Supplier partnership spurs power apparel - K Mart Corp.'s Auburn Hills, Michigan prototype store women's clothing and lingerie departments

Discount Store News, Feb 1, 1993

Creating a power merchandising approach to apparel in the new Kmart prototype was facilitated by the strong working partnerships that the retailer had forged with its suppliers.

According to senior vice president Don Keeble, Kmart's suppliers had a hand in the specialty-store-type apparel presentation that sets the Auburn Hills, Mich., prototype apart from other discount operations.

"We went to the vendor base and asked them about what they think we ought to do to enhance their product," Keeble told DSN. "Because it is a partnership, we want their opinion about how we can sell more product at the mass merchandising level."

Keeble described the new lingerie department at Auburn Hills as a "perfect example" of that partnership in action. "We went out and talked to several companies we do a lot of business with, magnificent makers, and from their input we were able to come up with what we think is one of the best presentations in lingerie in mass merchandisers."

Intimate apparel occupies a prominent position in the apparel department, right on a main aisle on the inside of the racetrack. The presentation is expanded to include fashion lingerie and basic foundations (Fruit of the Loom bras from Warnaco were added) on hanging fixtures, as well as fragrant bath and skin care products.

"The true test of where you gain the respect of the female shopper is in intimate apparel," continued Keeble. "Because that is where she takes the time away from her busy budget schedule to go and do her own personal shopping. Very rarely do you see a lady running through intimate apparel with a shopping cart full of kids trying to decide what she's going to buy in an area where she buys her most personal items. So we softened it up, changed the color and the design, and added the soaps and oils in the back."

Like the rest of the women's apparel department, the color of the fixturing in the intimate apparel area was changed from the bold red with white lettering of previous Kmart prototypes to a softer, off-white with black lettering. The result, said Keeble, is a "more feminine look to the entire department."

Research conducted for DSN by Leo J. Shapiro & Associates, Chicago, reveals that shoppers at the new Auburn Hills prototype have been won over by the new apparel presentation, which includes other specialty store enhancements such as four-way displays, folded merchandise on light-woodlook tables and a series of specialty boutiques which group related merchandise together in a logical manner. According to the research, shoppers gave higher ratings to women's apparel than to children's clothes, a traditional strength of Kmart. Even shoppers with children under 18 years of age had a higher opinion of the women's apparel department than the children's apparel area. Men's clothes also received a higher rating than children's. With Auburn Hills, Kmart has clearly made a statement in adult clothing.

"The apparel part of our business is extremely important to our future because of the female shopper we are trying to attract in here," said keeble. "We tried to create four things [at Auburn Hills]: Ease of customer shopping, thus the shop concept, denim shops, active-wear and so forth. Second, we tried to create a fashion feel. Third, we emphasized quality. And, fourth, we wanted to make sure that we added value and price."

As in the earlier prototypes, the emphasis at Auburn Hills was on display, not new product. Alterations of merchandise selection appear to be an ongoing effort at Kmart so the story at Auburn Hills is clearly on display and presentation.

"Our buyers have buying just as well for years but they couldn't present it that well, and presentation is a great part of this business," said Keeble.