Merchandise management
...our customers don’t like to be hemmed in. Jaegar is not like a supermarket where people push past you! Space is all important”. Stated by Mick Webber The right merchandise is also looked upon closely by Jaegar. They launch two main collections per year: - 1. “Spring / Summer” 2. “Autumn / Winter” Jaegar’s policy is to release merchandise gradually to the stores as the seasons progress. The right place – Jaegar has 57 stores free standing as well as shop-in-shop concessions within the UK. Jaegar prefer to locate in major cities i.e. “Edinburgh and Manchester” as well as in tourist areas, “Bath, Stratford and Southport”. Due to Jaegar specialises in merchandise which has a reputation for high quality and excellent design. Their target market is for is for “35 + year old woman” who are “fashion concisions”. The merchandise is expensive and mainly people with high disposable income shop there. This is why major cities and tourist attractions are targeted for sites. There are more people with a high level of disposable Income because the cost of living is higher in those areas. Jaegar has taken strides to cover all the necessary areas of this definition and remain focused on the merchandise aspect of the company. General Goals of merchandising Merchandising is a strategy which should be developed by all retails. It goes into depth of specific products i.e. JJB sports has great depth in their sports wear and equipment. ASDA is a British leading supermarket retailer which has extensive width of products. Therefore merchandising is a strategy which should be used by all retailers. Merchandise management focuses on planning and control of the merchandise mix. This requires decisions in the following areas: - • Merchandise variety • Merchandise assortment • Merchandise support It must be understood by all retailers that once their strategy is in place it does not mean that you should solely rely on such a strategy. The merchandise mix as well as customer’s needs and desires do not remain constant over time. It is said that the merchandise strategy objectives are: - • To provide highly desirable merchandise mix • Adjust merchandise mix too meet customer changing needs • Pre-purchase planning of mix • Consideration of external factors influencing mix Jaegar can be seen to adapting some of these objectives to suit their own workforce and target market. For example, Jaegar are making strides to adjust the merchandise mix too meet the changes in customer needs, “Jaegar are using the TQM program which is attempting to promote a corporate culture focussed on producing ‘customer delight’ not merely ‘customer satisfaction’”. TQM Methodology Jaegar's senior management team wants the shopping experience of Jaegar Ladies to be, “so delightful that it produces not just good word-by-mouth, but a truly emphatic and enthusiastic endorsement of the Jaegar experience”. Current Jaegar Design factors Jaegar try to keep their image up-to-date constantly by using the latest fixture and fittings both internally and externally. They are always assessing customer’s wants and needs; and always trying to stay one step ahead of the competition. Interior Sales fixtures:- • In-store music – Jaegar have begun to play music with relevance to which day it is. At the weekends, up beat music is preferred. The stores are busiest at this time and the more people through the door the better for sales. Throughout the week however, they prefer a slower tempo of music. This encourages people to remain in store longer looking at products. The spacious surroundings allow for easy browsing without hindrance • Fixtures and fittings – There are limited stock within the store it’s self. There are possibly only 1 or 2 colours of a product out on show at any one time. This does not mean that their stock is limited; instead, they tend to refrain from placing stock out because it takes up space and Jaegar try to limit most restrictions of access. • Spot lights – Spot lights are used to highlight certain areas and displays. For example, the latest seasonal fashion could be displayed in a well-lit open area where it is clearly visible to customers. Such lights are also used to create moods within the store. If the light is bright and focuses on one specific piece of merchandise then it is obviously attracting attention from the majority of the customers. However, is the light was dull it generates a soft gentle mood allowing customer to feel at ease whilst browsing. • Metals – Many metals are used to generate a sense of quality within the store. Brass is used to good effect and produces a sense of expensiveness of their products. The problem with such fixtures is that it is expensive to maintain. Dust and fingerprints are easily visible on such metals and therefore must be constantly polished and cleaned. Jaegar use these metals to highlight the quality aspect of their merchandise and image. Exterior Sales Techniques: - • The entrance to the store – Jaegar stores usually have an, ‘angled entrances’. Sometimes they have one or two entrances dependent on store location and space. This type of design entices customers into the store and protects them from weather elements. Sales analysts have developed the ‘five step’ theory. This is when customers do not take into the consideration the merchandise within the first five paces of the store. By using an angled frontage design it eliminates the opportunity to miss products and expresses the quality image. • Locations of Jaegar’s stores are also chosen carefully. This is also an important part of their corporate image. They are mainly located in areas where the local population has high disposable income. I.e. major cities, “Manchester and London” and tourist attractions. Should Free-Standers and Concessions have the same strategy? From the analysis given in the case study of Jaegar, it would appear that there are too many gaps and differences between Free-Standers and concessions to create a common strategy across the board. I therefore would push the idea for different strategies for both types of store. The ways in which Free-Standers di...