Toy and Child Shopping Strategy

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1 Baby products successfully integrated into the toy range Karsten Pannen

2 Baby products successfully integrated into the toy range Baby products and toys are highly complementary and offer toy retailers additional growth potential. An attractive range of baby goods one that makes sense for the location in question generates valuable additional turnover. More and more toy retailers are exploiting this. Entrepreneurs who previously had nothing to do with baby articles have discovered the range or components of the range for themselves and have successfully integrated them. With the sale of baby hard goods & textiles, customers can be tempted into the shop at an early stage of a baby's life so that they become bound to the place of purchase in the long term. Ultimately, the beneficiary of this is the classic toy industry. Toy retailers can combine an extensive range consisting of toys, baby care articles or even fashion under one roof and thus serve the youngest target group from birth. This brings with it considerable synergy effects: in particular, shops that already sell baby and infant toys and that should be the majority of all toy retailers can set up a competent baby-themed world, thus creating the basis for long-term customer loyalty. Another advantage is that baby products are largely independent of seasons, i.e. sales are spread evenly throughout the year. This market segment does not suffer from the fluctuation in turnover which is typical for the toy industry. This means that you can achieve increases in frequency even in the off-season. Scalable and applicable to any size of shop, there is a solution for each location and each floor space whether in a classic city centre location or a speciality retailer on a greenfield site. With retailers that have up to now been purely toy sellers, we have managed to carry out the most diverse projects: from a 5 m² large complementary product range of baby goods up to several baby departments covering 100 m². RedPaper: Baby products 2

3 However, several important aspects have to be considered when integrating a baby product range into the toy retail trade. At VEDES, we have a clearly structured approach that can serve as a guide for you: 1. Advice/concept development Every store needs an individual strategy. That is why the first thing on the agenda is always the indepth consultation of the interested parties. Comprehensive advice is extremely important when working together. The way we proceed means that the location, opportunities and requirements are analysed individually and jointly with the entrepreneur on site. Based on that, we develop the right solution with the appropriate baby product areas. At the same time, the product range for each location is defined. In line with the old marketing slogan of "all business is local", the competitive environment should be viewed as part of the location analysis. That is what then decides the breadth and depth of the range of goods and, of course, the selection of suppliers. In the examples we have most frequently carried out to date, the integration of the baby goods range was generally effected within the framework of a local store concept offering smaller everyday items for which the client will not travel for miles to the next specialty store for babies. We have now come to the core question: which products make sense and which don't, and which ones are hard to integrate? No simple, generally valid response is possible here since each site has to be considered separately. Thanks to our competent team and their extensive wealth of experience, however, helpful recommendations can be made: Often, consumption-oriented products or products that offer parents quick solutions to problems will be the focal point for "beginners". These are mostly products from the areas of care and hygiene or food and beverages and safety, but also, depending on the location, textiles. The first product area includes, for example, teats, bottles, and food warmers. In terms of safety, all kinds of protection devices are primarily required, such as outlet protectors, table edge or cupboard guards, but also mosquito nets (to name just a few of the many examples). In the textile segment, take-away products such as hats or socks in particular are very successful. But even bodysuits and rompers can be a successful and, above all, high-margin product range component. Depending on the location and the supply situation, children's outerwear can be successfully integrated. What is crucial with regard to this is the range of sizes to be offered. Usually, retailers offer goods for children up to 86 cm or 104 cm, possibly up to 128 cm in height. Toy retailers do still find the topic a little difficult or find that it often costs them a little effort to get to grips with it. RedPaper: Baby products 3

