Uncategorized
April 21, 2010 •
The Gift of Greatness
Create a baby-friendly presence with fabulous presents and d�cor
While birth announcements and personalized stationery sales may be the backbone of your baby business, they’re far from the only source of potential profits in this blossoming category. Dimensional product like plush, home décor and toys may be the traditional domain of gift, toy and children’s stores, but if cleverly selected and presented, these categories resonate equally well (if not even better) in a paper-focused venue.
“It is almost always a sure winner to buy something you normally wouldn’t,” offered Mauren Galison, sales manager of Mudpuppy. “Customers love surprises.”
Even if you have ventured into other categories, it’s worthwhile to examine what’s going on in those industries from time to time. “Retailers are often pleasantly surprised to capture more sales when they adopt a fresh outlook about a product line they’ve carried for years and try a new design that is a little bit different from their usual mix,” pointed out Lorene Shiraiwa, public relations manager, North American Bear. “Once they experience success with a new design, they feel more confident about expanding that collection in their store as a meaningful way to grow their business.”
Just as baby stationery must often pass the parental “taste” test, so too must the gift category, Galison emphasized. “Parents spend more time with their kids when they have the time, so the real challenge is making something that parents and children can enjoy together — lively artwork and subjects that are interesting to the whole family.”
Categories to Consider
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Nursery Accessories and Décor
“In addition to the constant demand for soft and cuddly teddy bears, we are noticing a demand for nursery accessories,” said Shallu Chhabra, marketing manager, GUND. “We believe that parents want to create a total environment for the baby’s nursery, making a fashion statement.”
“Home decor is the fastest growing segment at most retailers today,” agreed Steven Schiff, Sandylion’s category director, home décor. “People are looking for simple and inexpensive ways to decorate.”
That company offers wall décor products made of Envirotac, their trademarked environmentally friendly substrate.
Keepsake Gifts
Occasions here can again be religious. “Beyond celebrating the birth of a baby, there are many life events where baby gift-giving is appropriate,” Chhabra observed. “GUND offers keepsake gifts appropriate for baptisms, christenings and special birthdays. Creating a department within the baby department for these types of events can create additional sales and ties in well with greeting cards for these occasions.”
Just like paper, plush can be personalized. “Retailers that offer embroidery services should keep a variety of customized samples on hand to show and feel, as that will help increase sales. Customers looking for a special first baby gift will find it difficult to resist the heartwarming charm of a soft Sleepyhead Bunny complete with long floppy ears embroidered with a child’s name and/or birth date,” Shiraiwa commented. “It’s one thing to suggest a personalized baby gift, but seeing and feeling an embroidered sample will definitely capture more sales.”
Toys & Educational Items
Toys and gift books go a long way toward infusing harder goods with personality. Vintage imagery resonates with different demographics for different reasons — one customer may find it hip, another nostalgic.
Learning-focused products should push acquiring knowledge and skills in a non-school-like way. “The juvenile (not so much baby) market is a little more about making education entertaining, using brightly colored, engaging illustrations to teach kids about rhyming, matching, vocabulary and so on,” Galison explained.
Good Old-fashioned Plush
Plush is, of course, an evergreen category that serves many purposes: It literally adds a soft touch to everything around it; it communicates the idea of baby and juvenile at a glance; and it occasionally draws from customers the sort of connection usually reserved for small animals and babies.
Noting that her company is well known for predicting trends in the children’s market before they happen, Shiraiwa opined, “North American Bear has seen a growing trend in three different areas of the children’s toy and gift market, including security blankets and cozies for babies and toddlers, contemporary rag dolls for little girls and imaginative soft products for little boys.”
While they are not the only company making presentations in the underdeveloped category of soft toys for little boys, North American Bear’s offerings include imaginative tooth characters, sports-themed baby designs and My Own Monster funny fiends. The latter is designed by kids and features hangtags describing how sales help support Global Action for Children.
Promotions and Merchandising
Whatever type of gift or toy line you delve into, always inquire about potential promotions. “Successful retailers have hosted a ‘Great Monsterpiece’ children’s event in their store with the help of North American Bear support materials to make the event a screaming success,” Shiraiwa stated.
But for a more everyday approach, Matthews described, “We feel that when displaying items, the key is visibility. We recommend merchandising either several titles of one format, or creating a story around a theme — for example, placing several horse-themed products together.”
“Keep variety and mix the stock,” Galison added. “Lumping product into static categories can be helpful for shoppers, but there should always be special setups and endcaps with a mix of formats and themes to get shoppers of one or two styles to consider something new. Even if the economic environment seems tight and you want to stay conservative, it’s sometimes smarter to take the risk and be bold by adding product diversity and range with displays that pop — your shop will stand out for it and inspire others, too.”
