Lowe's signs Alexander Julian, gives home decor biz big push - Brief Article

Discount Store News, March 20, 2000 by Debbie Howell

WILKESBORO, N.C. - Everyone's jumping on the star-studded bandwagon. Kmart has Martha Stewart, Sears has Bob Vila, and Target has Michael Graves. Now Lowe's is getting in on the game and has joined forces with fashion and home furnishings designer Alexander Julian to launch a wide range of home decorating products to hit stores this summer.

Putting a designer's name behind an exclusive product line is a popular means for retailers to expand in home decor and build a powerful brand image that's trend-right and fashion-forward.

The solutions-based program at Lowe's, called Alexander Julian At Home, will include wall coverings, paint, window treatments, flooring, rugs, carpeting and kitchen cabinets and countertops. All of the products, broken into eight color families that range from pastels to jewel tones, are designed to coordinate, making purchasing decisions easier for the customer.

As part of the partnership deal, Lowe's will be the first retailer to carry the new products and the only one with the full assortment available in all 576 stores.

"The addition of Alexander Julian's line of home improvement products is a broad and unique presentation that is rare in our industry," said Lowe's ceo Robert Tillman in a company statement. "This is just another way we are improving home improvement, by offering everything from the lumber and nails to the carpeting and paint choices that make a house a home."

Julian, an award-winning fashion designer, developed the program to complement his Alexander Julian Home Colours label in home furnishings and soft home. Among the licensed products that bear his name are furniture, rugs, wall coverings, fabric, lamps and decorative prints. Lowe's currently carries Julian's wall coverings from Sunworthy.

Melissa Birdsong, director of trend forecasting and design for Lowe's, described Julian's style as casual and comfortable. "He feels good design should work in a home so you can actually live in it," she said.

Birdsong said Lowe's decided to team up with a designer in a solutions-focused approach to relieve the anxiety and confusion many customers have when making home decorating decisions.

"There are many more customers that need help and would like to see products that work together in concert with each other to create a room," she explained.

A similar program with designer Beverly Murphy was tested in Lowe's stores two years ago and discontinued. The Beverly Murphy Home label had included wall coverings, upholstery, drapery, throw pillows and accessories.

Birdsong said the Alexander Julian At Home products will be incorporated into existing department space at most Lowe's stores and tested as a dedicated bay at some. Lowe's is working on printed materials that will help customers coordinate products in the line.

Most of the products will debut in Lowe's stores early this summer, while the second phase involving kitchen cabinets and countertaps is scheduled to launch by early next year.

By Lowe's hooking up with a well-known designer, the retailer is attempting to distinguish itself from Home Depot as the two home improvement warehouse giants battle it out in markets across the country, said Mark Mandel, senior vp of investment firm Robinson-Humphrey.

"They're always trying to gain an edge," Mandel said. "Home Depot and Lowe's are both trying to differentiate their merchandise where they can to do exclusive arrangements."

The program also boosts Lowe's appeal to females, who already make up half of the chain's customers. Over the past few years, the chain has added soft home products and merchandised its stores in an easier-to-shop manner appealing to women, with wider aisles and better lighting. While the company would only say home decor products continue to grow in sales each year, one analyst estimated the category may represent 25% of sales.

The addition of home decor products and celebrity-endorsed lines has been a hot trend among retailers, from Kmart's successful Martha Stewart programs in soft home and lawn & garden to Target's Michael Graves collection in giftware, housewares and outdoor living. Home improvement retailers in particular have found expansion into decor a natural, whether within the store or through a separate retail concept such as Home Depot's Expo Design Center.

In its warehouse stores, Home Depot carries designer labels that include Ralph Lauren in paint and Raymond Waits and Carey Lind in wallpaper. Besides Julian, Lowe's also carries the designer brand Laura Ashley in paint, wall coverings and rugs.

Wayne Hood, a retailing analyst with Prudential Securities, said Lowe's alignment with Julian lends credibility to its home decor offerings and positions the chain as a fashion-conscious retailer.

With the solution-based approach, Lowe's is also correcting an oft-cited criticism of such warehouse stores as being intimidating to the buyer not adept at DIY projects.

"People are looking for more advice, more help from the retailer. This is kind of a trend that's been going on for the last couple of years and will probably continue," said Sid Doolittle, a partner with McMillan Doolittle.