Special interest, exercise, kids' videos dominate VSDA show - Video Software Dealers Assn

Discount Store News, June 19, 1995 by Dawn Wilensky

DALLAS -- Traffic was lighter than usual at the recently held Video Software Dealers Association convention as the show's exodus from Las Vegas to Dallas was met with little enthusiasm by attendees, many of whom felt the show lost some of its show-biz flavor.

Combined with other factors--such as the elimination (this year only) of the adult entertainment section and the close proximity of the [E.sup.3] Electronic Entertainment Expo held two weeks prior in Los Angeles--attendance this year dropped to just little more than 9,000 from 14,000 in '94, according to the VSDA.

Many exhibitors contended that while the quality of attendees was still up to par, many of the smaller independents, who typically piggyback a vacation in Vegas, were noticeably absent.

Nevertheless, the show floor was brimming with the hot new titles, both rental and sell-through, and a roster of well-known celebrities.

Among the standouts were "The Brady Bunch Movie" from Paramount Pictures, "Dumb and Dumber" from New Line Home Video, "The Santa Clause" and "A Goofy Movie," both by Walt Disney Pictures, "Darkman II" from MCA/Universal and "The Swan Princess" from Turner Home Entertainment.

Celebrities from Burt Reynolds and Linda Evans to Barney, Cinderella and Beavis & Butt-head were also available for photos and autographs throughout the four-day convention.

Informative seminars were sprinkled over the duration of the show and got rave reviews from attendees who liked the increased business-orientation of the show.

"The seminars really help get things into perspective for the smaller independents," said Bob White, owner of The Video Shack. "We don't have much of a chance to get a perspective of the rental and sell-through markets, and this really helps us get a better handle on our business."

The video industry also get a glowing report card at the general business session from outgoing VSDA chairman Gary Ross and VSDA president Jeffrey Eves, who reported that home video revenues grew 11.4% last year to $20 billion from $17.9 billion. Much of this growth was fueled by a 26% increase in sell-through.

That's good news for mass merchandisers, which accounted for 51.6% of the sell-through market during the first quarter, according to research conducted by Video Store Magazine.

"The mass market is still the foundation for sales of sell-through titles," said Jon Pisinger, president of ABC Video. "The most fascinating is how the mass market has recognized video as a traffic builder. Caldor always features a video in the right hand corner of the circular as well as other prime locations within the circular. The interesting thing is that there hasn't been another product category that has been merchandised like this."

Merchandising has become one of the most critical issues facing discounters since shelf space cannot grow at the same rate as the number of new titles.

Judging from the selection of exercise, children's and special interest titles at the show, these problems will only be compounded during the remainder of the year.

The exercise genre was particularly hot, with a wide sampling of introductions.

Body-part specific titles were popular. The upcoming release of "Claudia Schiffer Fitness," a series of four body-part specific programs by CBS/Fox, features Schiffer and is led by certified personal trainer Kathy Kaehler. Denise Austin also "hits the spot" with a series by the same name that targets arms, bust, buns, thighs and abs by Parade Video, a division of PPI Entertainment Group.

For those who want an allover workout, there was plenty to choose from: Karen Voight's "Strong & Smooth Moves" by ABC Video; Rachel Hunter's Take Charge series: "Power Cardio" and Power Conditioning" by UAV Video; "Paula Abdul: Get Up and Dance" from Live Home Video; Richard Simmons' "Disco Sweat" from GoodTimes Entertainment; "The Flo-Jo Workout, Mind Body and Spirit" by Paramount Pictures; and Daisy Fuentes' "Totally Fit" by WarnerVision; as well as the following from Parade Video: Tony Little's "Cardio Ab Training" and "Cardio Hips, Thighs & Buns Training," ESPN-2's "Hip Hop Body Shop" and a new video series "Miss Christy's Dancin," which introduces kids to jazz, tap and ballet.

And for those who want to listen to music while exercising, WarnerVision Entertainment introduced the Sweatracks audio series with four titles including "Classic Rock Running," "Disco Walkin'," "Old School Jam Indoor Cardio" and "Walkin' to the Oldies."

"We see an opportunity in the exercise genre to differentiate ourselves from the competition with clutter busters like our new Suzanne Somers series of nutrition, lifestyle and self-improvement programs," said John Ruscin, president and ceo of CBS/Fox.

Exercise tapes had nothing on the kidvid business as distributors of "The Adventures of Timmy the Tooth" by MCA/Universal, "Nick Jr. Video" by Sony Wonder," "Aladdin's Arabian Adventures" by Walt Disney Home Video, "SchoolHouse Rock" by ABC Video" and "The Pebble And The Penguin" by MGM/UA Home Video, promised big returns for retailers at checkout during the third and fourth quarters.