darrah & co. summer 2012 magazine

SUMMER 2012

Women’s Accessories

PLUS: How to Use Facebook Effectively as a Retailer

Meet Three of Our Most Fabulous Reps

What you need to know about this hot category

Atlanta International Gift Market:

July 11-18 — Special VIB Day on July 10

Darrah & Co.Suite 1818Gift Mart

ComeVisit Us!

Luminaries

& Fans too!

Where do YOUR

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2 DARRAH&CO. SUMMER 2012

IN EVERY ISSUE

Let’s Chat!Vicki Darrah and Lindsay

DeMyer welcome you to July market.

Trend AlertRetailers flock to Facebook

to offer customers a personal

look at their stores.

Meet the RepsGo behind the scenes with

three of our wonderful sales reps.

Coming AttractionsSummer market will sizzle with

special events, deals, line signings,

and more at Darrah & Co.

CONTENTS SUMMER 2012

COVER STORY

The World of Women’s Accessories

Shoes, purses and rings, oh my —

ladies love to accessorize, no matter

the economic climate.

Darrah & Co. Ltd.230 Spring StreetSuites 1818, 1819, 1812 & 1834Atlanta, GA 30303(404) 577-6538; (800) 741-6614 Fax: (404) 577-9278www.darrahreps.com

Madison Miles Media GroupPresident Adam WeissCreative Director Mario MedinaEditor Haley ShapleyDesigner Ben CarpenterCover photo by Jimmy Clemmons

Darrah & Co. is published twice a year by Madison Miles Media Group, 600 Six Flags Drive, Suite 400, Arlington, TX 76011. Visit Madison Miles Media Group on the Web at www.madisonmilesmedia.com. No part of this publication may be reprinted without permission. © 2012 Darrah & Co.

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As most of you have heard (we

hope!), we are so appreciative

of you, our loyal, resilient and

awesome buyers! Darrah & Co., along

with our neighbors here on the 18th

floor, are throwing a party (or parties) to

celebrate YOU! It all kicks off on Tuesday

with VIB Day. Come shop early and enjoy

unique specials and yummy food while

you get the royal treatment. On Wednes-

day, we are hosting Customer Apprecia-

tion Day, and Thursday through Saturday,

we will have live music, food and drinks to

show you how much we appreciate you

all! If you haven’t called your sales rep for

an appointment, do so now!

Speaking of our sales reps, we have

taken the opportunity to introduce you to

three more of our great reps, all of whom

have been with us for about a decade or

more. They have a tough job, but these

three manage their territories with pro-

fessionalism, grace and hard work.

These reps have been successful in the

industry for a long time, which means

they know how to adapt to change. And

there’s perhaps no better example of

change than the influx of social media

sites we’ve seen in the past few years.

Check out our Trend Alert article (page

6) for information on how retailers can

take advantage of the biggest social

media presence of all, Facebook.

While it’s great to experiment with

new strategies for your store, sometimes

it’s nice to know that the tried and true is

there as well — and women’s accesso-

ries definitely fits into that category. Our

feature article (page 10) delves into the

topic of selling shoes, jewelry, scarves

and more. We have a lot of strong lines

profiled in the story, and we think you’ll

be as impressed with them as we are.

Also, don’t forget to read Coming At-

tractions (page 16) to get the lowdown

on new lines, events and much more.

See you soon!

Thanks to You

LET’S CHAT


When Facebook launched in

the beginning of 2004 at

Harvard, no one could’ve

imagined what it would morph into.

But now, eight years later, it’s spread

far beyond the walls of the Ivy League

institution in which it started, with a

reported 900 million active users.

What does this mean for retailers?

One-quarter of consumers now visit

an official Facebook page for a retailer

or consumer product at least once a

month, according to a 2011 study by

Compete, a Kantar Media company that

works with brands to improve their mar-

keting based on the online behavior of

consumers.

“Our data show that Facebook pages

can be a highly strategic and relatively

low-cost marketing tool for retailers

to engage with shoppers,” said Debra

Arbesman, Compete senior associate,

retail and consumer products, in a press

release. “Savvy retailers are now making

Facebook pages part of an integrated

online shopping experience, and we

expect this model will take the industry

by storm in the coming months.”

Making a Personal ConnectionChaffee Braithwaite, owner of upscale

baby boutique B Braithwaite in Atlanta,

has been running her store’s Facebook

page for about two years, posting at

least four to five times a week on a va-

riety of topics, including special events

and new arrivals.

“We get a great response from our

Facebook page,” Braithwaite says. “It is

important to understand who your cli-

ent is and what they’re looking for from

The Age of FacebookHow retailers can take advantage of the behemoth social media service.

TREND ALERT

you. We have a unique store — we create

personal relationships with our clients

because we are working with them dur-

ing a very personal part of their life.”

