2016 WAS A GREAT YEAR FOR DIY RETAIL

The holiday season is upon us, and how DIY retail will fare remains to be seen, but 2016 by most accounts has been a great year for DIY retail. The North American Retail Hardware Association (NRHA) is estimating industry growth for 2016 to end at 5.8%. The Home Improvement Research Institute (HIRI) is estimating a little higher, at 6%. The US Census Bureau reports home improvement industry sales through September at 6.7% growth over 2015.

Building materials and home improvement retail sales are 3 to 1 higher than overall retail sales increases for this year.

What has led to the success, and which areas in the DIY space have seen the best results?

Most economists agree that the renewed housing market seen in 2016 will continue into 2017. Add to that higher consumer confidence rates, multi-family housing construction has led to higher sales at home centers and lumber dealers. Remodeling projects and big-ticket purchases are stronger. Big ticket items, such as appliances, have seen the biggest sales uptick in the segment.

Accelerated Analytics DIY customers, using their retailer POS data to analyze sales and inventory, are experiencing the same trends. Across the Accelerated Analytics customer index, June and July showed poor results, followed by an improving August and strong September. 20% of Accelerated Analytics customers’ sales tickets are big ticket items, over $900 per sale. These items were identified as appliances and other expensive items, along with supporting/supplemental products.

The NHRA is predicting 2017 sales to continue this trend and that home improvement product sales should continue to outpace overall retail sales in 2017, anticipating DIY industry growth in the range of 5%.

For more industry stats and observations, download the Accelerated Analytics Retail Industry Briefing Book, which is a monthly publication of key retail industry trends, published to over 7,000 subscribers per month.

Sources: Accelerated Analytics, Hardwareretailing.com

ACCELERATED ANALYTICS CUSTOMER STONER CAR CARE STEPS ON THE GAS

Exciting customer news: Stoner Car Care unveiled their NEW Aston Martin Race Car at AAPEX 2016 earlier this month!       

 

ACCELERATED ANALYTICS LUXURY FRAGRANCE VENDORS POISED TO GROW 5.9% BY 2026

Future Market Insights released a report today that estimates the global perfume market is estimated to reach $39.67 billion by the end of this year, and expects growth of this segment of 5.9% over the next ten years. The firm looked at several Accelerated Analytics beauty and fragrance companies for its report, including Estee Lauder Companies, LVMH, Coty Inc., L’Oreal International, Elizabeth Arden Inc., Shiseido Co. Ltd., Puig and Parlux/Perfumania Holdings Inc.

The reports found that demand is being bolstered by the millennial consumer segment, as well as increased online retail strategies from these companies. Female fragrances are leading the increase, with year-over-year increases from 4-5.2% over 2015 to 2026. While online retailing is the most attractive shopping means to this segment of consumers, in-store remains 80.5% of the market share, due to the personal and olfactory nature of fragrance marketing.

Millennials are drawn to products that have natural ingredients. Fragrance vendors are offering more “Eau Fraiche” (alcohol free) products.

The Western Europe market is the largest consumer, and expected growth consumer, of fragrance products, followed by North America.

To get more retail insights from the Accelerated Analytics team, register for our (free) monthly Retail Industry Briefing Book here.

Source: Luxury Daily

WHICH ACCELERATED ANALYTICS CUSTOMER IS ‘POPPING UP’ IN NEW YORK? VERA BRADLEY!

Vera Bradley has plans to open a pop-up shop in NYC, replacing a shop occupied by Kate Spade through the end of last May. Opening in September, the pop-up shop will be 2,700 square feet over 2 stories and will carry the entire Vera Bradley collection. The store will also be the grand debut of Vera Bradley’s redesigned logo and store concept.

The store is geared toward an omni-channel customer experience, with interactive touchscreens allowing customers to participate in the “It’s Good to be a Girl” campaign over social media. Three digital wall displays will display virtual patterns. A kiosk in store will open shopping on VeraBradley.com.

“We are thrilled to open our first Vera Bradley store in New York City," said Robert Wallstrom, CEO, Vera Bradley, Fort Wayne, Ind. "We look forward to showcasing our iconic collections and signature in-store experience to both the local community and tourists.”

Accelerated Analytics has worked with Vera Bradley to provide POS sales and inventory reporting and analysis for their key retailer accounts and independent specialty retailers since 2013. 

Source: Chain Store Age

Build vs. Buy: Outsourcing your POS data-reporting and analytics is faster, easier and less expensive than building an in-house solution

Retail POS data holds the key to understanding how your products are performing at a store level. But it can be a daunting task, not to mention a drain on resources, to gather, analyze and report on EDI 852 and POS data from all of your retailers. Our newest infographic compares building an in-house solution to outsourcing your POS data-reporting an analytics. While there are beneifts to each approach, outsourcing the solution is faster, easier and less expensive. Complete the form below to request our FREE infographic!

