While it's too soon to say how the holiday retail season will shape up, shoppers certainly started it out with enthusiasm, with long lines and mall mob scenes generating headlines around the country. But while shoppers get gold stars for attendance, spending is a little soft. The National Retail Federation (NRF) spent the long Thanksgiving weekend crunching numbers--and reports that while shopping traffic was up 4.8% compared to last year, the 147 million brave American shoppers spent about $347.44, down 3.5% from last year. (Men outspent women, $393.63 to $303.95.) "While last year showed a greater emphasis on high-definition televisions, this year consumers were focused on lower-priced door busters like digital photo frames, laptops and cashmere sweaters," the NRF says in its release. It also reports that consumers like the ever-earlier hours of Black Friday--with 14.3% of shoppers hard at it by 4 a.m., compared to 12.4% last year. Shoppers were most likely to scoop up clothing or clothing accessories (46.8%) as well as books, CDs, DVDs, videos or video games (41.7%). With 35.7% of shoppers, consumer electronics were also popular, as were toys (28.2%), and gift cards (21%). Based on the weekend sales, the NRF says it continues to project that holiday sales will rise 4% this year to $474.5 billion. Those promising figures mesh with the national retail sales estimate from ShopperTrak RCT Corp., which reports a preliminary sales estimate of $10.3 billion. Black Friday, the company says, typically counts for between 4.5% and 5% of all holiday sales. Next, all eyes are focusing on what happens today, as CyberMonday assumes more and more importance each year. comScore, Inc. is predicting today's spending will pass $700 million, making it the biggest spending day in online commerce history. In the first 23 days of November, comScore reports, shoppers have already spent more than $9.3 billion--a 17% gain from the same period a year ago. Fueled by steady teasers from retailers, online retail spending was strong on both Thanksgiving Day (up 29%, to $272 million) and Black Friday (up 22%, to $531 million). The hottest category, comScore reports, is still video games, consoles and accessories--up 134% versus the corresponding days last year, thanks to sales of Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 3 and "Halo 3." Furniture, appliances and equipment sales are up 36%, while electronics are selling at a 21% higher rate than last year. The NRF is predicting that 72 million Americans will spend part of today shopping, up from 61 million last year--a total of 31.9% of all adults. Meanwhile, don't expect much from your co-workers today: BJ'S Wholesale Club predicts that 46% of working Americans expect to shop for bargains today at work. About one half admit they do all their online shopping at work, while 13% confess that they have shopped online during a conference call.
Shoppers this week at Kroger's 2,500 stores in 37 states will see a lot of Nascar branding. It won't be only on banners and signs or Kroger's in-store TV but on a plethora of packages from dozens of different brands. Kroger and some 50 brands it carries are part of the largest retail promotion of Nascar ever. The seven-month retail effort is focused on celebrating the 50th anniversary of Nascar's central event, the Daytona 500. General Mills, ConAgra, Kellogg and PepsiCo are among the companies participating in the promotion, which will include a raft of products branded with a Daytona 500 50th anniversary race logo starting this week. Product categories participating include soft drinks, snacks, condiments, accessories and cereal, among others. Kroger is supporting with newspaper circulars and POP displays. The company says that, as the race approaches, Kroger will run ads for the event on in-store TV and radio. Kroger will also roll out Nascar displays and host appearances by drivers. Per International Speedway Corp (ISC), women make up 40% of Nascar fans and that number is increasing. The corporation, which owns the Daytona International Speedway, says about 200,000 fans attended the 2007 Daytona 500 and predicts next year's race will break previous attendance and television viewer ratings. An ISC spokesperson said consumer packaged goods partners involved will be running Nascar-themed efforts, as well. "They are all putting together collateral for activation of their participation," he says, adding that several brands, including Kraft and several ConAgra brands, have had a presence at the Daytona track in the past. He added that ISC is also doing a road show program with Chevrolet, called "Fifty States in Fifty Days" which involves Chevrolet touring race-car replicas and experiential marketing programs about its history with Nascar. According to the ISC, the Daytona 500 generated 30 million viewers last year, it was sold out attendance-wise, and a 30-second spot during broadcasts cost $500,000. Corporate sponsors of the 50th anniversary race run the gamut from Holiday Inn to Gator Ade.
Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) has opened the PlayStation Store to PC users in North America. It gives PlayStation Portable (PSP) gamers access to PlayStation Network games, promotional and marketing materials, video content and services over the Internet through a personal computer. The new, free service allows video-game players to set up a PlayStation Network account, download free stuff, or purchase content directly from the PlayStation Store to their PSP without using the PlayStation 3 (PS3). Rather than using a memory stick or flash drive to transfer content, users can connect their PSP through a USB cable and push content directly to the device. They can now download game titles from the PlayStation Store for the PC at store.playstation.com. Full-game downloadable content includes titles, such as "Syphon Filter: Combat Ops," "Gangs of London," and "WipEout Pure," as well as PS One classic titles like "JetMoto" and "Crash Bandicoot." The site teases gamers with marketing material on upcoming game releases, highlighting trailers for future titles, add-on game items, promotional videos and themes for PSP that allow users to customize their PSP menu color and background. Icons of XrossMediaBar will become available through the PlayStation Store for the PC, too. Michael Cai, director for broadband and gaming at research firm Parks Associates, says hardcore gamers won't need an incentive or marketing promotion to buy video games. They are self-driven. For others, exclusive content to the platform and the Blu-ray high-definition DVD disc player will drive up sales. "PlayStation Store is nice to have, but few will buy a PlayStation 3 or PlayStation portable just to access the store," he says. "The PS3 has been attacked by the media for slumping sales, but the PSP and the PS2 are doing fairly well." Cai says Sony has allowed PS3 owners to download PS One games through the PlayStation Store to transfer on other devices, but it wasn't free. Gamers who viewed the approach as a marketing ploy accused Sony of trying to trick them into purchasing a PS3. Through the PlayStation Store for the PC Web site, PSP users can establish and use their network accounts and virtual wallets for PlayStation Network, providing a seamless online commerce experience on both PS3 and the PC. Gamers who already have a PlayStation Network account can use their existing username and password to log in to the PlayStation Store for the PC. Industry insiders say opening the PlayStation Store to PC users will likely boost sales this holiday season, but it is difficult to estimate by how much.
