Show Time Mar 1, 2008 12:00 PM
, by Leila T. Griffith
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Once
an item or group of items catches your eye, it's time for a chat with a
sales person or company principal. But make sure you're speaking with
someone working for the product company, as many firms hire temporary
sales people just for the shows. These reps tend to have little prior
knowledge of the lines offered.
Be
sure to take notes during these exchanges with vendors, because when
the show is long over and you're back at the office inundated with
work, and the sample room is being filled up with diverse product,
memories get overloaded. Any onsite conversations about the product can
be extremely helpful in determining the item's viability and
appropriateness when putting a campaign together.
Some
of the issues to address while speaking to company representatives are
product history, competitors' exposure, and historical significance.
How does it fit the catalog mission? What is the provenance? Is there a
designer or artist of importance? What's the romance or story behind
the design?
Most
important: Talk about the price, and ask if there are discounts
available. Often only principals or national sales managers can
authorize these.
DO cover lead times and exclusivity.
Discussing
lead times is also important. If the vendor can't fill the initial
order for 120 days after purchase orders are placed, you may need to
walk away. Also ask about any exclusivity options, and if the item can
be tweaked to accommodate proprietary offerings. Whether you order
samples or take away photographs of the items, if you are serious about
the merchandise, having this vital information will make decision
making much easier later on.
If
you order samples at the show, you'll get a copy of a purchase order to
take away. This provides vendor information and some limited details,
such as style number, price, and a minor description. You can give the
merchandise information form to the vendor and request that he or she
return it with the samples or during the time of sample shipment. This
is particularly important for new vendors, because it helps eliminate
misunderstandings and confusion once a relationship is established.
In
addition to scouting out new product, attending trade shows can help
you stay abreast of new and emerging trends. Even if your catalog or
Website isn't “trendy,” it's critical for you to know what's stale and
overexposed, what's mainstream and classic, and what's been updated and
introduced. Shows are good for learning about competitors' successes
and failures — sometimes you will even hear of your rivals' upcoming
merchandising strategies.
What's
more, traveling to product fairs — though demanding and time consuming
— often helps renew energy in merchants. You just may find that hitting
the right shows will provide you with the inspiration you need to put
together a winning product assortment.
Leila T. Griffith is a catalog merchandising consultant based in Jacksonville, FL.
Temp to perm showrooms
While
most merchants focus on the temporary booths at any given trade show,
you can often find goods at the permanent showrooms. What's the best
way to cover them? Just as with the temporary exhibits, you need to
develop a system when walking the floors.
Since
most buildings have stairs and escalators between floors, it's usually
best to start at the top via an elevator, and then work your way down
floor by floor. Like the temporaries, permanent showrooms usually group
product by category, so you can pass over entire floors if this
merchandise doesn't apply.
Permanent
showrooms usually present new collections days before the temporaries
open, and they are still geared up a few days after the show exhibits
close. Most markets today also have permanent buildings that stay open
until 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. some nights.
In
fact, at 4 p.m. some showrooms offer a “happy hour” of sorts, serving
anything from wine and chips to margaritas and buffet. If you have the
time to stop in, this can be a relaxing opportunity to look at lines
and unwind after the temporaries have closed for the day. —LTG
A few shows in store
Here's just a sampling of some of the upcoming merchandise exhibitions:
Mar 8-10 Atlanta Spring Gift and Home Furnishings Market, Atlanta
Mar 16-18 International Home & Housewares Show, McCormick Place, Chicago
April 3-5 Boston Gift Show, Boston Convention and Exhibition Center
May 6-8 The Gourmet Housewares Show, Sands Expo & Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV
May 18-21 New York Stationery Show, New York
May 31 - June 3 Portland Gift & Accessories Show, Oregon Convention Center, Portland, OR
June 18-24 Dallas International Gift & Home Accessories Market, Dallas
July 8-16 Atlanta International Gift and Home Furnishings Market, Atlanta
July 20-23 Philadelphia Gift Show, Reading, PA
July 26-29 San Francisco International Gift Fair, The Moscone Convention Center, San Francisco
Aug. 16-21
New York International Gift Fair, Jacob K. Javits Convention Center,
Passenger Ship Terminal Piers 92 and 94, and Metropolitan Pavilion, New
York
Sept. 7-10 International Autumn Fair, Birmingham, U.K.
Oct. 3-5 Kansas City Gift Show, Overland Park, KS
Oct. 20-26 International Home Furnishings Market, High Point, NC