As a result of this — and because the

majority of B Braithwaite’s customers

are women in the 25 to 40 age range —

Facebook is an ideal outlet for the store,

Braithwaite adds. “Women and mothers

tend to share a lot with one another

about their experiences — they are look-

ing for advice and [insight on] how they

are doing managing motherhood and

their life,” she says. “We use Facebook

Keeping production within the country is a greener option, says Georgia-based shoe manufacturer OKA b.

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to integrate our business into those

subjects of their daily motherhood life.”

Influencing Buying DecisionsManufacturers, too, find Facebook to

be a worthwhile marketing tool. Bun-

nies by the Bay answers any questions

shoppers post; Deco Breeze posts fun

photos and asks fans to write captions

for them; and Novobeads boasts more

than 64,000 fans who interact with the

page, to name just a few.

Shoe manufacturer OKA b. has been

active on the social media site for about

two and a half years and uses Facebook

to reach retailers and end users. “It’s a

fun way to do promotions and contests

and engage with customers,” says Kelly

Schmidt, vice president at OKA b. “It gets

people to know the behind-the-scenes

things going on at OKA b.; they know

more about our company than just what

they see on the website.”

Don’t underestimate how important

that connection can be. Compete’s re-

search found that more than 20 percent

of consumers said that Facebook pages

have been “influential” or “extremely

influential” in making a purchasing deci-

sion, which suggests that posting sales,

promotions and other calls to action on

Facebook can be a great way to drive

incremental sales.

An Untapped MarketRemember, though, that social media

marketing isn’t the same as a tradi-

tional advertisement. “Don’t push sales

on your Facebook page!” Braithwaite

says. “Your Facebook page should cre-

ate a desire to want to go to your store.

It should make your clients feel like

you’re letting them in on a behind-the-

scenes look at your business that gives

them a deeper personal connection to

your store.”

That doesn’t mean the opportunity

to sell doesn’t exist — it’s just a softer

sell, made through getting your cus-

tomers excited about you and what

you have to offer. The Compete report

found that more than half of respon-

dents say they use retailers’ Facebook

pages to keep up to date on sales and

promotions. Additionally, nearly half

of consumers say they are a fan of five

or more retailers/brands on Facebook.

“The opportunity for retailers may

be largely untapped,” said Matt Pace,

Compete managing director of retail

and consumer products, in a press

release. “As more data is available to

retailers about the benefits of engag-

ing shoppers on Facebook, we’ll likely

see more emerging strategies to en-

able brands to more aggressively tap

into this opportunity.”

Still wondering if you should set up a

Facebook page for your store, or post

more regularly to it? As Braithwaite says,

“It can’t hurt to try” — and just like Face-

book’s meteoric rise, you just may find

brand loyalty and sales increasing more

than you could have imagined.

“One-quarter of

consumers now visit

an official Facebook

page for a retailer or

consumer product at

least once a month.”

OKA b. promotes new products on its Facebook page, which has attracted

more than 9,000 “likes.”

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COVER STORY

SUMMER 2012 DARRAH&CO. 11

Accessories may be second-

ary to an outfit, but there’s

nothing second f iddle

about this product category

— women’s accessories have been a

strong trend in the industry the past few

years, and Darrah & Co. has responded

by bringing in and continuing to support

powerhouse lines in this arena.

“There are a lot of reasons retailers

are flocking to this category: higher

margins, women love to buy fashion

for themselves and as gifts, and more

dollars per square foot in the stores, to

name a few,” says Lindsay DeMyer, vice

president at Darrah & Co.

The Perfect Gift If there’s one thing most women can

never get enough of in their closets,

it’s shoes. And what women want these

days are shoes that are practical and

pretty, all in one package. Enter OKA b.,

a spa and fashion footwear line made in

the USA. “Our core concept is that we’re

comfortable and cute at the same time,”

says Page Timmerman, director of sales

at OKA b.

The fall collection will include shoes

in jewel tones and some with a tribal feel

at a higher price point. Everything has

an ergonomic footbed, so they’re great

for posture and feet. “People purchase

Shoes, purses and rings, oh my — ladies love to accessorize, no matter the economic climate.

Women love trying on bags in stores, including these from Tikka, an eco-friendly line.


the shoes because they see them and

like the way they look, but once they try

them on, they become a customer for

life,” says Kelly Schmidt, vice president

at OKA b.

Another great selling point for OKA

b.’s ballet flats is that they come in a gift-

able box and in boutique sizing. “When

you’re purchasing them as a gift for

someone, you don’t have to necessar-

ily worry about a person’s shoe size,”

Schmidt says. Plus, unlike something

purely decorative, shoes are a present

that’s always practical. “People want

to make sure they’ll be spending their

money on something someone will ac-

tually use and enjoy,” Timmerman adds.

