In Print » September 2010 » Departments » Ware & Why

While most consumers remain cautious with their spending, affluent shoppers are upgrading some of their purchases to higher quality and higher priced items, according to Unity Marketing's" Luxury Report 2010." These affluent shoppers are spending more on gourmet kitchenware, especially small electrics, according to the survey.

Luxury consumers (with annual household incomes of $250,000) and "aspirational affluents" (incomes between $100,000- and $249,999) started spending more on select categories earlier this year. It's a trend Pam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing, expects to continue through the holiday gift-giving season.

"Luxury Kitchenware was among our top growth categories in the luxury tracking study for the second quarter, as measured by increased consumer spending, so it could do better than other gift categories this year," says Danziger. After small electrics, bakeware, cutlery, barware, cookware and table linens rounded out the top categories sought after by affluent shoppers..

As in past years, gifts in the $20-$50 range will be in demand, but at the same time, shoppers are looking for more perceived value in the gifts they'll be giving. "Two years ago, we were focusing on back to basics, such as basic cookie sheets and basic kitchen tools. This season we're starting to move towards items that have a little indulgent edge," says Danziger. "More people are looking for gifts people would enjoy, but they wouldn't buy for themselves."

Gifts that are what Danziger calls "transforming ideas" will be popular gifts. Riedel's stemless wine glasses and Oxo kitchen tools, the iPhone and the Kindle reading device are "transforming ideas" because they revolutionize a familiar item. "We are having the same experience without the aggravation, without the problems. That's transforming your life," says Danziger.

To increase sales, independent retailers think about how they can merchandise their products in transforming ways year round, she suggests.

Retailers are getting ready for the holiday season. What are they stocking? What price points do they expect to fly off the shelves? The Gourmet Retailer talks with two retailers to find out how they're preparing for the all-important fourth quarter.

After retiring from Love to Cook in July, Nancy Beykirch has moved to Arizona and is now a sales rep for Kitchen Concepts, which has a showroom in the LA Mart.

Retailer Perspective
Nancy Beykirch, who founded the kitchenware store Love to Cook at Kitchen Kneads in Logan, Utah, says attending a gift fair became an annual tradition to find last-minute holiday items. The Alexx Key Holder Purse Hook was one her finds; and her son Chris, who has worked with her since the store opened, was skeptical—until the purse hooks flew out the door.

Traveling to gift fairs and tradeshows is essential to create a unique and viable retail store. A retailer, Beykirch says, needs to be "progressive and aggressive, and attending gift markets and tradeshows help you provide a better store by providing a better product."

If you are looking for gifts to carry in your store, a logical place to start is at a gift show, and with there are gift-oriented shows in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, New York, Orlando, San Francisco, Seattle and beyond.

Beykirch, who retired from the store July 31 and moved to Arizona, strived to make cooking easier and more fun by finding high quality products, ingredients, gadgets, cook books, and operating an educational cooking school. Chris, who serves on the Gourmet Retailer Advisory Board, now runs the business.

Love to Cook has a wall of aprons, dishcloths and towels, and the store sells "textiles and aprons like crazy," she says. All types of aprons from plastic, butler, retro to what Beykirch describes as a "Little House on the Prairie apron" fill out a store wall.

Wilton baking tools, SodaStream soda maker and refill cartridges, recipe cards and albums, baking chocolate and Ganz measuring spoons are all popular year-round sellers.

As the retailer readies for the fourth quarter, Chris Beykirch expects bakeware and gadgets under $25 to be hot gift items this holiday season. "People are still not spending for the high-end items. We are having a good year; however, every month is different," he said.

In Wilmington, Del., Simon & Co.'s customers are thoughtful and cautious when to comes to year-round gift giving, says proprietor Jennifer Simon. After years of working for 1800flowers.com and Martha Stewart, Simon opened Simon & Co., a high-end gift and specialty food e-tail business in her hometown last fall. While her customers, which include corporate clients, aren't spending on a whim, Simon says "we aren't really seeing too much holding back in regards to year-round gifting. Our baby gifts, for instance, are still selling in the $60-$75 range, but we have had a strong number in the $100 and up range."

Jennifer Simon of Simon & Co. forecasts gifts in the $50-$60 range to be the most popular this season.

According to a recent study, more gift givers are buying gifts online than in traditional brick-and -mortar stores. Because of its convenience, 24/ 7 accessibility and the perceived time savings, more luxury consumers are doing their gift shopping online, according to Unity Marketing's Gifting Report 2010, "The Ultimate Guide to the Consumer Gift-Giving Market."

Overall, 48 percent of respondents rank department stores as their No. 1 source for gifts, followed by the internet with 39 percent.

Independent retailers may not have the infrastructure to have a robust e-tail site, but they should use email and social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to connect with their customers and drive traffic to their stores, suggests Pam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing.

For the fourth-quarter holidays, Simon is anticipating a solid season, up from last year. She has expanded gift selections in the $50-$60 category, which includes everything from teas, chocolates, snacks, sauces and pastas. "People are still sending gifts, they are just being more frugal about how much they spend per person, which is why that $50-60 range is critical," says Simon. "However, we are not cutting back and we still plan to offer a nice wide selection of 150+ gifts in prices up to $400.

Danziger and Simon agree that consumers want more bang for their gift buck, and want to give—and receive—gifts that are perceived to be hiqh quality and more expensive than what they are.

"I think in this economy people are more appreciative of quality and being given (or giving) a gift that is seemingly more high end, more expensive, and therefore more thought out," Simon says.

While the fourth-quarter holidays may account for the lion's share of retailers' sales, don't forget to look at ways to boost your gift sales year round. Danziger, author of Shopping: Why We Love It and How Retailers Can Create the Ultimate Customer Experience, stresses that many retailers overlook other gift-giving opportunities outside of the holidays. As much as 44 percent of consumers' gift-giving budgets are spent on personal gifts such as birthdays, friendship, anniversaries, baby showers, etc. that occur throughout the year, she says. Retailers that "tap the potential in the gifting market can boost their share of gifters' revenues throughout the year, not just at holiday time. Smart marketers put their best gift-foot forward year-round," she says.