Pitch and Ship » Bricks-and-Mortar

While They Still Can, West Hollywood Shops Show Off and Sell Fur

Walter Verfenstein — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 19:08:14 +0000

Rabbit fur vest at Arcade in West Hollywood (courtesy of NYT)

Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren have banned fur from their collections, and beginning in September 2013, those designers won’t be at a competitive disadvantage when offered for sale in West Hollywood, California. That’s when the city’s legal ban on selling fur is scheduled to take effect. Meanwhile, swanky boutiques along Melrose Avenue are upping the fur quotient in their windows to make a political statement. Apoplectic shop owners are considering moves outside the city limits and their personal shopper and stylist clients stand ready to steer their cars toward Robertson Boulevard (in Los Angeles) or Rodeo Drive (in Beverly Hills) when the time comes. The New York Times Nov. 30, 2011

Black Thursday (Evening) is the New Black Friday

Walter Verfenstein — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 15:54:00 +0000

Although some shoppers and employees are grousing about it, a number of major retail chains are moving up the start of Black Friday to Thursday evening in an attempt to start the frenzy before the tryptophan in the Turkey can even take full effect. Toys R Us will open at 9 p.m. on Thanksgiving, an hour earlier than last year, and Walmart will open at 10 p.m., two hours ahead of last year’s midnight opening,” according to a report last week in USA Today. “Nationally, about 34 percent of shoppers say they plan to brave the crowds on Black Friday, up from 31 percent last year and 26 percent in 2009, according to data from the International Council of Shopping Centers and Goldman Sachs. Sixteen percent of shoppers plan to take advantage of the Thanksgiving night sales that will be found at major retailers and even some malls.” Lansing (MI) State Journal Nov.

Has Anyone Pitched a Reality Show about TV Home Shopping?

Walter Verfenstein — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 16:24:52 +0000

The story in the link below about pawn shops attributing an increase in business to the halo effect of cable TV shows like Pawn Stars and Hard Core Pawn got me wondering if the big shopping networks ever considered a behind-the-scenes, reality program about their business. The image makeover of the DRTV networks from cheap jewelry peddlers to showcases for respected designers and brands may already be complete, but that shouldn’t take the air completely out of this trial balloon.

A reality show on a major broadcast or cable network would begin with some clear advantages, including: a base audience of the retailer’s customers and — this is key — the non-manufactured drama of live television. Season-long story arcs could revolve around the development of a new show or brand, the introduction of a new product category, or the selection and training of new on-air talent. Can anyone tell me that the camera wouldn’t love following Mindy Grossman into and out of meetings with colorful designers — and that she wouldn’t enjoy it too? So, which of our talented show hosts will have the chance at a step up the entertainment ladder during the next new season?

In the 1990s, while working in promotions for ValueVision Media, I fielded a call from the producers of the movie Bridget Jones Diary, who were looking to film scenes involving TV shopping at one of the actual networks. This was before the industry’s image improvement was complete and my bosses were worried about being made to look silly. So we foolishly declined. Today most everyone beats a path to the DRTV studios, and few disdain them for doing it. So, if Snooki can do what we do — and Homeshoppingista reported a bunch of Snooki sellouts last night — does anyone doubt that we can do what Snooki does, too?

Cincinnati Business Courier Nov. 11, 2011

ShopNBC Appoints QVC Alum Nancy E. Kunkle SVP of Customer Experience

admin — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 13:37:56 +0000

Nancy E. Andres Kunkle (from the Andres Consulting, LLC., website)

Yesterday, ShopNBC appointed Nancy E. Kunkle to the newly-created position of senior vice president of customer experience. Reporting to company CEO Keith Stewart, Ms. Kunkle will lead ShopNBC’s
customer experience program with a mission to maximize customer satisfaction, acquisition and
retention. An alum of both the home shopping business and the military aerospace industry, Ms. Kunkle’s skill set seems to combine an unusual mix of “planes, brains and TV’s best deals.” She can both “lock and load,” and “shop til she drops.”

Ms. Kunkle had worked for ShopNBC as a strategic consultant since April, “focusing on
process engineering and customer engagement initiatives to foster a premium
customer experience,” presumably through her business Andres Consulting, LLC. The following message above the introduction to that site suggests that she will shutter the business to focus on her new, ShopNBC responsibilities:

Oct 10, 2011 update: Dear friends and clients, I am pleased to let you know that, due to a full time assignment with Value Vision Media/ShopNBC, I am no longer available for consulting work in the ecommerce/retail area. Please be sure to visit and shop with ShopNBC! I think you’ll be pleased with the value and customer experience; and by all means let me know if otherwise so we can make improvements. This web site site will remain up only for a limited period of time to allow for contacts via email.