 

NORDSTOM IS RANKED FAVORITE RETAILER IN RECENT SURVEY

A survey of over 5,700 consumers found that Nordstrom ranked first among retailers in customer satisfaction. It specifically ranked highest scores for atmosphere, checkout speed and finding the correct size/product the customer was looking for. One in five customers surveyed indicated they were dissatisfied in general with their fashion retail experience across all retailers. 40% of these customers indicated that the sales experience was very important to them, and that less than half of them were approached by a sales associate, which was key to their satisfaction. Nordstrom’s sales associates assisted customers the most and received the highest satisfaction scores.

Coming in behind Nordstrom were Marshalls, H&M, Ross, Kohl’s and Macy’s.

With merchandise selection and ease of finding items and size selection the top of customers’ needs, retailers and vendors recognize the importance of partnering to share point of sale and inventory data in order to optimize store assortments. Many vendors, such as Brahmin Leather, Anastasia Beaute and The Sak, utilize Accelerated Analytics to monitor and act on inventory levels and customer buying patterns in Nordstrom and other retailers to maximize their effectiveness in this area.

Source: Chain Store Age

Accelerated Analytics Congratulates Customer Vera Bradley on Sharing its Best Quarterly Results in Nearly 5 Years in Q2 2015

Vera Bradley enjoyed its best quarterly results in nearly five years, beating analysts’ expectations in Q2 2015.  Analysts predicted an 11-cent share profit, which Vera Bradley exceeded with a 15-cent share profit, and saw its sales increase 1.5 percent to $120.7 million.

The company expects profits this year to land between 72 and 78 cents per share, well beyond expectations of 66 cents.

The retailer’s strategy is focused on luring more shoppers into its brick-and-mortar mall storefronts and increasing consumer attention on its brand.

Vera Bradley has been a customer of Accelerated Analytics since 2013, utilizing our POS and 852 sales and inventory reporting to drive sales and optimize inventory levels at many of its department store retailers.

FOSSIL GROUP EXECUTIVE MOVES TO VERA BRADLEY, INC., AS CMO

Vera Bradley, Inc., has hired Theresa Palermo from Fossil to be its new Chief Marketing Officer. Ms. Palermo will start at Vera Bradley on June 22.

"Theresa comes to Vera Bradley with an accomplished retail marketing background," said Vera Bradley CEO Robert Wallstrom. "She has a terrific blend of creative and analytical skills and a solid track record of building brands, engaging consumers, and driving sales through designing and executing comprehensive marketing programs. Marketing is a key focus for Vera Bradley as we work to create excitement around our brand and introduce consumers to our myriad of new products. We are anxious for Theresa to get started." 

As CMO, Palermo will be responsible for marketing strategies and initiatives that build brand awareness and revenue growth across all of Vera Bradley’s product channels.

Palermo was VP, Global Marketing and PR for Fossil Group. Prior to Fossil, she held key marketing roles with Collective Brands, The Timberland Company and the J.Jill Group.

Vera Bradley, Inc. designs women’s handbags and accessories, luggage and travel items, eyewear, stationery, gifts and baby products.

Both Fossil Group and Vera Bradley, Inc. are customers of Accelerated Analytics, using their POS and Inventory analytics and reporting tools to manage stock levels, store performance, sell thru and sales activity.

Source: Retailing Today 

Accelerated Analytics Visits it's Customer, Swarovski, Flagship Store in Las Vegas

Accelerated Analytics was proud to visit Swarovski’s flagship store in Las Vegas this week. Swarovski is a customer of Accelerated Analytics, obtaining POS sales and inventory data and analytics for its retailer partners. Analytics include sales and inventory levels, out of stock, sales to stock ratios, sell thru percent and more. Accelerated Analytics was in town participating in the National Hardware Show convention, visiting its customers who sell into Home Depot, Lowe’s and other DIY stores.

Swarovski is the centerpiece of Las Vegas’ newest retail destination, Grand Bazaar Shops. The store has limited edition items such as crystallized Beats Headphones and black and pink skulls. Inside the store is a large video screen with scenes from exotic bazaars, alongside specially crafted panels as platforms to display their jewelry and décor.

Outside, the store is designed to look like a cut crystal. Towering above the store is a 14 foot diameter starburst made of 911 custom-cut Swarovski crystals. The tower puts on a three minute light show every night at midnight, choreographed to music.

CONSUMER SATISFACTION WITH RETAIL IS ON A DECLINE

The American Consumer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) reports that consumer satisfaction with retail is on the decline for the first time in four years.

The ACSI report states brick-and-mortar customer satisfaction fell flat or weakened, while Internet retail is up from last year. By category, overall satisfaction with department and discount stores stayed flat at 77, while the gap between best- and worst-ranked companies grew. Nordstrom was the top rated, gaining 4% to 86. They are followed by Dillard’s (81), Kohl’s (-1% to 80) and Macy’s (79). Walmart dropped 4% to 68 and is at the bottom of the category behind Target (+4% to 80), Meijer (78) and Sears (-5% to 73).