Bling’s the ThingAnother great quality about accessories

is that they’re bought repeatedly — es-

pecially when it comes to jewelry. That’s

something Novobeads knows well, as a

manufacturer of high-quality beads for

customizable bracelets. The made-in-

America beads, in a huge range of col-

ors, materials and designs, from French

horns and cowboy hats to snowflakes

and lighthouses, keep customers com-

ing back to a store again and again.

“One of the things about beads is that

it’s not a single purchase,” says Don

Clark, director of marketing for Novo-

beads. “You don’t buy one bracelet and

walk away; before you even leave the

store, you have ideas in your mind about

what you’re going to get next.”

Jewelry is also a good basis for

themed events and promotions in your

store. “This is a category that lends itself

very well to after-hours events,” says Tim

Young, president of Novobeads. “You’re

holding events where you’re going to

get large numbers of people and get

pretty impactful sales.”

More Bang for the BuckWith everyone’s eye on the bottom line,

Mark Ferrel, CEO at Amanda Blu, which

includes a jewelry line, and J. Michelle,

known for its pearls, keeps his products

high-quality yet competitively priced.

“We buy right from the pearl farms. What

that does for the retailer and consumer

is really give them about the best price

that you could get — I’ve never seen

anybody’s real pearls that are less ex-

pensive than J. Michelle,” Ferrel says.

The J. Michelle line has tripled in just

a couple of years, thanks in large part

to its great pricing. “The consumer is

value-conscious, more value-conscious

in the last three or four years than any-

time I can remember in my lifetime,”

Ferrel says.

Value-conscious, however, is different

from inexpensive. J. Michelle’s pearls are

top quality, and the jewelry comes with

an easy-to-work magnetic closure that’s

strong, ensuring it stays clasped, while

Amanda Blu beads are nicely silver-

plated. When the company was testing

some gold-plated elements on a bangle,

they decided to pay 25 percent more

when the material just wasn’t holding

up as well as they wanted it to. When it

comes to turning shoppers into repeat

customers, that kind of quality in your

women’s accessories offerings will keep

them coming back for more.

Prettifying Your StoreIf you need a little eye candy or pop

of color in your shop, women’s ac-

cessories are a good way to go. Stu

Fishman, managing partner of the Tikka

line of accessories, says the items “spice

up a store” with their vibrant colors

and eye-catching designs. Because the

bags, scarves and belts are made from

repurposed saris and help keep women

in small villages in India employed, they

“People want to

make sure they’ll

be spending their

money on something

someone will actually

use and enjoy.”Consumers are always adding new beads to their Novobeads bracelets, which brings them into the store all the more often.


appeal to women on both a fashion and

emotional level.

Plus, as Fishman points out, stores

don’t have to worry about stocking dif-

ferent sizes, as accessories such as bags

and scarves are one-size-fits-all. That

also makes them super easy to model

right there on the spot. “Women love to

try on scarves and bags; it keeps them

in the store a little bit longer,” Fishman

says. “The longer you keep someone in

a store, the more likely they are to buy.

Women’s accessories are a very sticky

category that keeps the customer there

longer, which increases the percentage

of sales.”

Although the environmentally friendly

Tikka line is less than two years old,

it’s already taken off with tremendous

sales. This market, they’ll debut belts and

pure silk scarves, and a new line called

Mountain Wildflower will offer chiffon

scarves that are suitable for all seasons.

Repeat CustomersIn any retail business, keeping the cus-

tomers you already have returning to

your store again and again is the best

way to rack up sales — and a pair of cute

shoes, a fun bracelet, a multipurpose

scarf and a fun-yet-functional handbag

are great ways to do just that.

“The fact is that women continue to

buy fashion accessories even in a down

economy,” Ferrel says. “They may not

buy a business suit, but they’ll put a

new scarf on; they’ll accessorize their

outfit with a new bracelet or ring or

necklace.”

The Amanda Blu jewelry line stands out due to its high quality at a low price.

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A t Darrah & Co., we’re lucky to

have an army of amazing reps

who provide top-notch service

every day in their role as the crucial link

between retailers and manufacturers.

This issue, we’re pleased to highlight

three who have been with our company

a decade or longer:

The Accidental Dream Job: Dave ClarkDave Clark never set out to be a sales

rep, but with two decades in the posi-

tion, he’s found his niche. “I became

a rep in this industry strictly because I

needed a job,” he remembers. “I’d been

a stockbroker for a while, and I took the

job as a temporary measure to have

some money coming in.”

Now that he’s found it, though, it’s a

position he doesn’t intend to let go. “It’s

not like having to go into a job every

day and work from 9 to 5 or any of that

kind of thing; we just go and have fun,”

says the 11-year Darrah & Co. veteran,

who lives with his wife and four cats and

enjoys hanging around on the computer,

lounging at the beach and cooking.

