September 12, 2008
Stores Change with the Season
Sears Holdings has something new in store for Halloween. The owner of Sears and Kmart is testing a new seasonal store concept called Totally Ghoul in 10 locations in the Chicagoland market.
One location is housed in a former Tweeter location in Crystal Lake. It holds between 3,000 and 5,000 Halloween items, according to store manager Joe Subleski.
“The No. 1 holiday for purchases of displays – obviously – is Christmas,” Mr. Subleski, who normally works at the company headquarters, told the Northwest Herald newspaper. “The next biggest holiday is Halloween. It’s a multi-million-dollar industry. We thought we would go ahead and expand our inventory to include items not normally carried within our stores.”
Totally Ghoul will be open for business through October 31 and perhaps into November to try and pick up shoppers looking for sale merchandise, according to Mr. Subleski. The concept will stay away from some of the more racy merchandise sold in other outlets. If the concept works, it is possible that Sears Holdings will look to open additional seasonal theme stores.
Discussion Questions: Is Totally Ghoul a concept that has legs? Do you expect Sears to expand beyond 10 stores and open stores for other holiday seasons? Will we see other major chains testing similar concepts?
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Sounds like April Fools day will come in October this year. Sometimes I think if you turned Sears over to a group of 8th graders, the company would have better success.
While the concept for the seasonal store is sound, it really is not going to make a difference in the overall financial recovery for Sears Holdings. And knowing Sears, and their recent track record, they will end up with too much inventory, have to sell it off at prices that are below cost, and it will be another nail in the coffin. This one has RIP written all over it. Happy Halloween!
The infant financial prodigy strikes again with a Totally Ghoully concept. This is a ground ball to third base when the company needs a new home run concept.
The concept of a separate Halloween area in the store, store within a store, should be a success. There are other “Halloween” specialty stores reaping millions of dollars from consumers. Some companies generate 80% of their revenue during this holiday.
Will it be a success at Sears? It depends on how they execute the marketing plan, the logistics of making sure they have the product there when someone wants to buy it and how successful they will be on getting consumers excited about going into a Sears store for Halloween supplies.
And we thought that the presidential candidates were desperate! Does this mean that they have given up on trying to fix Sears and Kmart? Or do they just need a break from all the gloom and doom of watching their two flagships sink?
It’s interesting that it is branded separately from Sears or Kmart–this seems more like an attempt at completely different brands, rather than something that has synergy with Sears or Kmart. Independents have been operating these seasonal-type stores for years, moving into an empty storefront in a pretty prime location for 8-10 weeks, and then ducking back out again.
I don’t know that this kind of effort is something that a multi-billion dollar company can build a business model on. I would think they have other challenges to worry about.
Is this an act of surrender or are these retailers taking their eye off the ball? The only way this makes sense for Kmart/Sears to do is if the objective were to increase traffic or attract a particular demographic. But, as I understand the description, these stores occupy independent space like similar short-term seasonal stores that pop up around the country. They should make the seasonal store a destination and that destination should be their main store.
Kmart has traditionally had a large Halloween section that has been successful. Why take that successful section out of the store and put it in a freestanding separate store? Doesn’t that take traffic away the current stores? Is that a wise move?
Maybe expanding the Halloween section inside the Kmart stores and adding a section to the Sears stores and promoting it would drive traffic to the current stores–wouldn’t that be a better way to mix short term and long term strategies? Promoting a separate retail location doesn’t help the current Kmart or Sears stores.
If Sears really wants to know what might have “legs” with shoppers, they might consider posting some survey experts at the doors and getting the story right from the shoppers’ mouths! Halloween is a huge spending holiday but I agree that the connection with the Sears brand might be shaky at best, over the longer time frame in the shopper’s mind!
ANYTHING to drive traffic into Sears is worth a try. That said, Sears needs to focus all of its energies on store service and staying in stock on basics fist. Using a Holiday retailtainment gimmick to get people to come in the front door is OK as long as when they get in, they see a new and improved Sears, and not the same old store. Otherwise, they will go check out the Halloween display and not return!
The Halloween specialty store concept has enjoyed success in other markets mostly under independent ownership. The concept has legs, however, I remain skeptical about predicting success for any retail business being run and operated by the current Sears Holdings entity.
Seasonal stores for Halloween are nothing new in the Los Angeles area. Since many consumers don’t shop Sears or Kmart in the first place, why would they rank high on the list for Halloween?
It’s a huge holiday with tremendous growth potential for retailers. The timing could be better, considering the current economic conditions. With that said, I like the potential.
The Halloween section at my local Kmart is even larger and grander than in years past.
THIS IS A BIG DEAL!!! So will Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Easter.
