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Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
Changing
November 30,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in on December 2012
Considering the economy in recent years, in retrospect 2005 might not have been the best time to start a furniture retail operation, but thats when then-23-year-old Jay Howard launched I.O. Metro, a contemporary leaning retailer based in Northwest Arkansas.
While a lot of home furnishings retailers have closed since then, I.O. Metro has grown to 17 locations across Arkansas, Alabama, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee, Mississippi and Georgia.
Howard, CEO and president, oversees all merchandising and marketing aspects of the company, and has worked hard in product development and sourcing to serve a model that depends largely on private label merchandise the retailer can call its own.
Howard was first inspired to start a furniture retail operation after he found himself frustrated in his own shopping for home furnishings.
I was young and probably naïve, didnt really know that much about the business, but I have a personality that if I get into something Ill make it work, he said.
During the first 12 to 18 months, we were just out doing our own thingit was driven by my desire to start something and a will to succeed.
Even during a slow period for most of the furniture retail business, I.O. Metro has continued to add stores.
We havent had a negative year yet, Howard said. Were a young company, and were still learning the business. I think youth and an entrepreneurial vibe made us innovate.
For example, in the midst of the recession, I.O. Metro introduced a custom upholstery program, which now accounts for 50 percent of its upholstery business.
That alone kept us from having year-over-year negative comps, Howard said.
2012 has seen more of the same at I.O. Metro, which bills itself as A Different Kind of Furniture Store. Plans call for another Dallas location to open in 2013, and the company is looking for real estate to add three to four stores a year moving ahead.
THREE POINT PLAY I.O. Metro looks to build upon that momentum with a three-tier strategy that combines its brick-and-mortar operations with e-commerce capability it launched on its Web site a little over a year ago; and a brand-new catalog that debuted in November.
Business has been particularly good this year, and initial results from the catalog in November are very strong, Howard said. Three things have been very important to us: custom upholstery; nailing down core items and backing those up with additional inventory; and finally, our catalog.
Lou Spagna joined the company this year as chief operating officer, and hes played an integral role a recent logistics restructuring that allows I.O. Metro to ship nationwide in support of its e-commerce and catalog business; and has helped streamline customer service in general.
Consistency across touch points has been key to I.O. Metros approach to brick-and-mortar, online and catalog retailing. The Web site has product icons identifying items as part of its various collections, whose billings include Eco-Metro, Metro Custom, Real Wood and Local Art.
Those same icons identify products both in the stores and within the catalog. Design associates in the stores use the Web site a lot when dealing with customers, so it is also important for the site to offer as much information as possible, as well as appropriate product photography.
I.O. Metro also has an online room planner that customers and designers use to determine how products will fit within their spaces. The Web site is mobile- and tablet-friendly and was designed to respond to whichever device its being viewed on and adjusts itself accordingly.
Right now were using iPads in the store to take people to our Web site, Howard said.
He views e-commerce as strong growth area, but that channel is a ways from meeting eventual expectations.
Were hoping it will account for 15 to 20 percent of our business within the next three years, Howard noted.
REMOTE SERVICE Customer service has been an at times problematic issue for retailers looking to expand their reach through the Internet and catalogs. Earlier this year, I.O. Metro developed a corporate customer service department to serve as the hub for customer issues. Redirecting that function, previously done at the store level, was key in making sure customers receive the attention and information they need for both online and in-store purchases. A personal touch remains key.
Its always much easier to interact with the customer personally, Howard said. If we get an e-mail from a customer, we try to get a call to discuss the issue so youre relating to them on a personal level. The other key is to keep the customer informed. If theres an issue with a product, dont cover it up, and let them know whats going on and what their options are.
The catalog I.O. Metro debuted in early November was a long time coming for the brand and made sense for a furniture company founded on principles of good design. The idea was to go beyond the typical online presentation of home furnishingspages of photos on a white backgroundand give consumers a truer sense of how the home furnishings would look in their own space.
Its all about painting the picture for the customer, and its tough to establish a look with a white-background picture on the Internet, Howard said. It takes a while to look through all our product on the Web site, and you can see it all in a 36-page catalogand see it in a home setting.
Its largely to drive our online business, but we see the catalog as our strongest marketing tool for presenting our brand before someone gets to our Web site or goes into one of our stores.
PULLING IT ALL TOGETHER Catalog and e-commerce aside, the core of I.O. Metros business remains in its network of brick and more locations. Along with striving for consistency across all consumer touch points, the company wants to make sure people coming to shop get the sort of experience Howard was looking for when he was inspired to start the business.
Our motto is A Different Kind of Furniture Store, Howard said. If youre a shopper walking into an I.O. Metro location you hear fun, upbeat music. Salespeople greet you but dont attack you.
The hip mood strikes a chord with a lot of the business older customers.
Thirty-five to 54 is definitely our core demographic, but a big bulk of our customers are 45-plus, Howard said, with incomes in the $75,000-$125,000 range. When you look at us, most people think our customer is 25 to 35, but thats not our core.
A lot of these middle-age people are looking to simplify or to update their homes. They like change, and they want to de-clutter. It was good timing on our part.
Stores are merchandised in vignettes, not rows and rows of sofas.
We echoed that thought in our catalogif you can show a customer looking to make a change what it will look like they wont be scared to buy it, Howard said.
Core product is consistent, but store managers use accessorization to keep the stores look fresh and different.
How does I.O. Metro express that retail vision in marketing and advertising efforts, or social media?
Sometimes simple is better, and thats how the company approaches merchandising and marketing effortsdrawing customers to a look thats clean, simple and sometimes striking; and marketing reflects that.
I.O. Metro is on all major social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.
Christine Howard, Jays wife, writes the stores in-house blog, Hello Metro, where she shares design tips and trends
Weve always felt we offered great values, but the customer has pushed us to a little more of a higher-end approach, Howard said. Before, it was everyday low price ¦ Today we reward our customers whove been loyal to us.
Thats done through promotions and deals that customers might not see on the retail floor, through social media, e-mail and some direct mail. HFB