Neon signage sets this sunwear section apart. Courtesy of Riviera.

Countercards, duratrans, door decals, nameplates, banners, buttons, bags, posters. A plethora of paraphernalia, yes, but still only the "accessories" offered by eyewear vendors to help their customers-optical retailers and otherwise-sell one of the most popular accessory items on the planet: Eyewear. And don't forget displays. From the frame boards that typify most optical outlets to locking, non-locking, in-counter, on-counter, or free-standing styles, manufacturers have made displays in an array of sizes to accommodate frame presentations from 1 to 200+ different looks. Yet, despite the preponderance of presentation options, it seems that outside the traditional optical channel a significantly smaller number of merchandising tools are used, and the presentation philosophies employed are similar; notwithstanding the differences in the overall business.

As the proliferation of optical products into non-optical channels continues, it is fair to ask: Is it the extensive use of merchandising materials in optical locations that is creating the mass market for eyewear products related to the resulting education and brand marketing implications? And, does the use or even the availability of a sea of merchandising odds and ends play any role in a retailer's sell through? The answers seem to depend on the type of retailer and the target customer

What and Where

Certain optical items, primarily readers and sunglasses, can be found with good visibility at drug stores, department stores, discounters, airport and duty free shops, specialty retailers, and haute couture boutiques, just to name a few. And although not a primary product line in any of these locations, each takes their eyewear business very seriously.

So what accounts for the success that these non-optical outlets are enjoying with optical products?

The answer put forward most often: understanding what the customer wants and giving it to them, consistently.

The ability to create a consistent and identifiable theme through merchandising, display, and P-O-P materials can foster a comfort and confidence level that will keep customers coming back. And, as optical is becoming more and more a fashion industry, the presentation of eyewear selections must reflect the value and quality that is the foundation of the retailer.

In department stores, sunglasses presented in cases and countertop displays without the use of P-O-P or even prominent branding account for the majority of eyewear sales. Sold in accessories departments alongside handbags and umbrellas, the presentations can best be described as half-hearted. There are a few department store giants, however, that are embracing the consumer interest in optical. Moving beyond the standard sunglass rotator, these savvy department store marketers are bringing haute couture to mass-market chains and specialty stores.

Shop-in-Shops

A sunwear display for discounters, courtesy of Lantis.

Customers go to Macy's, Nordstrom, and New York City's exclusive Bergdorf-Goodman with a mission. "They are ready to buy when they walk in the door," states Richard Morgenthal, president of Manhattan's Morgenthal Frederics Opticians. "They are ready to spend money and they are daring you to 'wow' them. This makes the merchandising effort very important."

At the Morgenthal Frederics boutique location at Bergdorf-Goodman, the promotion and merchandising philosophy of less is more has married the concept of subtle suggestion. This "Shop-in-Shop" type environment-a full-service optical location housed within a larger, non-optical merchant-creates powerful and effective merchandising achieved through proper positioning and subliminal messages.

Morgenthal states, "We were very involved with the Bergdorf store even from the construction phase. They were very sensitive to our need to create the right eyewear atmosphere. Locating the storefront near cosmetics, gears the customer's thinking to what is on the face. It puts customers 'in the mood.'"

Being 'in the mood' is actually quite an important part of how your merchandising effort will be received. Because despite the fashion aspect now attributed to many optical and sunglass introductions, for many customers taking that leap and "crossing the border" into the office of an optometrist or ophthalmologist is not an easy thing.

In department store locations these barriers are all but destroyed because of the free-flow store layout. "The opening of optical shops in department store environments is really a testament to the industry," Mr. Morgenthal concludes. "A testament to the fact that department stores understand the retail value of optical products."

Airport Locations

Space is an even more critical issue in many airport and duty free locations where traffic is high and time and space are at a premium. In these locations, wall displays, like frame boards and light boxes with frame fixtures, are common (much like in traditional optical outlets). Here, merchandising materials like countercards, door or wall decals, banners, and posters are too busy and distracting for airport store customers.

