Planning Back-to-School Merchandising
School’s out and summer officially began a couple weeks ago, but it’s not too early to start thinking about and planning back-to-school
merchandising. Believe it or not, more than one-third of shoppers begin back-to-school shopping by Aug. 1, and by Sept. 1, nearly 60 percent have started their shopping.
To help specialty retailers get started, Joanne Friedrick provides interesting insights into the back-to-school shopper in “Do the Math: There’s Opportunity in Back-to-School Merchandising,” page 18. She also offers an array of new products hitting the market, including lunch boxes and bags, assorted hydration items, and tasty breakfast and lunch treats and beverages for kids. Interestingly, brown-bagging lunch is more about offering kids healthy food than it is about saving money, according to recent research.
And retailers just might find some new and interesting back-to-school items at NY NOW, formerly the New York International Gift Fair in New York’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center and Passenger Ship Terminal Pier 94. Turn to page 24 for a preview of the show and a selection of some of the newest head-turning gourmet products and designs.
We also have a feature on “Saving Space in the Gourmet City Kitchen” by Jennifer White Karp on page 8, to help retailers serving this niche category understand the needs of the urban gourmet and the space constraints that require special design and products to adapt. As a city dweller herself, Jennifer writes this article from an insider’s point of view.
And don’t miss our newest department feature – The Buyer’s Desk, by Joanne Friedrick – which we will include in the publication quarterly. On page 15, Joanne chronicles top new products and trends on the mind of Joan Cook, chief buyer for Now You’re Cooking in Bath, Maine. Serving both a local community and “the cruise ship crowd,” find out how the store delicately balances a wide range of shopper needs with clever buying and merchandising.
Enjoy the read!
Maureen Azzato
Managing Editor, Gourmet Business
mazzato@gourmetbusiness.com