Coach's Corner: Get Credit for the Problem-Solving Services Your Staff Provides

February 17, 2020   by HFBusiness Staff in Business Strategy, Industry   

This is the same whether it is a store where what you see is what you can get or one that features endless customization of the products it has available. Granted, the task is more involved in the latter situation, but the basic function is the same – determine the need and provide a solution for it that fits the customer’s look, feel and budgetary considerations.

In essence, we must be problem solvers first and then use our selling/design skills to put the package together. It just does not work to do it the other way around, because if we start selling without first knowing what issues our customer is trying to solve, we will usually fail. Therefore, while most of us look at what we do as primarily a product sales function, in reality we are very much in the business of selling a much-needed service that uses our products to provide the final solutions to our customer’s needs and wants for their home. We need to understand that the act of problem solving is a service, not a product.

The reason this is important is that even though they are similar, product-based businesses are different from service-based businesses in some very important ways. Certainly, both involve customer interaction as part of a process that delivers a result the individual is looking for. However, a product business sells something that the customer can see, feel and touch. I am referring to tangible, physical items that when encountered by the customer can greatly influence the buying decision. We make a great effort in our stores and online to present our products in a way that enables the consumer to visualize them in their own house, which encourages our visitors to want to own them.

We also present features and benefits to answer questions the customer may have to help them better understand the product and assist them in their buying decision. In a service business, the “product” is the value provided by the intangible skills, expertise and time the provider spends delivering the results a buyer wants. In order to sell a service, it is critical that the target audience understands what makes that service valuable to them and why your staff is able to consistently provide it. In many cases, selling a service also requires a somewhat more trusting relationship with prospective clients than selling products does. Being able to get the point across clearly that one size does not fit all, and that each person gets individual, customized solutions adds a great deal of value.

Another difference is that products are mostly viewed as returnable if they don’t satisfy, while services are seen as “non-returnable”. You may get a refund, but the time and effort spent has basically been wasted. Therefore, when someone buys a service, it is the expectation of getting the results they want that really closes the deal. Since a person buying a service is paying for a desired outcome, it is critical to focus on the result of the effort in our selling process!

Both of these businesses actually have the same goal of customer gratification they just use different vehicles to get there. In a furniture store it is absolutely critical that they work hand-in-hand on the sales floor. The issue I see is that we often focus heavily on the product selling side of what we do in many important areas of our daily activities and business planning processes. Certainly, any selling system we use in our stores should be aimed at ultimately providing the problem-solving service addressed above, since that is the desired result we need to have for that critical aspect of our business.

In addition, most stores work hard to maintain delivery and customer care departments that solve problems every day for their customers. However, I believe that many furniture stores could do a better job understanding the value of the problem-solving service they provide to customers and find ways to improve how they sell and market it to their target audience.

Here are a few ideas that may help get you started thinking about better ways to sell and market the valuable problem-solving service you provide in your store:

