Posts Tagged ‘Retail
Right products at the right locations…
History has been made!
But, this is not a political blog, so I’m not writing another political post. However, what I am going to write about again is how important it is to bring your product to your customers.
During yesterday’s voting, Vote and Vax did just that! This non-profit organization brought flu vaccination to people, and during the perfect time of the year. What a great idea!
Commercially, it appears that marketers are trying harder and harder to improve their relevance, as consumers are making harder and more choices with regards to their wallets.
P&G’s Tide Total Care and Downy Total Care recently had a very interesting campaign, in conjunction with other elements of an integrative marketing campaign that launched the products and touts “50 Washes. Still Beautifulâ€. They partnered with Ann Taylor. This was to capture the opportunity of women dry cleaning clothes that need not be dry cleaned. So, P&G used this campaign to highlight how the products are made to keep clothes at its best for a long time. While they did not exactly sell detergents at Ann Taylor, they did hand out coupons.
There is great synergy in this campaign. Ann Taylor can encourage more clothing purchases because now the clothes are cheaper to maintain. Tide and Downy were still in front of the consumers. They were not in detergent shopping mode at the mall, but that coupon would probably incent them to purchase Tide on their next grocery trip. But the truth is in the numbers, it’d be interesting to see redemption and sales numbers for these products.
Photo credit: New York Times
Las Vegas: A Brand Mecca
I was in Vegas this past weekend… and it was FUN! And, no, I did not lose money… that’s because I did not gamble. You may ask then what DID I do in Vegas if not gamble. Well, I ate, a lot. I went out clubbing. And, I shopped – mostly window shopped… Today’s Vegas has really changed, you really could enjoy a great weekend without gambling.
This got me thinking about brands, and brand experiences.
First, let’s start with my hotel. I stayed at Trump International Tower and Hotel. It’s part hotel, part vacation home. In any case, it was TRUMP. It was gold and it was glittery. It was luxury. Everything you expect from Trump. Amongst my group, many appreciated the little touches such as the pool, the lilac scent that fills the lobby, the whirlpool tub, the built-in TV in the bathroom, etc.
The Pool at Trump Tower, Las Vegas, originally uploaded by ranmano.
Vegas is truly a blend of brands. We had brunch at Thomas Keller’s Bouchon. In this case, the chef is definitely the defining brand. He is about French bistro fare. Having been to French bistros in France, I think Keller’s restaurant is a success. Talk about a brand experience. Bouchon is about the atmosphere as much as it is about food. It transports a patron to France, in the middle of the desert, and not in the cheesy, over-the-top way Vegas is famous for.
Vin Rouges @ Bouchon, originally uploaded by cabayarea.
Then, there was the shopping. It reminded me of how many interesting retail shops are out there, and how many innovative products are out there!
Last post I wrote about Vosges, and of course, given the opportunity, I had to stop in. Once again, it was a divine experience. I walked away with a drinking chocolate, and introduced another friend to the “amazingness†of Vosges. Apparently, they have a factory in Chicago. Next time I go to Chicago, I’d make sure to make the Vosges factory a stop and report back.
Of course, amongst the shops are some of the best brands. Apple, Louis Vuitton, Cartier, DKNY, Roberto Cavalli, Michael Kors, etc. Vegas has became a Mecca for brands, and everyone tries to showcase their best.
Another brand came to play at this Mecca: Playboy. I was not able to stop by the Playboy club at the Palm, but I did stop in the Playboy store. I thought that store was great. It was filled with fun and sexy goods, what Playboy is about. More important was that it was today. Playboy as a brand had suffered from age, but this store does not show age at all. It was sexy in that hip and cool way. In other words, it was the sexy girl that you want to get to know because she seems cool, not that sexy girl who’s a little past her prime and is trying too hard. It’s a great step for Playboy.
