Go Back to www.IndependentRetailer.com COVER STORY 2011 Business


Leaders Forecast continued from page 104


bigger ticket item, our four camera system for security, so you can record and view activities online,” Ellington says. “Some stores buy it for themselves, and others buy to resell and install the system.” Even smaller self defense items are selling strongly. “We do re- ally well with automatic knives and assisted knives, as well as our own pepper spray brand, ‘crime halter,’” Ellington notes. One point Ellington does emphasize is the importance of reinvesting in yourself. “We’ll keep doing what we’ve always done; put our profi ts back into the company,” he says. “If you put it back in as much as you can, you grow your money.” Putting his words into action, Ellington already has a plan in place for the New Year. “We’re just going to keep expanding our line. We’ll add in a little extra of what we already carry,” he says. “Self Defense Supply carries 2,200 items in our catalog and we stock 4,000 different products online. We’ll just keep growing.” To that end, SDS recently up-


dated its website. “It’s now more advanced, offering new search techniques and a better search engine,” Ellington says. “Custom- ers can now fi nd merchandise more easily, and there are related products, as well as cross-sells and upsells.” Asked his take on whether the economy is done with its downturn, Ellington is pragmatic. “It’s going to stay as it was for a little while longer. We’re


not quite out of it,” he says. Ven- turing a guess, he adds, “It might turn around later this year.” Yet Ellington is not overly concerned. “We see the recession as just a cyclical dip. I’ve worked here my whole life, since I was eight, so I’ve seen it go up and down before,” he says. One wholesale category that


has weathered the storm better than most is jewelry, and Guy Andrews, owner of Plum Island Silver Company, is a benefi cia- ry. “We carry more than 20,000 different items, so we’re assured of having what


the customer


wants when they want it,” he says. Plum Island sells to a full spectrum of clients, including continued on page 108


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