• In a service-based business, your people and what they do are the product. So, it makes sense to sell them and the importance of their contribution, as much as you sell the value of your actual merchandise. You should develop a features and benefits story to tell about your staff, from your salespeople through the delivery staff. Potential customers need to view them as reliable and trustworthy in order to want to do business with your store.
• As stated earlier, service businesses are very relationship based. Therefore, it is important to let people get to know your staff and build some initial rapport with them. It is really common sense, but whatever you can do to connect your target audience to your staff such as online biographies and picture boards at the entrance will enhance your ability to make them want to work with you.
• Since you are providing solutions for your customer’s needs, it is important to show that you understand what their needs are and that you can offer solutions to solve their problems. Prospects should see you as a resource they can rely on to deliver the total results they seek. Testimonials from clients, design articles/essays from staff members and picture boards of successful projects are a great way to get this point across on your sales floor and website.
• Keep in mind it is not the actual service that the customer really cares about, it is the result it delivers when completed that truly matters. What is going to happen is more important than how it will happen and the way the effort will help them is really the critical issue. So, emphasize the results you can deliver more than the process to get them. Showing them how much their life can be improved as a result of being happier with their home is a great way to do this.
• Remember that the service you are providing a client is intangible. It can’t be returned and their investment in time cannot be reimbursed. Emphasizing that your design assistance is complementary and part of the total package you provide with the products they purchase can eliminate these issues by reducing any perceived risk involved.
• Your advertising, marketing and online efforts should strive to create an experience that reflects what your service will provide to the client. You need to identify the issues they expect to run into while creating their dream room and show that your service will solve their problems.
• Many of your competitors do not offer the services you provide, so use this as an advantage in your market. Online venders, membership warehouses, many discount stores and major chains like Target or Ikea for the most part do not have staff to deliver the total experience you can. Take advantage of this in all of your marketing efforts to separate yourself from the pack and add value to the relationship you offer prospective customers!
• Make sure all of your efforts answer the important questions your target audience will have, like: What services do you offer? Why are they important to me? What potential problems will they solve? What other benefits will they provide? What does it cost and what should I expect?
• Be sure to emphasize that you provide one-stop shopping for your products. Using the services you offer, customers will save time and money by not having to get outside help to complete their projects. Your staff members are experts on the merchandise you carry, and they will provide all the assistance needed to create solutions to any problems.
• Most service companies have found that email, website and social media marketing efforts work best to generate interest from their targeted consumer segments. Having your design staff post pictures of completed projects and testimonials from highly satisfied clients, creates a very powerful message about your ability to solve problems and deliver results. It is also extremely important to gather and post positive Facebook, Google and Yelp reviews both online and in your ads, since this provides support for your “we can do it” message!

Don’t take what your staff does and the valuable services they provide to your customers for granted. Make them a focal point for some of your marketing efforts and get credit for the difference they can make in your customers total experience with your company. I hope this helps you get started.

Rise & Shine

July 31, 2019   by HFBusiness Staff in Business Strategy, Industry   

The category is stable and growing along with consumer confidence, which gives retailers an added boost when presenting their merchandise on the sales floor. Based on a FurnitureCore industry model developed by Impact Consulting Services, parent company to Home Furnishings Business, research shows that the category is off to a good start for 2019, growing $.03 billion in the first quarter 2019 over the first quarter 2018 alone. As you may guess, when polled on which bedroom furniture piece attracted the consumer most during their shopping experience, 61.54% of consumers reported that a bed drew them in, followed by dresser at 16.45%, night stand at 4.49%, chest at 3.21%, and armoire at 1.92%. 12.39% reported ‘other.’ But how are manufacturers shaping the category and moving it forward?

Take Taylor King, for example. They have taken customization to the next level by including many options in the starting price of their products at the retail level, making it easier for retail sales associates to confidently discuss options with the consumer. Del Starnes, president, says, “Ease-of-ordering tear sheets further simplify the process and eliminate confusion in the ordering process. Simply put, Taylor Made Beds are successful because of these factors— unlimited styling options, impeccable quality, availability in our expansive offering of fabrics and leathers, and ease of pricing and ordering.”

Another great model for the category is Bramble, who has tackled the growing industry concern of increased tariffs and sourcing at its core while keeping customization and price awareness on the table. Says Rob Bramble, owner, "Since the quota came into force, which has now been compounded by the tariffs, retailers are having significant issues sourcing well priced, great looking bedroom groups. We at Bramble are perfectly positioned to solve their bedroom needs. Building only from solid mahogany in our own facility means that rather than rushing to find new suppliers or settle for product that does not match the look or quality of our other offerings, we can continue to provide high quality bedroom groups at a superb value. Whether our customers are buying from our extensive Quick Ship collection or specifying any of our 100 finishes on custom or container orders, we manage the process from start to finish. We are perfectly placed to capitalize on the opportunities in this category and deliver great margins for our customers."  

Other manufacturers are modernizing the bedroom by adding tech friendly touches with the addition of charging stations and lights to nightstands and other pieces. The bedroom is now the place where we go to tuck ourselves in at night with our phones on the charger while we stream our favorite Netflix shows, peruse emails, or finish up other items from our day until we fall asleep. Based on the same FurnitureCore study, when consumers were polled in activities that occur in the bedroom, 75.85% of consumers reported watching T.V., 75.64% read in bed, 45.51% continue to work on the computer, 26.92% pay bills, 13.89% continue school work, and 18.80% continue work brought home from the office (multiple answers allowed). It’s no small wonder these advances in technology have crept into the bedroom with more to come, no doubt. So rest easy, the category is evolving and is on the rise!

