.
Also be careful with combinations such as yellow/green or orange/pink/red or green/blue. These combinations can be powerful and trendy, but require more work with design to make them legible. Strong contrasts such as white/black, yellow/black, red/white, white/blue increase visibility and legibility.
3. Easy to Read
Make your signage easy to read. Don’t try to put too much on one sign. Some signs are so full of tiny images, starbursts, exclamation marks, and small print, that you can’t take it all in. One main image, a headline and a few bullet points are all you need on an informational sign.
A sign in a store window should be even simpler. You need to get your message across immediately as the customer walks, or drives by. This means you can only use a strong image on your sign, a headline, or a simple combination of both. Some stores only use one word, such as ‘SALE’ or ‘HOLIDAY’ in the window, and provide more information inside the store.
The more time the customer will be spending looking at the sign, the more information you can include. For example, a sign near your cash register, where your customer will be waiting for a transaction to be processed, can provide details of a contest or return policy.
4. Clear and Simple Message
Keep your message simple. Avoid trying to say too much. Choose one main message that you want to convey.
Do you want to tell about a sale, a price, product info, return policy? Rather than say this all at once, try a sale sign on the top of the rack, price and product info on the tag, and return policy at the cash register.
When you craft your sign, write down the message you want to get across, then rewrite it in as few words as possible. Keep reducing until you have one to five words for your headline. If necessary, write a small amount of supporting information below.
5. Well Placed
Be careful where you place your signage. Place it where it will catch your customers’ attention, but will not block essential elements of your store.
Think about how customers approach your store. If customers walk by your store, but your store name is only placed high up on your store front, facing the street, how will they see it? You also need to repeat the name on the door or window, and perhaps hanging from an awning or on a sandwich board on the sidewalk.
Make sure signs don’t block traffic flow, displays, or the view of the interior of your store. Window signage may not be visible to customers for other reasons that you do not realize. Is there a parking meter blocking the view of your window? What about a loading zone where delivery trucks park for a large part of the day, obscuring part of your store from view?
Check for reflections on the window that make your interior signage invisible during the day. You’ll need to check this at various times of the day to find out what happens to the light and reflections depending on the position of the sun. You can improve the visibility of your signage by improving the display lighting inside, and by using light colors in your windows. Light colored signage will stand out, while dark colors will recede and virtually disappear behind reflections on the glass.
After placing your signs, double check how they look from a customers point of view. Step back and approach the store as a visitor. Walk from front to back and look at all your signage critically and reposition as necessary.
Simplify, Simplify, Simplify
The simpler you keep your signage the better. Reduce visual clutter, and focus on getting your most important message across to your customer. You will attract more walk-by traffic, and avoid confusing your customer. Your sales should increase as a result.
©2001-2007 Inspire Retail Solutions. All Rights Reserved.
Does the market want it? If there is demand, certainly. The natural foods and natural products market is growing. Take the success of stores like Whole Foods and Wild Oats, for example. In stores like these and others, natural foods cross over into gourmet category.
But, you can’t force green products on a market that isn’t asking for it yet, or one that doesn’t want to pay the price.
Another challenge as a small retailer; can you offer the selection and diversity to satisfy the market? How many wool sweaters and lotions does one person need? If you only carry a small number of products, can you be unique enough, and create a strong enough brand to drive traffic? It’s a lot of work.
Some of the smaller retailers in my community are doing a great job of offering organic alternatives in addition to their other traditional product lines. There is definitely a market here with all of us ‘granolas’ on the west coast of BC.
In my mind, ‘green retail’ is an exciting area to watch. It means different things to different people, and seems to be growing and changing rapidly. If you are a retailer in this arena, you really need to keep your finger on the pulse of the market and new developments in the industry.
In the future ‘green’ is going to be a choice that customers expect to have as a minimum standard. You see this in grocery retail already - small retailers to supermarkets are offering green/organic alternatives to avoid losing part of their market. Another example is printing - everyone carries recycled paper stocks as an option. More and more retailers are going to need to adjust, and retailers who only carry organics, or ‘green’ products will need to be more competitive.
The topic of ‘green retail’ is huge. Any other thoughts?
Melanie McIntosh
Inspire Retail Solutions
Gail Markert of Markert Group Consulting-
Global—International looks with a handmade feel are tracking. Beadwork, inlay, carving, hammered metal finishes and any detail that adds character and texture is of interest. Besides the current interest in Moroccan, origins can be Asian, [other] African, South American or tribal in nature.