Lastly, there is Vegas as a brand. Not too long ago, this post would have been about the glitter of Las Vegas. Or, it would had been about the crazy décor of the various casino. But, today, it is about the restaurants and the shops. Vegas as a brand is going through a transition, and people is interacting with this brand differently. However, it is always difficult to transform a known and trusted brand. It’d be interesting to see if the new Vegas brand would truly take hold, or if it will forever remain as Sin City.
Making the sale – bacon chocolate bars…
Last week has been all about food!
I started with attending a local food festival with my co-worker featuring locally owned restaurants, and then I hit a chocolate festival. And it is my theory that every food can be made better with cheese and chocolate… these two events reminded me of this theory 
First, a most peculiar tasting experience happened at the local food festival… and I have tasted a lot of peculiar foods before… Chocolate covered bacon! It was weird. I do not recommend it.
But it did remind me of an execution of chocolate and bacon that I did enjoy… brought to us by Vosges.
Mo’s Bacon Bar, originally uploaded by Wananga.
“The Vosges Haut-Chocolat mission is to create a luxury chocolate experience rooted in a sensory journey of bringing about awareness to indigenous cultures through the exploration of spices, herbs, roots, flowers, fruits, nuts, chocolate and the obscure. We invite you to be aware and open to the many cultures, artists and theories of the world’s people, through the medium of chocolate. What better way to learn about a culture, person or object than through eating. If we can embrace the idea of trying something new such as the perplexing oddity of curry and chocolate, we just may come one step closer to bringing peace to the world through chocolate. One Love, One Chocolate.“Â http://www.vosgeschocolate.com/
I had always thought that this was a great idea. I was first introduced to it by a fellow foodie, who is known in our circle as the cupcake queen… her blog explains all (link provided below).
I have personally visited two Vosges Haut Chocolat boutiques by now. And I truly enjoyed the shopping experience. The store is set up, so it lures you in, like any other good boutiques. Inside, you have the opportunity to sample the chocolate, which allows you to fall in love with flavors that you may not have thought you’d like. Also, the sales associates are most helpful in encourage you to try new flavors. (Think wine sales associates)
Vosges Haute Chocolat, originally uploaded by JamesTaft.
But, how does Vosges fare outside its wonderful boutiques?
I have recently seen it at a local European food boutique (and Vosges is not European, it’s Chicagoan.) But European is not the trick here… “boutique†is…
Once again, it’s useful to compare Vosges to wine… Vosges is not two-buck chuck. It is boutique and unique. It’s for someone who is seeking an experience with its chocolate… and it needs to be distributed in places where these people shop. It is understand what you are as a product, and making yourself available to people seeking such product. So far, Vosges have been a huge success in that regard!
Speaking of the free samples at Vosges and making your products available… there was many free chocolate samples to be had at the Chocolate festival… (no, there weren’t any Vosges… The festival was more family-centric than foodie-centric).
But, what was interesting was that there was one booth that did not have any products to sell. All it had was samples. They referred you to the store if you were interested in purchasing. Sadly, it was the best chocolate available at that fair, and you were not able to take home any of it. So, what do people do? Take home chocolate from the next booth that was selling their goods…
Now, just as I raved about the shopping experience at Vosges before, I’m sure that the shopping experience at this chocolate shop would be amazing. However, giving free samples only at a venue that encourages sales seems to be missing a great opportunity for an immediate sale and building a consumer base… While free samples build good will, it is forgettable in a setting such as a food festival. However, if you allow people to bring the product home, it gives them another opportunity to evaluate your product. If you have a good product, this is how you turn a sampler into a loyal customer.
I guess the point I’m trying to make is once again make your product available where your consumers are! If you have consumers at a festival – make it available for them to buy! Otherwise, don’t waste money setting up a booth there. At the end of the day, no matter how good your product is, how great your shop is, it really doesn’t matter if there is not a sale at the end of the day…
Link – My friend’s blog: cupcakeproject.com
Jeannie Chan is a Brand Manager for a Fortune 500 consumer goods company. She considers herself a marketer, a traveler, and a foodie. Jeannie lives in NYC. 