Coach's Corner: Some Words of Wisdom About How to Be Successful

July 11, 2019   by HFBusiness Staff in Business Strategy, Industry   

This year, I decided to take a similar approach and present some ideas about how we can be more successful both as leaders and individuals from an expert in that area, the great Zig Ziglar. He was truly one of the most gifted teachers and trainers we have ever seen, and his central message almost always dealt with helping people succeed at whatever they try to do. He made everyone he touched better for the time they spent listening to him speak. Today we have the ability to search for him on YouTube and get hours of wonderful exposure to his wisdom and wit.

I had the opportunity to see him live along with General Schwarzkopf and other great speakers at the “Success 1993 Seminar,” my boss took all of his direct reports that year. His message still rings as strong and true today as it did then, so I have decided to share some of the main points he made from my notes of that event. I have often used his powerful and thought-provoking statements as topics for training sessions, sales meetings and other presentations. They never fail to get the listener’s attention and elevate their ability to better understand what it takes to be successful in their life. Perhaps they will make a difference for you and the people you lead.

Here is what Zig had to say that day 25 years ago with my comments about what I think it means in our lives:

• Success is a matter of character – Claim the qualities you want to have as yours, talk to yourself about success and you will succeed. At the center of any successful effort are the attributes of positive attitude and strong commitment, which are core elements of character. Create a vision of what you want to be, so you can plan a path to where we want to go, then coach yourself along the way.
• The choices you make in life are what is important. But don’t give up. Only less than 2 percent of scholarships in the U.S. go to athletes. The number one reason people fail is not the choices they make, but the fact that they give up. The choices you make are critical at every turn in your life but giving up is the real killer.
• Where you start does not matter, it is where you want to go that really matters. How often have you heard a success story about someone that rose above a tough early life to achieve great things? Those people found a way to gain strength and determination from their situation that created an attitude, commitment and vision to succeed. Instead of a negative they turned it into a positive that drove them down their personal path to the future they desired.
• The way you see the future is what is most important. Your personal vision of what the future holds has far more impact on what will actually happen to you than anyone else’s. So, do not be overly worried or influenced by what others say will happen. Be true to yourself and your perception of your future.
• Do not let the economy or the media determine or dictate your success. News about the economy and opinions about the state of the world put forth by our media pundits or politicians have become some of the major negativity drivers we have today in our society. We are constantly bombarded by bad news, plus visions of doom and gloom today. Social media in particular tends to cause a great deal of not very positive interactions or opinions to become mainstream topics of conversation. Successful people can tune out these distractions and stay true to their course.
• How you view yourself is important, do not blame others – If I chose to overeat, I chose to be fat. This one is critical because it is how we perceive ourselves that drives most of our decisions, which in turn controls how we behave. This self-image is the key factor in our view of the world and can lead us to success or failure. Strong people succeed by being honest with themselves and weaker ones fail because they lie to themselves. What you see is what you get!
• Plan, prepare and expect, because what you put in your mind will most likely happen. This simple truth is central to every great performance we ever see or produce. No artist, athlete, businessperson or musician succeeds without first creating a plan to achieve the result they want, getting themselves properly prepared to execute their plan and then visualizing/believing they will achieve the outcome they want throughout the process. You must have all three ingredients to make it happen.
• Increased vocabulary = Increased I.Q. This has proven to be the case. Words are how we express ourselves and the more of them we know and properly understand, the better we can think and the more able we are to communicate our thoughts to others. They are the most important tool we have in life and we need all we can fit in our toolbox to be as successful as we can be.
• You must value and demonstrate commitment in order to succeed. Make a list of what you want to do then do it without fail. Lots of people make to do lists that are never completed because they lack the strength of commitment to get it done. Don’t tell yourself or others you are going to do something and then not do it. Here he used his famous analogy about the Kamikaze pilot about to leave on his 39^th mission – was he really committed?
• Wisdom is the correct use of knowledge. Many people gain a great deal of knowledge in life but fail to demonstrate wisdom because they don’t consistently apply what they know to what they do. Having a strong connection between what you have learned and the actions you take or tell others to take is truly the key to having wisdom.
• You must have the courage to implement wisdom. As an extension of the above point, the reason people sometimes have knowledge but do not do wise things is because they lack the courage to act on what they know to be true. This is a big reason why many managers and leaders fail – they would rather be liked than take the tough actions that need to be done. Ultimately, they end up looking foolish instead of wise.
• The size of your hope is your real limitation. What a great way to say the obvious. Those who have the most hope, can dream the biggest dreams and as a result create much more positive results than those that have lost hope. As Winston Churchill famously said: “Never give up!”
• Most people with problems are in some sort of denial. Everyone encounters problems as they go through life. Successful people deal with them and move on while others deny they exist or do not focus on solving them, allowing them to be dragged down by issues that should have been eliminated. You must face your problems, not run from them.
• The more you express gratitude, the more you will have to be grateful for. Be thankful for the opportunities you have. Get in the habit of reflecting on the good things in your life instead of dwelling on the bad. You will find far more positive than negative if you do and as a result create more successful outcomes for which to be grateful.
• You most often find what you are looking for. Another basic truism from Zig. Some people don’t know what they are looking for, so they will certainly fail to find it. Others know what they want but fail to look hard enough for it. Having the vision of what you want in mind as you search for it, will most likely help lead you to it.
• The gift of encouragement is one of the greatest you can give – spread it around. One of the things that great leaders do is consistently motivate people to succeed and the main tool they use on a daily basis to get that done is encouragement. It is the most critical element in keeping people focused and moving in the right direction. It is also what helps people achieve results that they themselves might not have thought where possible. It is the grease that keeps the wheels going around in any team effort – use it liberally. Don’t forget to encourage yourself too.
• Motivation is the spark that lights the fire of knowledge. I have often written and spoken about the WIIFM principle in human interaction. If you do not answer the question “What is in it for me?” for those you are leading, they will not be motivated to achieve the results you want. That motivation creates the need for knowledge and drives people to seek it out. Once they have it, getting them to use it, thus exhibiting wisdom, will lead to a successful effort far more often than not.