QVC UK Setting Up One-Day Store in London’s Diamond District to Promote Diamonique

admin — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 15:52:56 +0000

QVC UK will open a one-day-only, “pop-up” jewelry store in London’s historic diamond district — Hatton Garden — on October 11th to promote the retailer’s line of simulated diamonds called Diamonique. Shoppers will be able to see QVC recreations famous jewelry of from the movies made using hand-cut, Diamonique stones. The purpose of the exercise is to demonstrate the close similarity between actual diamond and Diamonique jewelry. Programming on the TV network that day will serve the same end. The shop will be located at Clerkenwell House, 23 – 27 Hatton Wall, London. Professional Jeweller Sept. 29, 2011

UK Store-Based Retailers Look to “Telly” for New Revenue Stream

admin — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 15:17:24 +0000

With established UK TV retailers like QVC and Ideal Shopping Direct posting gains during the recession, London’s established High Street retailers are looking to break into television, too. It seems the recession has more people sitting in front of screens in their homes, instead of popping into stores all over town. Argos (which sold £4.3 billion in general merchandise during its last fiscal year, mostly from 700 stores in the UK and Ireland) began a year-long trial of a new shopping channel on Sky TV this summer. Department store Debenhams, meanwhile, is demonstrating products by way of online video clips in an experiment called Debenhams TV. Financial Times Sept. 28, 2011

Liz Clairborne to Shutter Outlet Stores and Sell through QVC and JCPenny Instead

admin — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 15:56:07 +0000

In a press release issuedd this week, William L. McComb, Chief Executive Officer of Liz Claiborne Inc., said: “With the launches of the Liz Claiborne brand at JCPenney and Liz Claiborne New York at QVC — both next month — we’re announcing … that we will be exiting our 87 Liz Claiborne branded outlet stores in the United States and Puerto Rico, the majority of which will be exited in the coming months.” The Baltimore Sun Jul. 21, 2010 Liz Clairborne Press Release Jul. 20, 2010

HSN to Open Outlet Store in its West Tampa, Fla., Backyard

admin — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 14:04:55 +0000

HSN will open an outlet store at 8515 W. Hillsborough Ave., in Buccaneer Square Shopping Center in October, bringing the retailer’s total number of Florida outlets to four. (HSN also operates stores in Largo, Brandon and Orlando.) News about the planned 17,273-square-feet originally comes from a press release issued by real estate firm Colliers International Tampa Bay Florida. The Tampa Tribune Jul. 14, 2010

Department Stores Post Strongest June Sales Since 2003

admin — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 12:41:05 +0000

Same store sales at department stores posted a gain of 5.8 percent in June over the prior-year period, beating analyst estimates of 5.1 percent, according to Thomson Reuters. Total retail sales in June were up 3.1 percent compared with June 2009, slightly lower than estimates compiled by Thomson Reuters. One analyst described the total retail number as “lackluster at best,” and the report suggests that consumers at both the high and low ends of the retail spectrum were still skittish about spending. Sales at discount stores were either up only slightly or flat, while sales at luxury stores declined 3.9 percent in June compared with last year.

“The government also indicated that many consumers were holding back. Outstanding consumer credit in May declined for the fourth consecutive month, falling by $9.1 billion, or 4.5 percent, the Federal Reserve said on Thursday. That was much sharper than the $2.3 billion decrease economists surveyed by Bloomberg News had expected.” The New York Times Jun. 9, 2010

Eat Pray Love Product Tie-Ins Extend Way Beyond HSN…

admin — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 14:13:16 +0000

Women shop at plenty of places besides the Tampa, Florida-based shopping network, so it makes sense that brick-and-mortar retailers are looking to horn in on a little of the Julia Roberts, chick-flick product tie-in action this summer. Eat Pray Love-inspired fashions and jewelry will be on offer in Los Angeles area boutiques and department stores like Dillards, Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdales and Sakes Fifth Avenue, too. One designer, set to capitalize on the movie is Sue Wong, whose “Eat Pray Love by Sue Wong” collection will hit the shelves in high-end department stores in August. She told a reporter, “Because of the immediate connection I felt to the story, as well as its emphasis on the culture, philosophy, and, in particular, alluring mystique of the East, I was able to create a collection that was striking, exotic, and timeless, and organic to the journey in the book and forthcoming film.”

As for jewelry, Dogeared is creating a line inspired by the movie that will include beaded necklaces in earth tones and bohemian bracelets. Their “Eat Pray Love” collection will be sold by ABC Home and Fred Segal in Los Angeles. All Headline News Jul. 6, 2010