Leveraging the successful marketing of its Bodygroom product, Philips Norelco is using the same medium, shaveeverywhere.com, to tout its ear and nose hair trimmer this holiday season. In the Tribal DDB-created video, a middle-aged man notices a nose hair and panics. His father, outside the bathroom door, talks to him about "Second Puberty" and assures him that the development is normal. Like a mother handing her daughter a tampon, this parent hands his son the Norelco Nose, Ear and Eyebrow Trimmer. "The creative concept was based on the same consumer insight as the Bodygroom campaign," Shannon Jenest, a Philips spokesperson, tells Marketing Daily, which is to "take a rather sensitive topic that's very relevant to our target and use humor to create a safe environment for them to explore real working solutions." The campaign is being supported through online banner ads, out-of-home (bathroom) ads in Atlanta and Los Angeles, and wild street postings. "We're also tapping into our existing Bodygroom consumer-base to re-engage them with the microsite," says Jenest. Philips Norelco commissioned a GFK Roper survey that found that 56% of men with moderate or heavy hair growth in their nose and/or ears would appreciate it if someone told them about their problem. Just 16% said they had asked a friend or family member for advice on how to deal with it. While many men may associate ear and nose hair with getting older, 20% of respondents who admitted to having a lot or moderate amount of ear and nose hair were actually between the ages of 18 to 34. One in four men with at least a moderate amount of ear and/or nose hair said they never trim it, or let it get too long before they do. "Nose and ear hair is a reality for most men, even in their 20s and 30s," said Arjen Linders, vice president/marketing for Philips Norelco, in a press release. "But the idea of 'Second Puberty' isn't a topic that comes up naturally, so we're expanding shaveeverywhere.com to tackle a new follicle challenge using the same disarming humor that engaged millions of men when we launched the site last year." The product sells for $14.99 at Wal-Mart, Target and Amazon.com.
Nike Inc. and Foot Locker Inc. last week consummated a retail partnership that gives Nike brands an exclusive retail presence for basketball, while giving Foot Locker's store-within-a-store basketball section a stand-alone iteration. The companies unveiled the first House of Hoops all-basketball store on 125th Street in New York City. The nearly 4,000-square-foot store, which also serves as a kind of community basketball hangout, features Nike, Jordan Brand and Converse brands, with each getting a branded area. The store--of which the companies plan to roll out 50 over the next three years in new and existing locations--is also the only outlet to sell shoes that players like Kobe Bryant, Jason Kidd, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade actually wear in games, reproducing the precise design and performance cues specified by such players. Among other areas, the store has a Hoops Essentials area and a VIP area, where visitors can read magazines, or watch commercials and behind-the-scenes interviews with the players on a 65-inch TV screen. The store also has a community section with an electronic community board and a ticker posting real-time scores from local high school basketball games, relevant basketball news, and information about upcoming store events. Chad Smoak, vice president/retail brand marketing for Foot Locker, Inc. U.S., says the concept is about 10 years old--starting as a concept in stores. "The Foot Locker has always been a leader in basketball products and to kind of reinforce that and to maintain that position, there was the idea we should house all products together--to do something special," he says. Smoak says the company will promote the program via grassroots efforts in markets like Chicago and L.A., where the company plans to open House of Hoops stores. "Local community outreach--that's the whole purpose of the stores: to go into communities where basketball is significant and build a home for these individuals. You won't see a ton of big TV campaigns, but we have been doing House of Hoops advertising within Foot Locker stores since that concept began within our stores."
Looking to make its Internet presence more consumer-friendly, Diamond Foods has relaunched its Web site, separating out its company information from other information that is more valuable to consumers. The move was made after research on the company's six-year-old site showed it wasn't very user-friendly, combining both company and consumer information in the same place, Jeff Ngo, Diamond's senior marketing manager, tells Marketing Daily. "We wanted to split it out for a place that consumers could go to find information," Ngo says. The redesigned site includes more than 200 recipes for general dining and special occasions, all focused on using nuts. It includes a new "Celebrity Kitchen," where celebrity chefs such as Martin Yan and Tina Saller offer recipes and cooking tips. The site also includes a healthy living section, offering tips on how nuts can be a part of a healthy diet. The Stockton, Calif. company modeled the site on others in the food space that have proved popular with consumers like Epicurious and Everyday Food, Ngo says. "The idea was to take the best practices of others and give people a location with a true brand identity," he says. Diamond Foods has been promoting the redesigned site through search engine and keyword marketing, as well as with print ads in food titles, Ngo says. Diamond Foods has a 35% market share in the culinary nut category, according to Information Resources Inc. data. Diamond, which markets both Diamond and Emerald Nuts brands, has also partnered with several other brands--such as Hershey chocolate and Eagle condensed milk--for in-store holiday promotions. During the high-season baking months of November and December, packaging for Diamond and the partner brands will include recipes and instantly redeemable coupons for Diamond products. The promotion carries the message: "Your holiday season just got a whole lot sweeter." The company's Emerald brand has partnered with Anheuser-Busch for holiday promotions featuring in-store displays and instantly redeemable coupons. It has also distributed about 60 million coupons in free-standing inserts in newspapers for the holidays.