Monday, January 30, 2012

Game Changers

Riviera Set of Two Wall Sconces




























When I begin to look for a new category to design and develop product for, the first thing I do as part of my process is to look at the marketplace in as many retailers as possible to determine what is missing, that is what techniques, or function, or even scale are the current offerings not representing.  This can be the seed of an idea which will transform a given category even if only a little in the beginning.  
We, as designers cannot always transform the world with game changing ideas; most of the time we are lucky if we can move the needle one mark at a time until we have transformed a category.  A car is ultimately a thing that carries people from place to place and has a steering wheel, motor, and four wheels.  No matter how many design changes take place, in the end the final product is still a car.  The same is true for most mature categories;  in this case wall sconces.
Many years ago, we at Pomeroy, had tremendous success with a very simple wrought iron wall sconce called Riviera.  This was a new idea at the time; not that a wall sconce was a something new;  it was new because we came up with the idea to create a set of two and include candles to create more value in the box, and to this day I am convinced that the item sold as well as it did because of the added value of the candles.
This product concept would be the beginning of a long line of gift box decorative candle lighting products which would transform our industry and continues as a product category to this day; and while there are products which will be game changers for categories of product, more often it is small continuous innovations which breath new life into a mature line of product.   

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Showing At Shows (part two)



Pomeroy Showroom, Atlanta 2012



















While that first show experience in San Francisco yielded modest results, it was encouraging enough to go further, especially considering my sales rep (we’ll call him A.M.) was very patient with me, even letting me crash on his couch in the basement (with the dalmatian).
Trade shows are a double edged affair;  while you are exhibiting to meet customers and write orders, you are also the target of other vendors, especially if you have come up with something unique. It used to upset me greatly in the early years when they would come by the booth;  retail in those days was healthy and competition intense.  After several years in the business I realized that a good offense is more important and effective than a good defense;  and actually in our business there is no defense anyway;  there is no real way to stop someone from copying your ideas or designs.  
When I did start designing product (a year or so after I started), I decided to follow a fashion strategy; that is I would develop product for two major introductions (Spring and Fall), and move fast; ALWAYS.  The idea being to cover every major account that I had with my new introductions and get orders placed as soon as possible.  When a company moves at this speed it is hard for a competitor to keep up, and when they do copy you, they only have price to compete with and by then you have moved on to new territory (designs), and their offerings are, well, just knockoffs.
Shows are still as exciting for me now as they were twenty years ago.  I still become excited, emotional, nervous, and generally hard to live with, prior to the first show of the season in Atlanta.  It is, for me a fashion show and I will live or die (metaphorically of course) based on the reaction to the new product.  I love the honesty of the marketplace;  something good is really good and something that doesn’t work needs to be re-thought or dropped altogether.  After a market you always know where you stand.  So while there is always competition about, whether it is another vendor or a large retailers product development team; I have learned to rely on my product game plan, designed to keep Pomeroy unique and different, and alway, S P E E D!   

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Showing At Shows (part one)


Handblown Mexican Glassware

















There are several important reasons to exhibit at a trade show, and the number of reasons expands as does a new company’s  customer base.  In the beginning when a company is just starting out and there is perhaps one key category of merchandise or even just one product, it is still the quickest, most effective way to get a market read on a new item, concept, or service.  Of course one must overcome the fear factors; such as, does my product serve a purpose; is the price something someone will pay; and who the heck will buy it anyway?
When it comes to customers, I always recommend that one start selling to specialty retailers first.  The specialty retailer is generally an individual or small chain of stores, who is as interested in a good value as any major “big box” retailer;  the difference is that the specialty retailer does not compete with a larger competitor on a particular item and certainly not on price.  They may, for instance sell the same category of goods; such as dog beds, but the specialty retailer will sell a better product; and while the bed will certainly be more expensive, the quality will also be higher than what one typically finds at a “big box” retailer;  the name of which provides a hint of what to expect inside.
The first Trade Show that I participated in was the Gourmet Show in San Francisco around 1990.  A sales representative that I convinced to help me sell my first handblown line of glassware from Mexico helped me set the booth with some cardboard pedestals and some wooden shelving he already had from previous shows.  As I recall, I didn’t really have enough merchandise to fill the booth, but then I wasn’t sure how much merchandise one should have anyway!
I don’t remember exactly how it went but I do remember that we wrote some orders; which were in the range of $150. each.  It was very exciting.  In my mind it had been a success as I knew definitively that there was a market for the items I was trying to sell.  I had not begun to design stemware yet, I was merely selling some existing styles from a factory that I was working with in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, a small town on the Texas border.  And while this was a small beginning,  retail in the U.S. was strong and there were many players and opportunities, just waiting for a little creativity, which I was more than ready to provide.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Filtering Design