4 Once, however, they have got used to the procedure of pre-orders, delivery dates and seasonal variations, then this component of their range of goods is an interesting source of turnover and profit. Not for nothing can one observe that, for example, drugstores are expanding their range of goods in this area. The baby hard goods sector also offers goods that have an affinity with toys such as ride-ons and rockers that often come with additional play features. Even simple buggies, especially in the entrylevel price segment, and travel cots can be sold in toy shops. Dealing with hard goods assortments such as strollers, car seats and furniture is a little more challenging. However, "challenging" does not necessarily refer to the sale of the goods. Acquiring product knowledge is no problem for experienced retailers. But it is important to keep in mind that the afore-mentioned product groups are no self-service products and so buyers require some consultation. When it comes to safety-related items in particular such as car seats, young parents are naturally concerned about the welfare of their children. In this case, expert demonstration is a must, but also a chance to raise one's profile vis-à-vis the customers. When it comes to car seats and strollers, however, it is advisable to offer a range of goods with a certain breadth and depth, which, primarily, leads to greater capital investment and demands more floor space. This makes sense in particular in order to demonstrate your competence to the end consumers and it will ultimately be reflected in your sales figures. In practice, many retailers start with just a basic range of baby goods and then build on this success to include other product groups. 2. Planning Once the range of baby goods has been fixed, the next step is the careful planning of the floor space and the individual product components, i.e. the successful analysis of the surrounding area and concept as a prerequisite for the development of a coordinated concept is now followed by the planning of the product range with article-specific display recommendations if so desired. We are also happy to draw up plans for sales areas on site. Thus we help "beginners" as well as "old hands" to appeal to precisely the target groups they want to attract. Of course, one has to decide on a case by case basis which brands to use in order to offer alternatives to what the local competition is selling. That is why we work together with all relevant baby and infant suppliers in order to be able to offer a complete service and an abundance of quality products. 3. Implementation After we and the retailer have jointly developed the best possible concept, the plan is then applied to the shop. There are some important aspects that must be observed. The first one that must be mentioned is called the emotional appeal. Expectant parents and young and expectant mothers in particular enter the shop at a very emotional stage of their lives. This is certainly a very positive aspect, as the target audience is currently undergoing a very exciting and particularly beautiful phase in their lives. That is why appealing to the emotions is indispensable here. Toys, however, are often presented in a much more sober and factual way, which is certainly the wrong way of doing things in this area of goods. "Awaking emotions when shopping" is the motto here. RedPaper: Baby products 4

5 This includes mainly designing showrooms to be appealing, e.g. with big, bold images. Offering changing rooms, breastfeeding rooms or quiet areas can make the customers' time in the shop as pleasant as possible which ultimately prolongs the time they spend in the shop. At the same time, high-quality personalised advice and appropriate service are naturally also important. Inherent in this is, of course, taking up the training opportunities offered by the industry or possibly even demanding them. When it comes to selling safety products for babies and toddlers in particular, one should not lower one's guard. A large part of a shop's sales success depends on well-trained personnel, as it does in many other sectors, too. At the same time, the new range of goods should of course be included in the marketing activities. You should have eye-catching images of the new assortments in advertising material or highlight them in a striking way. It is also useful to present baby items in such a way that they appeal to the emotions of the target groups. Depending on the size of the baby range, it makes sense, for example, to work closely with regional midwives to possibly also reflect their product preferences in the shop. And true to the motto of "whoever doesn't advertise dies", a target group-specific marketing strategy should be put together for baby items. Our "Baby's World by VEDES" offers an attractive range of advertising media and professional support. There are, for example, our baby catalogues, which give consumers useful information about pregnancy and birth always accompanied by images of the relevant baby articles, naturally. RedPaper: Baby products 5

6 Responsible for Content: Karsten Pannen Karsten Pannen is project manager of the baby sector at VEDES in Nuremberg. Previously, he worked as managing director at a large group specialising in baby products. The business graduate has worked in the baby sector for 16 years and so has many years of industry experience. The strategic market orientation of VEDES Europe's leading buying group for the play, leisure and family segment has focused for 110 years on the entire family or the target group of 0-99-year-olds. That is why the topic of babies and infants has always been at the forefront of their business at first, mainly with the focus on toys. But for several years now, VEDES has also dealt very intensively with the area of baby hard goods & textiles and, with "Baby's World by VEDES", they offer everything from a single source. VEDES offers specialist baby shops a professional and comprehensive range of baby goods as well as an extensive range of play and leisure items. Conversely, toy shops can supplement their range of goods by adding an attractive range of baby articles. Publisher RedPaper: Spielwarenmesse eg Münchener Str Nürnberg, Germany Tel. +49 (0) 911/ Fax +49 (0) 911/ RedPaper: Baby products 6