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August 2010 VOLUME 21, NO.9
Closeouts Jump Start Retail Profits
T
here’s one product segment that’s offering store owners hope in a sluggish retail environment,
and it’s a segment that independent retailers are uniquely positioned to put to good use: closeouts. While big box retailers can’t fi t small quantities of extremely discounted items into a multi-store strategy, single unit sellers have the fl exibility and responsiveness to make closeout products an effective part of their retail strategy. Just askDanny Kole, owner of Kole
Imports. He used this recession to add closeouts to his traditional wholesale import line. “Up until three years ago, we were primarily imports. But as the economy tightened, we realized that there was more of a calling than ever to have closeouts as part of
our product mix,” Kole says. “So we made a really aggressive push into the closeouts arena. Now over 30 percent of our total product line is closeouts. From what used to be two percent, that’s a major shift.” What prompted the shift? Kole
realized that consumer attitudes had changed. “Ten years ago, customers were walking into the store and freely spending money just to buy things,” he says. “Now they are walking into the store and saying, ‘If I don’t fi nd a great deal, I’m not going to buy anything. I’ll go to another store.’” Giving customers great deals requires giving retailers great deals, and that was the driving force behind the move to closeouts for Kole Imports. Converting a browser — cont’d pg. 85
COMPANY
OMPAN SPO
SPOTLIGHT
Sky Gift Wins With Toys & Jewelry S
ky Gift is a company that focuses on both retailing and wholesaling, and
has experienced smashing success with two very different product lines: jewelry and toys. When it comes to jewelry, it’s the Murano glass jewelry, handcrafted in Venice, Italy, that has been a major hit. In toys, an interesting and affordable product from China called, smash balls, has become huge for Sky Gift. There are lots of other items offered by the company, including the Wormie the Worm toy, radio controlled toy vehicles, and the brand new Wander Fly toy.
WHOLESALECENTRAL.com Your direct onlliine resource to over 612,000 products
di d
But Murano jewelry and smash balls are the hottest items by far, according to owner, Fernando Heurta. Sky Gift has been in business for 17
years, starting in shopping malls selling retail. About fi ve years after fi rst starting up, Sky Gift got into the wholesale business. Heurta imports toys from overseas, and Sky Gift is one of the few companies selling authentic Murano product. As for the smash toys, these are little balls that can be thrown, and they will stick to glass or tile. They can change form, — cont’d pg. 98
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