"What we need to do is keep our product well displayed and in stock. The biggest attraction is to the brand name. Other than the recognizable logos, we don't use much in the way of additional signage or transparencies," notes Rosemary Ricci Scotto of Weitnauer America.

"Our customers are not there to shop at their leisure. They want to be serviced and to get through the store as quickly as possible," she continues. "And they need best sellers."

Another point on the side of similarity between airport retailers and the optical channel is the involvement of the vendor reps. "Our reps are great," Scotto concludes. "They come in every four to six weeks to help us merchandise appropriately and work with the staff on product mix and sales training."

Merchandising, in this arena, is more about making sure the right product is out. Since the customer can be of any age, race, having the latest, greatest, hottest product at the right price.

Specialty Shops

For John Leininger, manager and buyer for Becker Surf & Sport, his eyewear business is more about differences than similarities. His customers are different, their needs and wants are different, and the product is different. "DSL, Smith, and other brands you don't generally find in the optical market are our biggest sellers," Leininger notes. "At least 50 percent of our customers know what they want when they come in... from the brand name, to the style, to features and functions." They want their eyewear and sunwear selections to be as extreme and "on-the-edge" as they are, and we need to have a merchandising and display set-up that allows for quick turnover. 

"Our customers are outdoor people. Our employees are outdoor people. That gives us credibility despite our not necessarily being eyewear experts." 

At Becker's four California locations, sunwear styles are displayed in a combination of stand-alone cases and free-standing, vendor supplied displays. Again, not much is needed in the way of miscellaneous P-O-P. "My customers will ask about UV protection levels, polarization and whether or not the lenses are distortion free," Leininger concludes.

Michelle Walker, business unit manager for Adidas America (distributed by Silhouette Optical) applauds Leininger's comments that eyewear customers who shop in this environment tend to be more educated about what they want. She points out, too, that this fact alone accounts for the primary differences between the merchandising and P-O-P materials used in non-optical channels.

"Different channels of distribution will use different pieces or combinations of pieces, but the number one consistent message is the brand logo," she notes. "The black and white performance logo will be everywhere."

Discounters

When retail turns discount, however, it is a different story. For mass discount retailers like Connecticut-based Ames Department Stores, optical offerings tend to mirror the price points, branding issues, and functional needs of greatest concern to their target customer. There is little, if anything, in the way of P-O-P, posters, and in-store product promotion. Sandy Sansavera, senior vice president, general merchandising of softlines for Ames Department Stores, comments that Ames' buying and merchandising decisions are based on the target customer's need for "quality, styling and price. Our customer has limited resources in time and disposable income. They count on us to provide a good price/value ratio and good looking, stylish product." Aspirational images, technical features charts and graphics, and slick displays are more likely to turn off an Ames customer.

Ames only merchandises its eyewear offerings-which include sunglasses, one-size-fits-all-type clip-ons, solar shields and, in select locations, readers-on towers. Stores generally have six towers to make their eyewear impact. "For our market, readers are considered the more fashionable eyewear purchase," Sansavera acknowledges, "but they are at a higher-end retail than most of our other eyewear products, and therefore are a significantly smaller percentage of our total eyewear business, especially as it relates to sunglasses and overall profitability."

Free-standing towers lend accessibility to the department stores' sunwear displays. Courtesy of Riviera.

Merchandising's future

What can eyecare and eyewear professionals take from the merchandising practices of the retail sector to help re-capture reader and sunglass sales? According to Walker of Adidas, optical retailers need to embrace the fact that "they are the eye care and eyewear professionals, the experts. They should take advantage of this position and realize they can be doing a lot more business through targeted product positioning and merchandising."

Richard Morgenthal sums it up by saying, "When creating display and merchandising environments within their shops, optical retailers need to streamline; to make a stand. Customers need to see a commitment to a look, to a direction. They need to know that what they are buying, they are buying from an expert; the best source possible." EB