Analysis // Displays
F
or any kitchen and bathroom studio, displays are so much more than fixtures and fittings. They are tactile, interactive sales tools that practically demonstrate knowledge, skill, and aspiration.
But they’re also contentious. While showrooms clearly need them to
sell to clients, suppliers clearly need showrooms to stock them - so who benefits the most from the arrangement? And who, therefore, should cover the cost of them? At one extreme of the debate you have retailers being asked to pay
for the privilege of putting the display in their showroom, and at the other you have retailers believing that suppliers should pay them for the use of their precious showroom space. The reality is, of course, a wide scope of options and variations in
between, but is there a consensus on what the best arrangement is? Is it possible for all parties to get what they want? Many retailers do fundamentally believe that displays should always
be free - it’s the levels of pragmatism and realism that vary. Equally, many feel that while a level of financial investment in displays is not an unreasonable request, it’s a step too far for those suppliers to insist that any agreement includes a prescribed amount of space. From the suppliers’ perspective the motivations are clear - if they’re
trying to build a retail network then free displays are an obvious foot- in-the-door. But for well-established brands, a financial commitment from the retailer is also a commitment of support and sales effort, as is the amount of dedicated space. Ultimately, this is a debate about mutually beneficial loyalty - the
disagreements come when asking who benefits where and how. The vast majority of retailers who firmly believe that displays should
be free are not looking for handouts, on the contrary as far as they’re concerned their showroom space has an intrinsic value that should be acknowledged - it’s their real estate that shouldn’t be free. “While we currently purchase all of our display items at a discounted
rate, we believe that display units should ideally be provided free of charge,” says Emma McLoughlin from Regal Kitchens in Chelmsford. “Those displays showcase our suppliers’ and manufacturers’ products.” Stewart Woodruff
from MBK Design Studio in Kent, shares this
view. “Suppliers should still be giving displays for free, very few do, but they are renting a space in our showroom and with costs of running a showroom going up they need us to promote their brand and so they should be prepared to help us in any way they can.” And it’s not just space, there is a tangible cost to installing or updating
a new display that should, many feel, be factored into any discussion about charges. One retailer, for example, told us that a simple rule of thumb should be that displays are free if they have to fit them, and not if the supplier does it. Lisa Kyme from Ripples London agrees: “If I am working with a supplier and want their product in my showroom then yes, I do expect them to provide the display for free. However, that doesn’t mean that I will take free products from anyone for the sake of it. There is no point having a product on display if it doesn’t sell as it ends up as dead space in a showroom, and zero sales for the supplier. “However, the cost of updating the display doesn’t just mean the
price of the product, there are also fitting costs to be considered as well as other aspects such as new tiling. Add to that the disruption to
Space Assuming everyone agrees on the mutually beneficial financial nature
of the display costs, should a supplier insist on a set amount of space in the showroom for their products? Independent retailers are, by their nature, very proud of their independence and there are few who would happily let brands dictate what their showroom looks like, in fact it’s often given as a reason for rejecting a brand. “I would not work with suppliers who told me how much space I needed to dedicate to their brand as this should, and would be, my choice,” says Tina Riley from Modern Homes in Leamington Spa. “Equally, we have always been quite strong-minded in the products we want to display – we know our market and client base better than the manufacturer and whatever their ‘best-selling’ range happens to be may never be ours.” There is also a school of thought that suggests a brand insisting
on a fixed amount of space doesn’t really understand the way many independent retailers work and how they sell to their clients.
>
If I am working with a supplier and want their product in my showroom then, yes, I do expect them to provide the display for free
Lisa Kyme, Ripples London
"
the showroom, for example we had to close for a week last year when updating the front window display.” And this isn’t simply about taking on new ranges or brands,
disruption can be caused through no fault of the retailer. “A major frustration with some products is discontinuation,” says
Frazer Goodwillie from Billingham Kitchens in Hartlepool. “This is an area where suppliers could be more generous and provide free replacements. Suppliers don’t factor our installation costs into the situation plus it’s also very hard to sell off displays so there can be costs associated with disposal too.”
November 2024
kbbreview
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