Petites potential - Apparel Merchandising - Women's

Discount Store News, Sept 16, 1996

Merchants are grappling with a small problem. While retailers have rushed to clear space for plus sizes, petites has been much less developed in the mass market. However, some chains that have addressed the petite customer, such as Bradlees, Sears and Kohl's, are building a steady business with annual sales increases in the 5 percent to 6 percent range.

The reason retailers eschew petites is the numbers. While it is often estimated that as much as 40 percent of women buy size 16 and up, The NPD Group, Port Washington, N.Y., reports that only 5 percent of women purchase petite sizes.

Still, the question remains: Would petites sales accelerate if these smaller sizes were more readily available? There has been a precedent for this kind of thinking. Petites bring in 10 percent or more of women's sales at upstairs retailers, such as Macy's, Ann Taylor and Saks Fifth Avenue, which have the floor space to make a meaningful petites statement.

Historically, mass merchants have had mixed results with petites.

Bradlees, for instance, instituted petites several years ago, and the department enjoyed ambitious growth until the last two seasons when movement was more "conservative," says Celia Clancy, senior vice president, general merchandise manager of women's apparel and accessories.

But by focusing on core classifications, Clancy believes the business can spring back. "We've put our attention on what made our business good in the first place; it's a bottoms-driven business," she says. "Shoppers primarily need the special fit for anything constructed, like pants."

Petites are also traditionally career-driven, and Clancy plans to delve deeper into petite dresses next year.

Venture Stores added a petites shop to its new prototypes about a year ago, when the O'Fallon, Mo.-based operation became more focused on apparel as part of its restructuring effort.

"Approximately 30 percent of our [women's] sportswear business is in special sizes. The addition of petites adds to the broad assortment of apparel we already carry, plus it offers customers another reason to shop at Venture and helps differentiate us from other retailers," says Barbara Thoreson, divisional merchandise manager. "We've achieved our initial projections and the business continues to grow," she reports.

Brands at Venture include First Option, MS (a division of Beyer), Royal Blue (a division of Gloria Vanderbilt), Fritzi, Kikoma, Tag by Teddi and Soleil.

In-store placement of petites has been a subject of debate for years. Stand-alone presentations send consumers a headquarters message, while incorporating petites into broader sportswear assortments allows merchants to hedge their bets.

Venture and Bradlees both give petites their own home on the selling floor, but other discounters like Target simply add petite sizes to the general mix.

Kohl's gives petites its own department in sportswear, next to misses. It consists of tops, bottoms, jeans, coordinates and sweaters. Petite dresses are housed within the dress department, where there are usually six rounders of regular sizes and an equal amount of petites. Prices on names such as Karin Stevens, Sheri Martin and Positive Attitude range from $49.99 to $99.99.

Sears is using petites as a focal area as it tries to lure more women into its stores. "We have petite customers, so we knew it was just as important to reach them. Petites has grown in sales and presentation," says Arthur Martinez, Sears' chairman and ceo. The assortment includes labels such as Sag Harbor, Ecco Petites, Impressions and Good Times.

Sears' petites area is adjacent to regular sizes, so "that way the customer can go back and forth between areas," says a Sears spokeswoman. "And it is a concept shop where you can get everything."

Letting customers know stores stock petites is the key to growing sales, says James Pearlman, president and ceo of Whirlaway Frocks, New York, a supplier to Sears, Montgomery Ward and JCPenney. He advocates a separate store area so time-pressed shoppers can easily find what they want.

"Let the customer know you are carrying petites, because customers have the need and will buy where they can find it," he says. He credits Sears with being one of the best at tapping into the shopping needs of the petites customer.

Petites represents potential incremental business for mass market retailers, but carrying a meaningful assortment in limited apparel space forces merchants to make what can be difficult compromises. Assessing the needs of core customers should help in the decision making.