I hope I have done Zig justice with my interpretation of his message here. If you or your staff want to have productive downtime, I highly recommend you search out online videos of his presentations and watch them. Every one of them that I have seen has been well worth the time I took to view it.

Good luck -on your road to success!

What Sells: Youth Furniture: Room for Growth

July 11, 2019   by HFBusiness Staff in Business Strategy, Industry   

All of this is great news for the retailers selling shopper savvy parents and grandparents who may initially balk at the idea of spending hundreds of dollars toward youth furniture they worry their child will simply outgrow. The category has been viewed as home essentials that unfortunately would have to endure the wear and tear of childhood just to be sold at a garage sale or donated to make room for life’s next steps. Luckily, due to design shifts and a new generation (Millennials) emerging into the furniture buying market, manufacturers are taking note of the growing demand of youth furniture and are finding unique ways to make the category more appealing by guaranteeing longevity and storage solutions for small spaces.

According to Lina Racaniello, VP marketing & ecommerce at Dorel Living, “We are starting to see more online interest and growth in the youth category as Millennials enter into the parenting stage of life. More specifically, new parents are looking for quality furniture pieces online, which reflect a modern aesthetic at an affordable price. Our Little Seeds collection fits perfectly into this growing customer demand. Our motto is that it all starts with a seed, and just as your little ones grow, their furniture can grow with them. Our furniture is created with quality and style in mind that can last throughout different growing phases. As small space living becomes the norm, we are constantly looking for clever ways to incorporate additional storage or sleeping space without sacrificing quality and price.”

Other manufacturers are ensuring endurance that will stand up to the stresses of childhood and beyond. Scott Sullens, VP of sales and youth merchandising at Legacy Classic, says, "When buying better end youth product, customers are looking for longevity.  They want to know that when their child leaves the house, they will have furniture that also works as a guest bedroom. We are designing product that is relevant for today’s consumer with designs that transcends age.”