Among home improvement chains, Lowe’s rated best at 81, while Home Depot falls to the category’s bottom dropping 4% to 76.

Amazon remains at the top of the Internet sector, at 86. Netflix improved for the third straight year gaining 3% to 81. Overstock and eBay both dropped to 77 and 79, respectively.

The ACSI is a national economic indicator of customer evaluations of the quality of products and services available to household consumers in the US. The ACSI uses data from 70,000 customers annually for measuring satisfaction with more than 230 companies in 47 industries.

Resource: Retailing Today

FOSSIL LOOKS AHEAD TO 2015 – ADDS KATE SPADE WATCHES TO BRAND

Despite disappointing end of 2014 sales, Fossil is focused on the future, announcing Tuesday that it has reached a ten year licensing agreement with Kate Spade, assuming its existing watch business.

Fossil CEO Kosta Kartsotis called the agreement, “yet another great example of our ability to capitalize on lifestyle brands that are poised for global expansion.” The company already has partnerships with brands like Giorgio Armani, Michael Kors, Tory Burch and Emporio Armani Swiss.

Sales in 2014 were flat at $1.07 billion, missing their estimate of $1.12 billion.  Best known for its watches, this segment pulled in more than three quarters of the company’s total revenue. Jewelry sales increased but only accounted for $93 million of the total revenue.

The company is forecasting a sales decline of 5.5%-7.5% in the first quarter of 2015. “We are not entirely satisfied with our fourth quarter performance and begin 2015 intensely focused on taking advantage of the many opportunities available to us to drive future growth,” said Kartsotis.

Resource: Forbes

Using Accelerated Analytics® with EDI 852 Data

Electronic data interchange (EDI), specifically EDI 852 sales data, is a valuable resource for vendors. Unfortunately, without the proper tools, the data can be difficult to work with and analyze. That is why we created the Accelerated Analytics® POS and EDI 852 data analysis service. We remove all the manual data work and provide you with item and store level reports. Our pre-configured reports provide on-hand, sales and sell-thru for each of your retail partners.

EDI 852 product activity data, based on point of sale (POS) transactions and transmitted via EDI 852, is the backbone of a successful vendor managed inventory program. Unfortunately, the vendors we've spoken to are frustrated by what they perceive as an overwhelming amount of point of sale data, because they don't have the tools to analyze and report. Sending data via EDI 852 to suppliers simply does not translate into an optimized supply chain. Retailers are frustrated with suppliers because they cannot actively participate in vendor managed inventory and sales promotion without the data. It’s a no-win for both sides and a huge lost opportunity.

Case Study A vendor customer of Accelerated Analytics® who supplies to a large retailer,  was faced with the difficulty of analyzing EDI 852 on their items from over 1,800 stores. The data would arrive on Sunday night, which they would translate into a spreadsheet, and then begin to identify slow selling stores and stores in a stock-out situation. The analysis was complex and took about 20 hours of administrative time each week. Worst of all, they have a dozen retail customers that were also offering to send EDI 852 data, but they didn't have the time to analyze that much data. They knew they were missing valuable sales, but they did not have any way to identify the problem stores and communicate with their buyers. They then engaged the Accelerated Analytics® service. Our team set up a custom database in our hosted data center and began translating the EDI 852 data and loading it into our reporting tools. Within two weeks, the vendor had customized reports by item and store showing units sales and on-hand position. From these reports, they were able to quickly determine which stores were causing the lost sales. Using our simple reports, they scheduled a meeting with their buyer. It was a totally new experience for both the buyer and the vendor because they had quantitative reports isolating the problems stores. Together, they determined that a 1,200 store blanket order was the solution. It was the vendors largest order to date, and without Accelerated Analytics®, they would have never been able to show the buyer where the problems were. The vendor estimates our reports increased their sales by over $5 million dollars in less than one month.

Accelerated Analytics® is a comprehensive,  outsourced service. No matter how large or small your IT department is, our service will eliminate the headache of EDI 852 data analysis and provide the reports you need to increase sell-thru and in-stock. Our on boarding process is simple and we already cover over 50 retailers. 

Compelled to blog

Hello.  Nearly three years ago I started a technology service organization called Accelerated Analytics (www.acceleratedanalytics.com) with a simple mission....help organizations better use the data they have in their computer systems to drive business success.  To accomplish this objective, I designed and am currently seeking a patent on a software application, for retailers to send point of sale and inventory data to their vendors.  This data sharing process has been growing in popularity in the last ten years as organizations like VICS, AMR Research, Harvard Business Review, and many others have been educating retailers and vendors on the benefits of close collaboration.  As I have traveled and met with various retail executives, I have been disappointed by how little collaboration is actually occurring.

So, I have felt compelled to setup my own little area in the blogosphere to educate, excite, and hopefully encourage retailers and their vendors to take advantage of this tremendous opportunity.  Stay tuned... I plan to chronicle the successes of as many organizations as I can.  I hope many of you will contribute, so together we can all drive more collaborative success.