Green—The environmental movement is gaining traction and the near term focus is on reduced packaging. With Wal-Mart and Target already on board with supplier initiatives, look for key accounts in the gift industry to follow suit.
Big and bold—With intense competition at lower price points, retailers and manufacturers are seeing bright spots of success on larger and unique higher priced items in the $50 to $100 range.
Lynn Armanino of Team Sales-
Salt is now about to take on a new meaning as the hidden properties of salt are now being touted. The kitchen stores and better home stores have discovered the superiority of natural salts and are selling all the different types with a passion. There’s flavored salts, Celtic Sea Salt from Brittany, Grey Salt, Himalayan Pink Salt, Jurassic Sea Salt from Utah, Kala Namak (Indian Black Salt), Trapani Sea Salt from Sicily, to name just a few. This movement is just ramping up. There are books on the benefits of salt and the history of salt as well as salt accessories. We’ll definitely see more about salt in 2008.
Benno Duenkelsbuehler of New Creative and Square Nest-
There will be more emphasis on the entire value proposition—not just the cheapest price, but all the elements of value: uncompromising quality, compelling designs, functionality, on-time delivery, and at the right price. Pricing pressures from overseas (such as RMB currency valuation, Chinese tax law changes, and labor cost issues) will make it tougher to compete only on price, but those of us who deliver on the entire value equation (including the right price) will do quite well. Product innovation and compelling designs that display and merchandise easily in the store will be important to buyers going after a new consumer generation. The strong trend towards Outdoor Living, combined with a growing respect and a healthy concern for our environment, will only become stronger.
Adora, one of the leading designers and crafters of fine limited edition and collectible dolls, announces the introduction of 15 new dolls to its Limited Edition Collection, including one brand new face sculpt. The dolls in the 2008 Limited Edition Collection are costumed in international garb, representing countries from around the globe. Authentic fabrics and materials were used to craft costumes that illustrate the rich cultural traditions of the countries and continents represented. The dolls are 22″ tall and retail for $140 - $180.00. Many editions are available in quantities of less than 300, further adding to the dolls’ rarity. In particular, Adora is well-known for capturing the beauty and ethnicity of its Asian and Polynesian babies, which include for 2008: Ulani from Tahiti, Kamala from Nepal, Sujatmi from Indonesia, Qian Ni from China.
Each doll in the Limited Edition Collection wears its very own heart shaped locket, inscribed with its name, limited edition number and “Adora, Inc. 2007 Collection.” The center of the locket contains a second, double sided heart that spins to reveal a miniature photo of the doll on one side and the Adora, Inc. logo on the other.
i play.® has launched a new line of 100% Organic Cotton – something different, something special, something more than the ordinary for baby. i play.® , Organic Cotton Baby Products, supports creating a more sustainable planet while simultaneously providing alternatively stylish clothing for the next generation. i play.® has created a new place for organic baby clothes, breaking the mold of the color combinations of naturally white and ecru. i play.® offers organic cotton knit layette & eco circle fleece winter wear, made from recycled products, for babies including gowns, bodysuits, caps, bibs, booties, blankets, and outerwear in soft pastels, featuring “forest friends” that are stitched on each piece of clothing. And i play.® summer wear coordinates with eco circle fleece winter wear. One of the unique features i play.® offers is unique outer stitching on the garments. All of the seams are on the outside, so there are no rough edges rubbing against baby’s skin. Additionally, i play.® Organic Cotton Baby Clothes have carved out another niche and are some of the most affordable organic cotton baby clothes available for extraordinary parents. Founder of i play.® Organic Cotton Babywear, Becky Cannon, has been a long time friend and advocate of the organic movement and was a visionary before organics came into vogue. Becky was keenly aware of the benefits of organic and pesticide and chemical-free farming and offered natural fiber cotton wear in 1992 – serving noted companies such as Seventh Generation and Coop America. At that time, the demand for these products was low and they were discontinued due to lack of sales. i play. launched new organic wear in 1995 with a complete layette line. Becky thought parents were more educated and would see the value of organic clothing for both the environment and for their children. Again, the market was not strong enough to support organic cotton babywear. Fast forward to 2007, and welcome i play.® Organic Cotton - i play.® is better for the environment and baby, as well as soft, comfortable, chemical-free, produced without any harsh chemical bleaches or dyes, has nickel free snaps, and is more durable than regular cotton. The line has an edge over competitors with fashion-forward style at a reasonable price.