According to research based on a FurnitureCore industry model developed by Impact Consulting Services, parent company to Home Furnishings Business, when consumers were polled on their attitude towards a home furnishings purchase for a child’s room, an overwhelming majority of 69.7% reported that they furnished the room with stylish, good quality furniture to last for years to come. Only 21.21% of these consumers stated that they would not put much money into a child’s room due to destructive tendencies of young children. Another 9.09% said that their priorities where in other rooms within their home.

Honing in further on the trends surrounding the youth category, the same study found that over 55.6% of consumers hoped their youth furniture purchases would someday be used in a spare bedroom or their child’s first apartment. Only 33.3% purchased furniture for the sole use during childhood only, and 11.1% listed ‘Other’ as a response. Of these purchases, the favored style of youth furniture is Traditional, leading the pack with 66.67%. Contemporary was also popular at 25.93%, and Mission and Theme tied at 3.7%.

Retailers and retail sales associates, it is time to be confident in merchandising and selling the youth category. Watch your category sales grow!

TAKE FIVE: ALEX SHUFORD

January 19, 2018   by Jane Chero in Business Strategy, Industry   

The early 21^st century hasn’t been kind to many of the furniture industry’s legacy brands, but Century Furniture has survived and even thrived despite recessions, a flood of low-cost imports and a tidal wave of e-commerce players.

Now positioned as the largest producer in the high-end segment of the market, the company is run by the third generation of the founding Shuford family – a group that wants to do more than just protect the brand and preserve the assets.

Company president Alex Shuford III says he and his siblings, in fact, are anything but protectionists, and they have the support of their father, Alex Shuford II, who remains Century’s chairman of the board.

The third generation took control of Century in 2013 when Alex II and his children, Nancy Shuford Bledsoe, Comer Shuford Wear, Eliza Shuford Hucks and Alex III acquired the company from CV Industries, another family entity that also owned textile producer Valdese Weavers.

Two years later, the new leadership spearheaded Century’s acquisition of high-end leather upholstery producer Hancock & Moore and upper-end brands Jessica Charles, Randal Allan and Cabot Wrenn. Those companies, along with longtime Century subsidiary Highland House, are now part of the Rock House Farm Family of Brands.

And last year, Century acquired the 200 Steele showroom building in High Point, N.C., where it will open a 40,000-square-foot showroom in April.

Alex Shuford III recently spoke with Larry Thomas, senior business editor of Home Furnishings Business, about the company’s growth strategy, its new showroom, and the challenges of running a family-owned business.

Home Furnishings Business: What is the strategy behind your recent acquisitions? Can we expect to see other acquisitions in the months ahead?

Alex Shuford III: We always keep our eyes on the horizon looking for entities that would be good fits for us. We’re a pretty young ownership and management team, so instead of being protectionists, we’re sort of expansionists. We think the industry needs a little bit of scale, and part of that comes from the regulatory environment…and from the way the operational side of the business works these days.

We think there’s a certain benefit to scale, but then it also tips the other direction if you start to get so big that the people leading the company can’t have their toes in the sawdust. Furniture is such a relationship business that at that point, it tips to the bad side. If you’re really small, you lose the benefits of having enough revenue (to hire) some of these really smart people who keep you from stepping on land mines. If you get too big, then the people who are trying to run it can’t connect with what’s happening at the factory level…and can’t connect on a personal level with the customers. It’s hard for companies in furniture to separate themselves purely on product. A lot of them, like us, separate themselves on a handshake and a history of trust.

One of the things that we’ve kind of make a blood pact in the family is that we’re not turnaround people. We don’t want to buy distressed companies because it takes so much time and energy away from the rest of your business. You might end up fixing the thing you bought, but then you look in the rearview mirror, and the thing you ignored while you were fixing the purchase is now also broken.

HFB: Why was Hancock & Moore a good fit? 

Shuford: It’s a company that shares our values. They have a group of people that we feel like we can help take care of, as well as, or even better than previously. And it’s not a direct overlap to a segment of our own business. It would be silly for us to just buy another Century. They are a like-minded company that allows us to have a slightly different distribution, and makes us better in a product category that we’re not in at all or not in it as well as we could be.

Century sells leather, but Hancock and Moore is the undisputed leader in high-end leather. We shored up that wall of the castle pretty well. That’s a way for us to defend our flank in a big way.

