Views > final thoughts S Cuttlebutt Advertising


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It was interesting picking up on the mood and discovering what is most concerning the sector’s business owners as we career towards Christmas peak trading time. That’s one of the great things about face-to-face discussion as opposed to online networking; people tend to be less guarded in (off-the-record) conversation and are therefore much more likely to share their views.


Some I caught up with at ECMOD were happy to release snippets about their current trading; a good number are doing remarkably well, I must say. Whether that is down to character type—glass always half full rather than half empty—it is hard to say as there were chats with some who would only reveal that they were “doing as well as can be expected” and who were subdued rather than excited about current trading opportunities. There was certainly nervousness about the increasing cost of cotton and other imports, which will have to be passed on and the impact that the imminent hike in VAT would have on customers’ propensity to buy. Many were also deeply concerned about the, then impending, government announcements on spending cuts and what impact they might have. Concern was not merely on the effect cuts would have on customers but also on the additional tax burdens likely to be placed on middle and senior management employees of sector businesses. One enlightened business owner said she was now actively recruiting senior-level people on a part- time basis as she had found that many who had children could actually be better off after tax, deductions and childcare costs were taken into account. She was also finding that many potential recruits with exceptional experience to bring to her business welcomed the opportunity to continue their careers at the same level without sacrificing family time. This also, she believed, would lead to her having a truly flexible workforce that could be called upon to input additional hours when really needed. In another conversation, one business owner revealed that he had halved his total workforce over the past two years virtue of implementing a new IT solution in place of in-house developed systems and by outsourcing catalogue and website design. Based in a rural area and keen to contribute to the local economy, he had originally attempted to have all work conducted in-house by his own employees. This strategy, whilst commendable, had significantly reduced the profitability of the business which was carrying way too much overhead. It took an external consultant to help steer this business onto a profitable path and one who, incidentally, has since worked with half a dozen other rural home shopping businesses with similar issues. Interestingly this is where CatEx steps in, as for many of its smaller and less experienced member businesses it provides access to others who have experienced similar dilemmas. There were many positive comments fielded about CatEx and its growing


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importance to businesses. One thing you can always count on at ECMOD is the “never say die” attitude of most who attend. They are among the most active businesses in the sector and largely represented at director level which is the noticeable difference between the ECMOD event and others. Most talk at ECMOD was of finding ways to achieve more from the resources you already have and of trawling the market for the very best deals on essentials like print, bulk postage and parcel delivery. Inspired by Kevin Hillstrom, many were also reevaluating how they manage, mine and deploy their customer databases. It matters not how many years’ experience anyone has as there is always someone out there who is doing a better job and those open and receptive to new ideas never stop learning.


Wishing you all an outstanding Christmas season on behalf of our team! s-cuttlebutt@catalog-biz.com


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