Inside Out
For those of you who don’t know me, I’m the editor-in-chief of Furniture/Today, sister publication to Casual Living. In that role, I oversee the editorial content of our publication and our Web site, www.furnituretoday.com, I create content for the paper and the Web site, I pen a weekly column, maintain a blog, create the content for an annual Leadership Conference, and try to stay as plugged in as possible to every aspect of the residential furniture business.
Savvy Shoppers
Gaining consumer trust through online reviewsWithout a doubt, today's consumer is more complex than ever. And if we only know a few things about her, we know that she's informed, armed (with information), dangerous, demanding and wants what she wants when she wants it. If you can't deal with her on her terms and timetable, too bad, she'll simply go down the road and find some merchant who can and... Read More
Comments (0)All in the delivery
Amateurs talk about tactics, professionals study logistics. Ever since I was a kid, I enjoyed figuring out how things fit together. Needless to say, I invested countless hours working on jig-saw puzzles trying to make sense out of what initially appeared to be hundreds of disparate parts.While I wish I could say that the hours working on those puzzles prepared me for the aftermath the Great Rec... Read More
Comments (0)Flash sales and Gen Y Luxe on the move
Make no mistake - the Great Recession of 2007 didn't just rewrite the retail play book - it tore it up and tossed it out the window.Case in point. I just read an interesting report from American Express Business Insights (AEBI) that found that even with lingering recession-residue, there appears to be a growing number of consumers with an equally growing appetite for luxury goods.But what's fascin... Read More
Comments (2)2012 IS THE YEAR OF THE NETWORK
Wouldn't it be helpful (especially as we scramble to regain our business equilibrium during this post-recession recovery) if we had a set of guard rails that could keep us safely on the road to profitability?While there's no magic solution, there happens to be a very real, very practical and powerful tool that can literally be as close as one or more of your co-workers.In case you haven't already... Read More
Comments (2)Sky’s the Limit
If two heads are better than one, what happens if you have 350 heads (all with razor-sharp minds) in one room for a couple of days all focused on the same issues?The answer is that you get the best...the best questions, the best ideas, the best solutions and the best thinking.I know this to be true because I saw it a few weeks ago when we hosted our 14th annual Furniture/Today Leadership Conferenc... Read More
Comments (0)Recovery Unresolved
If Charles Dickens was here to write this column, I am fairly certain of two things: It would be better than whatever I wrote, and based on the current state of affairs, he might have been tempted to name it A Tale of Two Stories.And he would have been right, because there really are two concurrent - but very different - stories unfolding, and you should be aware of each of them.One of the stories... Read More
Comments (3)Give retailers what they want with accurate delivery dates, inventory tracking
It's a safe bet that ever since Adam met Eve, men have been trying (with varying degrees of success) to figure out what women really want.And before I get your hopes up, I confess that I don't have an answer, much less the answer. But what I do have to share with you are the findings from a just-released study that I asked our research department to conduct with manufacturers and retailers who are... Read More
Comments (7)Size Matters: Smaller Living Gains Big Impressions
I know you've heard this before, but size matters.No, really. And if you've been watching closely, you've probably noticed that living smaller seems to be looming larger every day.Chalk it up to a recession hangover, changing consumer shopping patterns or a growing need for Americans to attempt to simplify their lives, but from where I sit, conspicuous consumption and the need for things on a gran... Read More
Comments (3)Peer power: Consumers are relying on each other for buying decisions
A study co-released last month by PowerReviews and the e-tailing group, confirmed that consumers have become far more educated, sophisticated and demanding in their purchases as a result of doing more and more research online.The 2011 Social Shopping Study also found that peer-to-peer product reviews are becoming increasingly more important to the consumer's purchasing decisions.If I were a retail... Read More
Comments (2)Rethink logistics to gain or retain business competitiveness
As part of our ongoing mission to bring the industry information that can help it be more profitable, Sandow Media recently held its first Logistics Conference at AmericasMart in Atlanta.Judging by the full house, it was obvious that we were on the money earlier in the year when we identified this topic as being critical enough to warrant a freestanding conference, planned to become an annual even... Read More
Comments (0)Logistics help to navigate the new normal
I've always believed that the mission of any trade publication is to provide the reader with information that can be used to strengthen his or her business. To that end, we've put together a one-day, fact-filled seminar on a topic that has become more important now than ever: logistics.The seminar, themed, "Logistics: The Critical Link to Supply Chain Excellence," is set for June 15 at A... Read More
Comments (2)Discounters feeding value-hungry shoppers
We've all been warned about competitors out to eat our lunch, right? If I told you about a retailer selling six-piece patio sets, double gliders, outdoor chair cushions and toss pillows, solar lights, gas grills, 50-gallon deck boxes, gazebos, fire pits and more, you would probably agree that retailer could fit the bill as a "lunch eater."But what if I tell you that the retailer in ques... Read More
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