There may not be much the retail sheds can teach merchants about the technicalities of timber products. But when it comes to merchandising mouldings, the B&Qs and Homebases of this world may have a useful tip or two. This is the view of Cheshire Mouldings managing director John Carney.
“Some merchants still keep their mouldings in a box at the back of the warehouse with all the sawn and planed timber,” he said. “That means your customer has to come through your gate with the specific idea of buying mouldings in his head already.”
Bringing the mouldings box or carousel to the front of the warehouse, or to the trade counter, he added, gives the merchant the opportunity of a double hit.
“You’ll still get the customer who comes in planning to buy mouldings, but also the ones who decide to buy at the last minute, the impulse purchaser,” he said. “They might be buying another product such as a window, for instance, and, seeing the display, they remember that they need to buy some mouldings with it.
“If you visit B&Q you see they bring their mouldings to the front of the store – it’s the same concept that Tesco and Asda use with their displays at the till.”
Fortunately for merchants who are a bit uncertain of their retail presentation and merchandising skills, Cheshire Mouldings – and, Mr Carney generously acknowledges, competitors like Burbidge and Masons – are on hand to help.
Tailored merchandising
“We have a team of in-house display erectors who tailor merchandising boxes to customers’ requirements,” said Cheshire’s sales manager John Smith. “The aim is to form a partnership, with us and the merchant working together to build business.”
This partnership, added Mr Carney, also entails the mouldings supplier becoming a regular visitor to the customer to restock and dress display stands and boxes.
“We came to mouldings from producing stairparts, which we’ve done for 16 years,” he said. “The level of servicing mouldings customers need was quite an eye opener. Our stair merchandisers generally need a visit around once a month. With mouldings merchandisers it’s at least that, and probably ideally every two weeks.”
Mr Smith added: “The end user’s buying decisions are frequently made just a few metres from the display so merchandising support has become a very important part of the business. We have to provide merchandising solutions that ensure prompt, efficient and cost-effective service.”
The leading mouldings suppliers are also attempting to make their customers’ lives easier with a wider range of display unit designs.
“We usually supply our multi-box merchandiser which holds 80 different sizes and patterns of beading and moulding,” said Mr Smith. “But we also do a 40-item box, a 40-product free-standing carousel and a 20-product half carousel which can be used against a wall.”
When it comes to stocking, he stressed, it’s important not to think in terms of having a “standard” mix. “The range will usually contain quadrants, scotias, glass beads, door stops, dowels, D-moulds and cushion corners. But it may also include astragals, staff bead, hockey stick and other items determined by local demand.”
Next step
The next step is to get the grouping of different items right within the merchandiser. “With quadrants, for instance, you’d have them all together, starting with the smallest dimension at the top, descending through the larger sizes so customers can quickly pick the right one for the job,” said Mr Smith. “You also group according to end use, for instance putting double astragal, staff and parting beads together as they’ll all be used for sash window work.”
Merchants also no longer have the headache of individually pricing each moulding. Cheshire puts a bar code price label on every product, including a price letter coding for customers who don’t have bar code readers.
Properly managed and taking advantage of manufacturers’ merchandising support, Mr Smith said, mouldings should be among a merchant’s best performing lines. “Per square foot of display and storage, they can be one of the most profitable products they stock.”