When the owners were selling it, I think they were looking for a safe harbor to put their company. That’s very different than somebody that is motivated by just getting the most money for it. It was more important to them to find a good partnership for the people, than it was to just make the most money.

HFB: What was the rationale for buying the 200 Steele building?

Shuford:  That was a different type of acquisition. It was more about controlling your own fate. It’s a beautiful building. It gave us an opportunity to pick our neighbors, and have the overall property really be reflective of what we’re trying to do at the product level.

If you can get all your brands into one building, then you can set the tone of how the entertaining will go, what kind of customer you’re going to attract, how the docks are going to operate, how the bathrooms are going to be kept clean, and so on. Our customers at the high end are very style and design-focused individuals, and those components within the housing of your brand matter to them.

Our goal is to get 200 Steele to the point where our customer has enough people to see in there … that they say ‘we commit a day to 200 Steele.’ It’s especially important in the inclement weather markets. (Laughs). We want to make sure there’s enough in the building to make them say they can’t skip it.

HFB: What are some of the key features of Century’s new showroom? 

Shuford: It’s about 40,000 square feet, so it’s going to be a little smaller than our previous showroom. But we’re actually kind of excited about that. At Market Square, we had so much space (more than 60,000 square feet) and it was not linear.

Most people come to High Point and schedule their world around one-hour tours. The problem with Century was that during the last 10 minutes of our old one-hour tour, you had to be jogging. So you ended the tour kind of tired and not really remembering what you saw. Now, when people end the tour, they won’t be overfed. They won’t be rushed, we hope.

It used to be that a buyer would come to market, and buy 25 new settings. Now, they might be buying five. So each setting has to do more, and we’ve driven our business around configurability and customization. So instead of just showing yet another bedroom or yet another living room setting, we’re trying to show you a setting and then have a conversation about what it can do in its footprint.

It’s the sales per foot story. It’s the critical number for the modern era. So by shrinking (the showroom), we’re going to be more mindful of doing what we’re talking to our retailers about doing.

HFB: What special challenges does it present when you’re running a successful, well-established family business?

Shuford: The third generation can end up with a couple of characteristics if you’re not careful. They’re either not overly motivated by the monetary success of the business because that piece has been kind of given to them. Or they can get really scared about messing it up.

If they’re not hungry, they get out-maneuvered by more aggressive competitors. And if they get really nervous and scared about messing it up, then they get that decision phobia, and then again, they can get out maneuvered.

I think one of the things we do well as a third generation is that we’re not afraid to risk part of the business. My Dad has been pretty supportive of allowing us to stay entrepreneurial.

My Mom and Dad raised us on a working farm. We grew up mucking stalls and feeding horses after school. And in the summer we were bailing hay. There’s nothing like coming home from school and mucking 20 stalls with a pitchfork. (laughs) So there are no prima donnas in our generation.

HFB: What are your strongest product categories today?

Shuford: Occasional furniture and upholstery are kind of driving the marketplace right now. There are fewer and fewer true case pieces in the home, but there are a lot of tables.

Bedroom and dining room is a little bit slower and a little more price sensitive, and dining room is transforming. The formal dining room is giving way to these multi-purpose rooms. They might have a big table, but if you were to walk into that room anytime of the year except for Thanksgiving or Christmas, you might not see it laid out in the classic dining room way. The table may be against the wall being used as a big console to show off art objects, or it might be used as a big desk where the kids are doing homework.

The other piece of the market that is growing for is the outdoor living room. That has become pretty important to us. It has been a nice piece of growth over the years.

HFB: Is your business with interior designers growing faster than other parts of your business?

Shuford: Over the last six or seven years, it certainly has been an area of strength. But this year, the retail side of our business outpaced the interior design part from a growth standpoint. Both grew, but retail had a little resurgence, which was nice to see. I don’t know what the cause was, frankly. I was a little surprised to see that happen.

The pressure that’s on retail is very acute. Certainly, we’ve had some market share gains based on the programs we have done and some of the turmoil in the vendor ranks. If retailers are a little bit nervous or a little bit apprehensive, sometimes there’s a flight to stability. We may have benefitted from that.