Closing the gender gap - household linens and domestics at discount stores - HomeMarket Trends supplement

Discount Store News, Oct 16, 1989 by Peter Hisey

Closing the Gender Gap

In the face of a softening market, most mills have chosen domestics to appeal to more specialized consumer segments. In touring the showrooms a little less than three weeks before market week, three clear trends emerged.

First, manufacturers are going all out to appeal to the growing men's market. Despite all the recent attention given to French Country and other design trends slanted toward female consumers, the arrival of spare Scandinavian and tailored looks spells a change in marketing strategies for domestics.

Next, most mills are pushing mass market retailers' price points. The offering in 200 count goods has exploded, and embellished products are coming on strong as well. St. Mary's, for instance, will debut its first ever embellished products to take advantage of the explosive growth of that category in the mass market, where suppliers like Briggs have already struck gold.

And finally, the gap between department store and mass market design has almost disappeared. While there are distinct differences, the taste level is roughly the same, with more formal niche products reserved for upstairs retailers. Further, most mills are supplying a more fully coordinated look. Pacific, for instance, broke into the coordinate market for the first time, and other mills have increased coordinated programs.

Prices are rising sharply at some mills, and most forecasts call for a softening market through 1990. Manufacturers evidently feel that drawing underconsuming groups, like men, into the market can avoid the possiblity of a slump.

According to Ruth Fox, head of Cannon's design department, the move to more masculine looks is cyclical; not much has been done in that area in recent markets, creating some level of pent-up demand.

Similarly, suppliers like Lady Pepperell vp Vic Wafer report that the upscaling of major discounters' stores has created an opportunity for more fashionable goods. Look also for a further cleaning up of country looks, widespread coordination options, more Southwestern design influences and greater formality, with black accents popular.

Fieldcrest Cannon

A new floral document, Ashley, will join Monticello's successful 200 count program, which last year introduced Blue Rhapsody and Sutherland. Ashley, printed on a soft khaki ground, is an oversized floral design in rose and Wedgwood blue. Sussex is a masculine look in red and blue, with a hunting motif.

Other masculine looks from the Fieldcrest Cannon group are Dunhill Stripe, a simple, clean look in cobalt gray; and Beverly Hills Athletic Club, a forceful stripe on percale.

At the same time, soft and feminine looks are still popular. Windspray is a pastel floral/geometric combo in yellows, pinks and blues.

The upstairs brands from Fieldcrest are very different, and may not, as in the past, hint at things to come. Extremely formal, and often based on document patterns, designs like Madame M and Gladstone, with their Victorian references, are unlikely to filter down to a mass market. However, a bright pastel flame stich with a hint of computer graphics, Gypsy, might hint at future looks.

Cannon will also introduce two Peanuts licensed lines, Snoopy Hollywood for upmarket retailers, and Snoopy Ha Ha for mass merchants.

J.P. Stevens

Making a major statement in flannel products, Stevens is introducing five new sheet sets for this season. They include Sterling, a masculine leaf motif; a Southwestern architectural approach called Adobe; and Loon Lake, which is self-explanatory.

The Country Inn program will gain Blissful, a fully accesorized and embellished design family, with coordinating towels and bath rugs, as well as the more expected draperies and pillow shams.

Barrister is a strong, masculine design, in burgundy on a malt ground, while Montage adds a bit of Indian influence and high-fashion black accents to French Country.

Stevens is also planning additions to its Gloria Vanderbilt line, aimed at older women who have grown up with the designer's name. Additionally, wrapping up an ambitious market, the company will enter the 200 count market and introduce a fully coordinated program called Options, which will consist of designs and colorways that work together in a mix and match or layered way. Attached hems on comforters will pick up designs from sheet sets, as will draperies and pillowcases. Colors and designs will change, but will continue to work well together.

Options will also coordinate with bath products, and will be displayed as a unit.

Dundee

Capitalizing on the success of its Centennial bath products, Dundee is introducing prints to coordinate with the popular solids. And rather than play it safe, the company has plunged in with four different designs, three of which are available in three colorways each. These include Windemere, a dramatic floral with black highlights; Allura, a group of tall florals; Harmony, an iris motif; and Morning Glory, an oversized floral.

Dundee has also carved out a new price niche with Dependability, a line of mid-palette, mid-priced towels list priced at $6.99. "That used to be the guts of the business," noted Dundee's Dave Blalock. "We're going back-to-basics with Dependability." A mass market version, Durability, will follow later this year.