If executed well, this could be the winner Sears Holdings has been looking for.
Sears’ management: more willing to be creative than just about any other major retailer. They’re always trying new approaches. Stores like Totally Ghoul are more and more numerous, so why shouldn’t Sears try? To the critics who say Sears has bigger issues: well isn’t Sears large enough to do more than one new thing?
Each holiday and season is a big deal for every retailer in the nation. Creating attractive seasonal store in store environments and promotions is a must.
If Sears/Kmart has to open stores for each season and holiday, it only shows their current locations are no longer viable shopping destinations.
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Sounds like April Fools day will come in October this year. Sometimes I think if you turned Sears over to a group of 8th graders, the company would have better success.
While the concept for the seasonal store is sound, it really is not going to make a difference in the overall financial recovery for Sears Holdings. And knowing Sears, and their recent track record, they will end up with too much inventory, have to sell it off at prices that are below cost, and it will be another nail in the coffin. This one has RIP written all over it. Happy Halloween!
The infant financial prodigy strikes again with a Totally Ghoully concept. This is a ground ball to third base when the company needs a new home run concept.
The concept of a separate Halloween area in the store, store within a store, should be a success. There are other “Halloween” specialty stores reaping millions of dollars from consumers. Some companies generate 80% of their revenue during this holiday.
Will it be a success at Sears? It depends on how they execute the marketing plan, the logistics of making sure they have the product there when someone wants to buy it and how successful they will be on getting consumers excited about going into a Sears store for Halloween supplies.
And we thought that the presidential candidates were desperate! Does this mean that they have given up on trying to fix Sears and Kmart? Or do they just need a break from all the gloom and doom of watching their two flagships sink?
It’s interesting that it is branded separately from Sears or Kmart–this seems more like an attempt at completely different brands, rather than something that has synergy with Sears or Kmart. Independents have been operating these seasonal-type stores for years, moving into an empty storefront in a pretty prime location for 8-10 weeks, and then ducking back out again.
I don’t know that this kind of effort is something that a multi-billion dollar company can build a business model on. I would think they have other challenges to worry about.
Is this an act of surrender or are these retailers taking their eye off the ball? The only way this makes sense for Kmart/Sears to do is if the objective were to increase traffic or attract a particular demographic. But, as I understand the description, these stores occupy independent space like similar short-term seasonal stores that pop up around the country. They should make the seasonal store a destination and that destination should be their main store.
Kmart has traditionally had a large Halloween section that has been successful. Why take that successful section out of the store and put it in a freestanding separate store? Doesn’t that take traffic away the current stores? Is that a wise move?
Maybe expanding the Halloween section inside the Kmart stores and adding a section to the Sears stores and promoting it would drive traffic to the current stores–wouldn’t that be a better way to mix short term and long term strategies? Promoting a separate retail location doesn’t help the current Kmart or Sears stores.
If Sears really wants to know what might have “legs” with shoppers, they might consider posting some survey experts at the doors and getting the story right from the shoppers’ mouths! Halloween is a huge spending holiday but I agree that the connection with the Sears brand might be shaky at best, over the longer time frame in the shopper’s mind!
ANYTHING to drive traffic into Sears is worth a try. That said, Sears needs to focus all of its energies on store service and staying in stock on basics fist. Using a Holiday retailtainment gimmick to get people to come in the front door is OK as long as when they get in, they see a new and improved Sears, and not the same old store. Otherwise, they will go check out the Halloween display and not return!
The Halloween specialty store concept has enjoyed success in other markets mostly under independent ownership. The concept has legs, however, I remain skeptical about predicting success for any retail business being run and operated by the current Sears Holdings entity.
Seasonal stores for Halloween are nothing new in the Los Angeles area. Since many consumers don’t shop Sears or Kmart in the first place, why would they rank high on the list for Halloween?
It’s a huge holiday with tremendous growth potential for retailers. The timing could be better, considering the current economic conditions. With that said, I like the potential.
The Halloween section at my local Kmart is even larger and grander than in years past.
THIS IS A BIG DEAL!!! So will Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Easter.
If executed well, this could be the winner Sears Holdings has been looking for.
Sears’ management: more willing to be creative than just about any other major retailer. They’re always trying new approaches. Stores like Totally Ghoul are more and more numerous, so why shouldn’t Sears try? To the critics who say Sears has bigger issues: well isn’t Sears large enough to do more than one new thing?
Each holiday and season is a big deal for every retailer in the nation. Creating attractive seasonal store in store environments and promotions is a must.
If Sears/Kmart has to open stores for each season and holiday, it only shows their current locations are no longer viable shopping destinations.