Specialty panelists discuss challenges
By Tanya K. Merritte -- Kids Today, 7/1/2006
Customers are willing to pay more for quality and service, areas in which specialty stores excel, said a panel of retailers at the Kids Today Conference last month.
The panel consisted of four retailers representing various parts of the specialty store industry: Rafael de Castro, executive director of NINFRA; Leslie Hearn, a senior buyer with JCPenney Direct; Kristina Ventura, director of merchandising with Bombay Kids; and Daniel Kron, co-owner of Miami-based independent Genius Jones.
As a whole, the group said their businesses are able to weather the country's economic downturns. Kron, whose store sells high-end, modern furniture, toys and accessories, said price was rarely an issue with his upscale customers.
Ventura said that Bombay has recently replaced a lower-priced chair with a higher-priced version and the more expensive chair is selling better. Hearn said that in her experience, customers will pay more — within reason — for a product. "You have to tell them about quality," she said.
De Castro added that in addition to higher quality and service, independent juvenile stores also have the ability to customize their inventory without interference from a corporate office. Kron agreed. "I basically operate by the seat of my pants when it comes to launching product."
When asked about staying alive in markets with big boxes and mass merchants, Kron said the key is differentiating your product lineup. For example, his store only sells wood toys, not plastic, which are found in mass stores. "I'm always struck when people say Wal-Mart put them out of business," Kron said.
But de Castro said it isn't that simple. If a longtime independent store has always sold certain products and lines, it's tough to completely change what they floor when a mass retailer or big box moves into the neighborhood. Ventura noted that even if stores sell the same merchandise, there are things they can do to separate themselves from the competition. She cited a toy store in her city that sells many of the same toys as Target, but the local store offers gift wrapping and special discount cards to keep customers coming back.
While specialty stores have certain advantages, the panelists acknowledged the cons as well. Ventura said that lack of consumer awareness is a problem. "We're not a destination store," she said.
De Castro said that for many NINFRA retailers, being independent was both a strength and weakness — storeowners have freedom to do what they want, but also lack a corporate support system to help during the tough times.
Rafael de Castro, left, NINFRA; Kristina Ventura, Bombay Kids; Daniel Kron, Genius Jones; and Leslie Hearn, JCPenney Direct, spoke on issues facing specialty juvenile retailers.
