Kids Home Furnishings hits stride

Stamford, Conn.— Owned by the Berger family for three generations, Kids Home Furnishings has changed and grown with the times since the store first opened in the early 1940s.

Director of Operations Seth Berger said he focuses on the four P's — product, prices, promotion and place — in order to make this 13,000-square-foot store a success. Having the right product mix at fair prices and being able to steer consumers toward what's right for their children is a big part of Kids Home Furnishings' focus.

"We try and put all that together and make this an attractive package — a compelling reason to enter," said Berger. "In other words, we don't just throw it out there."

Seth Berger's grandparents, Sol and Jean Berger, founded the business as Baby and Toy Superstore, a bicycle and toy store. Bicycles led to carriages and other baby products —until by the early 1960s, juvenile products were half of the store's mix.

As big-box toy specialists like Toys "R" Us moved into town, toys became less important, and the store began focusing more on baby products. Soon, the Bergers added youth furniture to fill in where the toy business had left off.

Today, the store is run by Roz, Harvey, Debbie and Seth Berger, and the fact that Kids Home Furnishings is a third generation family-owned operation is a big part of its draw. While customers can always find a principal in the store, Kids Home Furnishings' staff is just as seasoned, with employees having worked there 10, 12, 22 — even 35 years.

This past year, the store underwent a name change, from Baby and Toy Superstore, to Kids Home Furnishings, to reflect what has evolved from a business focused on toys to a successful juvenile furniture store.

"As toys diminished, we needed something that identified our business, and our business is home furnishings," said Berger. Kids Home Furnishings goes beyond what many kids furniture stores cover and branches out into lighting, carpet and even window treatments.

In a town of just over 100,000, Kids Home Furnishings has plenty of competition — the store sits right across the street from Baby Depot and Target, and also in town are buybuy Baby, Bellini and The Right Start. As Berger said, that's a lot of stores if you consider only around 5% of the population is in the market for baby products at any given time.

"I think it's really important to understand what your competitive advantages are in the marketplace...We try to communicate that daily," said Berger.

Berger uses direct mail, newspaper advertising, the NINFRA catalog and e-mail broadcasts to grab customers' attention, and he said he also gets a good deal of business from factory referrals and of course, word of mouth.

But it's once the consumer walks into Kids Home Furnishings that Berger believes he can really capture her attention — a combination of good selection, the longevity and training of the staff, and a commitment to "doing what's right for a young family" (which to Berger means focusing on safety and education, along with delivering value) all make the store stand out.

That means educating the consumer on why a quality stroller is important, for instance, and leading the customer away from focusing strictly on design.

"That's how we run our business," said Berger. "Someone walks in and we say, 'This is the right product for you.'"

Customers are greeted with this kind of hands-on help when they first walk in the door. Both of the store's entrances are designed to open into a customer service area where staff members can point customers in the right direction.

The store, which is about 60% baby merchandise, has an open feel, with 20-foot ceilings and no fixed pathway. Crib prices start out at $219 and range up to around $1,200 for a hand-forged iron crib from Corsican. Strollers, carseats and other baby gear are housed along the walls, and infant and teen vignettes are mixed in throughout the store, so the customer sees both.

"They need the visual presentation so they can say, 'When it's time for the big bed, I can come back,'" said Berger.

Above the 13,000-square-foot store is a 20,000-square-foot warehouse, fully stocked with merchandise. "We try to have cribs and gliders (in stock), but with companies like Ragazzi and Stanley who ship so quickly, deep inventory is a thing of the past," he said.

The Bergers are always looking for new merchandise, and ferret out unusual product at many different markets, including Toy Fair, the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Assn. trade show, the All Baby and Child Expo, the New York Textiles market, High Point furniture market, a home and bath show and all the New York gift markets.

"You've got to make the commitment to be in the business," said Berger.

At the gift markets, the Bergers find different looks in categories like crib bedding, which help them stand out fashionably.

Berger is especially conscious of showing lower-priced furniture with more visual appeal, something he calls "affordable elegance."

"It's an upscale presentation that fits everybody," he explained.

Roz Berger and store designer Jan Kach do all the accessory buying, and Seth credits them with creating a fashion-forward store — something that's crucial considering the proximity to Manhattan.

Kach has a visual arts background and experience in visual retail display, and part of her job includes making house calls to help expecting mothers put a room together.

"So far, it's been successful," said Berger. "We're adding legitimacy to what we do, and it makes us more professional."

It all adds up to a package that sets Kids Home Furnishings apart, which, as Berger pointed out, is extremely important in a market where the consumer has nine months to shop.

"Perception is everything," said Berger. "Our consumer is pretty well-educated."

And despite the fact that the consumer often comes armed with information about different brands, Berger believes that's not where the focus should lie.

"The brand is Seth and his family and a staff that works very hard to make a beautiful store," said Berger. "... The consumer has to have faith in me, that what I buy is right for their kids."

Furniture from Hooker and bedding from Amity and House Inc. give this vignette a look that easily works from little girl to teen.

Case pieces from Morigeau are paired with a Ragazzi crib, bedding from Picci and a lamp from When I Was Your Age, for a look that's perfectly coordinated but not too matchy-matchy.

A crib and case pieces from Ragazzi are given a sophisticated twist when paired with bedding from Doodlefish.