Think Retail

Tim Manners — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 10:19:30 -0500

Jill Lajdziak thinks this recession is her best-ever moment to innovate. Not coincidentally she also thinks retail is a critical point-of-difference for her born-again brand, Saturn (link).

For Saturn, retail is the outlandish idea that buying a car should actually be a pleasant experience — before, during and after the sale. Jill is not the only one who is thinking “different” about retail.

Microsoft Stores

Tim Manners — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 08:48:24 -0500

Imagine if you opened a store where selling stuff wasn't the main idea. What would be the point of that?

That's the challenge -- and opportunity -- facing David Porter, the former Wal-Mart executive just hired by Microsoft to figure out what a Microsoft "store" should be.

In fact, David told the Wall Street Journal that he already has a pretty clear idea: "The purpose of these stores is to create deeper engagement with consumers and learn firsthand about what they want and how they buy," he said.

Heart of Starbucks

Tim Manners — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 09:13:33 -0500

On November 26th, at approximately 10:45 a.m., Starbucks store No. 7449 in Nyack, New York, lost its greatest asset.

No, it didn't run out of its Pike Place Blend, oatmeal, or the sausage, cheese and egg sandwiches. It lost a regular customer -- a homeless man known to locals as Fleming Taylor, 62, who turned up dead in a nearby stairwell, where apparently he spent his nights and succumbed to a cerebral hemorrhage.

Saturn v. Uranus

Tim Manners — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 08:37:38 -0500

The news on this morning's doorstep is that, all of a sudden, Saturn is the poster child for just about everything that's gone wrong with General Motors.

Reason is, Saturn apparently was the one thing General Motors got right in the last 20 years ... and somehow managed to get it wrong anyway.

Way back in 1990, Saturn created such excitement, and the truth is it didn't take much. The cars were affordable and reasonably well-built. Some liked the designs, although others felt the cars were unexciting.

Playing Checkers: What the Meltdown Means For Store Brands

Tim Manners — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 10:06:01 -0500

Not since Richard Nixon imposed wage-price controls in 1971 have brand marketers faced a point as pivotal as the one they face today.

It was Nixon’s failed attempt to control inflation by freezing wages and prices that led to the trade promotions that forever altered the relationship between retailers and brand marketers.

As soon as the controls were lifted, marketers wanted to make sure they would never be hogtied like that again. So, they artificially inflated their prices and started dealing back the difference as discounts to retailers.

What Nestle Knows

Tim Manners — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 11:23:37 -0400

Friday's Wall Street Journal included a remarkable story about Nestle. In part it was remarkable because Nestle isn't necessarily a company that gets a lot of press, much less the kind of press that could fairly be classified as of the "man bites dog" variety.

Procter & Taylor

Tim Manners — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 08:03:24 -0400

Last week, we saw a glimmer of hope that the promise of "retail strategy" may at long last rising above the level of a cruel contradiction in terms. I'm talking about the new strategic alliance between Procter & Gamble and Ann Taylor.

Fig Newmans

Tim Manners — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 12:08:55 -0400

Paul Newman will be remembered for many things -- acting, philanthropy, race-car driving. I will always think of him as an incredibly astute marketing guy.

About ten years ago, I was lucky enough to visit the Newman's Own offices in Westport, Conn., and interview its president, Tom Indoe (interview here). After the interview, Tom gave me a tour of the place, including Paul's office. He wasn't there at the time, so my fondest memory is simply a small sign tacked to the wall that read:

Wal-Mart Moms

Tim Manners — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 09:59:14 -0400

Wal-Mart is out with a fascinating presidential election poll of its female shoppers (a.k.a. Wal-Mart Moms) that reveals as much about Wal-Mart's fortunes as it does about Obama's and McCain's.

The poll of five battleground states finds Sen. Obama leading in three (Virginia, Nevada, Colorado) and Sen. McCain in the other two (Ohio and Florida), albeit by slim margins all around.

FAO Schwarz

Tim Manners — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 11:09:05 -0400

A tour of the FAO Schwarz flagship store in NYC should be mandatory for everyone who wants to understand the relevance of really good retail.

When last we left FAO, we left it for dead. Every single one of its stores was closed, and it was in Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Seems like yesterday but that was five years ago. FAO had made the fatal mistake of attempting to compete with Wal-Mart and Toys R US on price and, worse, its merchandise mix had turned pedestrian.