Serengeti Mosaic



















When starting a trip as I am now, even after twenty years, I am still filled with anticipation of the things to come.  While there is the list of things that I must review to make sure actual production is looking like the initial samples, which in this industry can be tricky; as well as a myriad of other, gritty details, mostly I am thinking about the new things I have in the works, both on paper and in my head; as well as, the fun surprises which usually turn up.  
The hunt for something new and fresh which has not yet been seen in the marketplace is basically the Holy Grail for a designer;   like looking for truffles in the forest lurking just beneath the surface.  And like a truffle; on its own, without a skilled chef who understands how to unlock its true flavor, a new finish or technique would be just that, something raw and wonderful with unrealized potential.  This becomes the challenge; to take this potentially fresh new technique and create something that will resonate with the marketplace.  
Let’s face it, it’s hard enough for an American designer to divine what might appeal to the American consumer, let alone a factory thousands of miles away steeped in its own history, and customs. The American taste level is not a global certainty; that is, what works in America will not necessarily work in other countries; and what works in other countries will certainly not always work in America;   which is why I routinely question whether a factory should devote resources to product development per se, or rather work on developing new techniques and finishes which can be used by designers everywhere, regardless of culture or country.  This is where the role of what I call the “tinkerer” becomes so critical.  Someone who is usually directly connected to the factory, and quite literally tinkers with different techniques, components, and finishes at their disposal. 
I remember walking into a showroom not too long ago, and being hit by the familiar and wonderful aroma; a mélange of paint, spice, dust, incense, and in this case the unmistakable air of the tinkerer.  There was a lady in the showroom who unlike the other factory people kept her distance.   She seemed to sense that I preferred to be alone when working in a showroom (which I do) so that I can ponder the possibilities.   I finally plucked up the courage to ask her if she was the creative genius responsible for all of these marvelous investigations, and of course she was (the tinkerer), along with being the owners wife.    
A really great tinkerer is like a great actor; they come at a problem from a variety of perspectives; making investigations if you will, and this lady was as good as I have ever seen.  In her case, that of mosaics, there are many types of materials to play with and combine using gold leaf, transparent color, patinas, and shell; a virtually limitless palette of colors, materials, and techniques.  Without the tinkerer they would just be bottles of paint, and bits of glass and gold.   And while I might not be able to use the items in their current form, they can lay the groundwork for what will become new items in my collections; as soon as I’ve made some decisions that is.
 A businessman, who’s achievements I admire greatly (we’ll call him D.R.) once referred to me as a filter.  As you might imagine, my first thought was, oh great a filter; thanks a lot D.R.!   Coffee anyone!   After thinking about it for a while I realized that it was in fact a compliment.  When a designer is traveling overseas visiting factories (some with tinkerers and some without), he or she is being bombarded with a shower of visual information; shapes, colors, fabrics, metals, glass, ceramic, jewelry, etc., and must able to assess each item, see any potential, and take something to the next level or leave it lay; hence the filtering process.  It’s not a very glamorous thing to be sure but crucial to a good designers work, because nearly everything I see on a trip has some potential of one kind or another; the question becomes, can I use it effectively?  Is it new enough or will it only be a variation on something that I’ve already done? Will it work for the American market, or should I use it for our other customers overseas; perhaps South America or the Middle East?  In the end it’s the combination and synergy of many components to bring an item to fruition; a great new technique or finish (from the tinkerer), a bit of filtering with some design acumen, and hopefully some market savvy thrown in for good measure, but alas this cannot be accomplished at home.
Therefore; once again, I find myself, this New Year’s Eve, on a fourteen hour flight racing across the Pacific at 40,000 feet, because I have a show coming up, and meetings with customers who expect to see something fresh and exciting.  On arrival, I will, as always pour over the usual tedious production details; which must be “poured over” as they ARE important, but in the back of my mind, what I’m really thinking about are the new factories I’m going to visit, because it’s there that I will find a tinkerer, if I’m lucky, so that I can filter, and design the next new thing.