RETAILOBSERVER.COM MAY 2022
6
Moe Lastfogel
moe@retailobserver.com
Moe's Musings Views
Happy Retailing,
S
ometimes I like to go back in our magazine's history to help me clarify my thoughts
for these Musings. Because the following article from 13 years ago strikes me as
something that really nails it about our current state, here's a repost:
At the Las Vegas Market on February 11, 2009, a panel of thought leaders discussed
"2009: The Year in Anticipation" with a large group of designers and retailers during that
Market. The panel featured Mark Cutler of Mark Cutler Design, Katherine Stout of Williams
Sonoma and Jena Hall of aspenhome.
Cutler began by sharing his proactive strategy to try to make his company "recession-
proof." He said, "The slower you get, the busier you have to become and the more energy
you have to put into your business."
Some steps in Cutler's stragegy:
Outsource various positions – reach out to your client base on a regular basis – build
cash reserves – go over P & L statements to determine profit centers – during slower
times, increase hours spent at the office and focus on marketing – plan market outreach
and strategies, including blogging – focus on branding voice mail messages and email
signature lines as well as business correspondence.
Williams Sonoma's Katherine Stout discussed the retailer's successful outreach to the
design community and recommended focusing on the customer and delivering value in a
meaningful way. Her key points:
Do business-to-business outreach – protect and promote your brand – get out there and
promote yourself – look at marketing and see how much you should be investing in print
or internet – focus on your customer and be the best in customer service.
Jena Hall at aspenhome had a large design practice and then fell into furniture design.
Since she joined the company, aspenhome has had many years of progressive growth.
Hall said, "The sun will come up tomorrow, it's going to shine and you should be ready for
it." Hall's key points included:
Cash is King, get reserves – always improve your business skills – continue to develop
brand image and product development – look at the back end of your business and
check out vendors' credit – profit and loss and references – create added value to your
service or products – continue to give back to the community.
The final message from the panel was to take this time as an opportunity to massage
your business, since people are going to spend money on their home, and they're still
entertaining. By knowing your customer and their values, you can change how you think,
take a different perspective and know that the industry will recover and grow.
2022 IS
THE YEAR OF
OPPORTUNITY
Notes from World Market in 2009
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