Retailers hope 'gallery' systems spur sales - ready-to-assemble products - includes related article on Venture's store, Des Moines, Iowa - RTA Merchandising

Discount Store News, Jan 6, 1992

Retailers Hope |Gallery' Systems Spur Sales

Having reached a temporary plateau in new product development of ready-to-assemble furniture, some of the largest suppliers of RTA have given attention to helping retailers merchandise the category with new "gallery" systems.

Two types of galleries are available - either standardized for use at any number of store formats, or customized for each chain - both include extensive POP materials, signage and vendor-supplied fixtures designed to maximize the peculiar needs of the space-intensive RTA category.

Bush Industries, Jamestown, N.Y., and Sauder Woodworking, Archbold, Ohio, are the only RTA suppliers which have placed standardized gallery programs in stores, but executives with Armstrong, O'Sullivan and others have such systems in development. Gusdorf has supplied customized systems for some time, but is also considering a standardized gallery program.

The gallery does represent an overhead cost to the retailer - and the current cost-cutting trend makes retailers scrutinize the need for the investment. Nonetheless, preliminary feedback suggests the investment pays for itself by boosting the sales of RTA merchandise.

Bush Industries, paved the way with its roughly two year-old "Furniture on the Move" program for selling RTA in traditional furniture stores like Levitz. But now the gallery merchandising system is being adapted for use by fullline discounters, chain home goods specialty stores, and other mass retailers.

Kurt Gelke, vice president, marketing & strategic planning with Bush, estimated that about one-third of all customers utilize a gallery system. By the end of 1992, nearly half of all Bush customers will incorporate a gallery into the department, Gelke projected. The "Furniture on the Move" program has doubled sales per square foot of RTA in most stores, according to Gelke. The majority of the Bush program is currently in conventional furniture stores.

Sauder's first gallery was unveiled at Pergament home center's new Rooms 'N Lights home goods specialty store during the third quarter of 1991. Subsequently, traditional department stores have also been experimenting with the Sauder gallery. Like the Bush program, Sauder has measured significant sales increases.

"In one case, the store with the gallery showed a 30% sales increase in a given month while at the same time other company stores with the same merchandise but without the gallery reported a 5% decrease in sales," said Kevin Sauder, director of marketing.

Jerry Bryden, who heads up the six-unit Rooms 'N Lights home decor specialty stores and is merchandise manager of the Pergament home center parent, said the Sauder program works well in Rooms 'N Lights, but will not be rolled out into the entire Pergament chain.

"It's a nice program, but not the end-all. The gallery is a nice presentation and it hides the unattractive backs of the RTA," said Bryden. "But the program - as it is - is not designed for volume business. We are, however, working with Sauder to develop a modified program that will allow boxed stock to be stored below the display."

As it stands now, the Sauder gallery is designed to have the display pieces on the floor and boxed furniture stocked on nearby gondolas. "The program is good for a department store or specialty store, but would need changes for volume retailers like Pergament to benefit," said Bryden.

The receptivity of traditional furniture retailers and some specialty stores to the Bush and Sauder galleries is stimulating the creativity of other manufacturers.

During the October furniture market in High Point, N.C., Armstrong was escorting retailers to its nearby headquarters to discuss various gallery elements the company was developing. Bill Agnew, manager, sales & marketing, said the program has not yet been finalized and Armstrong is still showing the prototypes to retailers and consumers.

"We're trying to incorporate some of the things that the customer needs to know about Armstrong RTA furniture that will make it easier to decide that RTA is what the customer wants," said Agnew. "We are taking the extra steps to develop whatever would help to seal the deal."

Right now Armstrong is working on signage, but could possibly create fixturing as well, possibly in time for one of this year's High Point markets.

Similarly, O'Sullivan, Lamar, Mo., also expects to have some sort of gallery program within the year. Tom O'Sullivan, national sales manager, said the question of whether to move ahead with a gallery or not has been a topic of discussion at the company for awhile. "Right now we officially do not have a gallery program. There has been a little debate in the company about whether a gallery is a viable vehicle"

PHOTO : Pergament's Rooms 'N Lights was the first store to test a Sauder gallery program. The gallery was added to the pictured assortment shortly after the grand opening.