Clark, who covers most of Missis-

sippi and West Tennessee, finds that his

extensive experience comes in handy.

“I’ve been doing this around 20 years

now, and because of that, I have a

perspective on how things are and how

things aren’t and how things are going

to be that takes a while to learn,” he

says. “When you’re brand new in this

business, you hear about some hard

economic times, but being in it a long

time, you know it’s nothing but a thing

and everything passes.”

One thing that isn’t passing? Clark’s

commitment to his work, as surprising as

that would’ve been to him when he first

started out. As he says, “If somebody

would’ve told me that 20 years later I’d

still be selling teddy bears, coffee mugs

and wind chimes, I would’ve told them

they were crazy.”

Going Coastal: Mary SalterAs a rep for a long, narrow area in

southeast Florida from Fort Pierce

to Key West, nature lover Mary Salter

can be in the Everglades seeing an al-

ligator one day, and the next down in

the Keys. “I love that independence of

being out, driving around in beautiful

areas,” she says.

The area is undeniably scenic, but

it has a unique set of considerations.

“One of the challenges for my territory

is we’re very seasonal; we have a 12-

week window where our population

doubles,” Salter says. “Retailers have to

do as much as they possibly can quickly,

so it makes my territory a lot different

than others.”

Salter takes her 11 years of experi-

ence at Darrah & Co., plus previous

experience as an independent sales rep

and small manufacturer, to help her

customers carry the best possible lines

for their stores. “I’m not pushy at all;

I sell to them like I were selling to my

mother,” she says. “People find me easy

to communicate with and talk to. I know

everybody’s life story, it seems like.”

Good communication is also what

she values from working at Darrah &

Co. “They’re good at communicating,

yet they don’t tell me how to do it,” says

Salter, who in her spare time is involved

with nonprofit organizations that help

people in distress. “They give me the

tools to do my job but don’t expect me

to do it in their particular way.”

Representin’Get acquainted with a Mississippi cooking fan, a Florida nature lover and an Atlanta travel devotee.

MEET THE REPS

“I’ve been doing this

around 20 years now, and

because of that, I have a

perspective on how things

are and how things aren’t.”


In the City: Sarah BishopNo matter their age, many people strug-

gle with what they want to be when they

grow up. Not so for Sarah Bishop.

“I plan on retiring with Darrah,” says

Bishop, a sales rep who covers the metro

Atlanta area. “It’s a unique organization

and I’m very proud to be a part of it, and

I mean that wholeheartedly.”

That doesn’t mean the job is easy.

Serving a major metropolitan area as

spread out as Atlanta means a lot of

time in the car, particularly in heavy

traffic. There are also the day-to-day

challenges of drumming up business

in a down economy. “You have to think

outside the box and look in different

avenues,” Bishop says. “When your cus-

tomers are hit hard, you have to look at

creative ways to sell.”

Nurturing the customer relationship

is one of the things this Kennesaw State

University grad takes seriously. “I try to

stay on top of my accounts and really try

to be diligent about servicing my cus-

tomers,” says Bishop, who’s coming up

on 10 years with Darrah & Co. “I believe

that the customer is always right. They

know that I’m not going to push them

on something and be a hard sell if I don’t

really believe in it.”

When she’s not working, Bishop en-

joys traveling, reading and cooking.

But thankfully, she also loves her job

— and plans to do it for a long time

to come.

“I’m very fortunate to have the terri-

tory I have,” she says. “Even though the

traffic gets on my nerves, I still abso-

lutely love my customers — they’ve been

very good to me.”

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“I believe that the

customer is always right.

They know that I’m not

going to push them on

something and be a hard

sell if I don’t really

believe in it.”


W ith summer market com-

ing up, we’ve planned all

kinds of activities to help

you have both a fun and productive visit.

Here’s what you can expect:

We love our customers. Come to

market a day early on Tuesday, July

10, for VIB (Very Important Buyer) Day,

where we’ll roll out the red carpet for

you, with lunch, special discounts and

prizes. We’ll also be participating in

B.A.N.D. (Buyer Appreciation Night &

Day), an 18th-floor party in the evenings

from Thursday to Saturday with bands

playing, food, drinks and more.

Into the night. One of our most pop-

ular traditions, dinner from The Varsity,

will be on Saturday night, so don’t miss

the burgers, hot dogs, chips and fried

pies from this legendary Atlanta carhop.

Break out your pillbox hats and pocket

squares, because on Friday at 4:30, It’s

a Wrap will host a Mad Men–themed

party, while Glory Haus will have a Cele-

brating Christmas in July party on Friday

at 5 p.m. Artist Laura Kirkland will be on

hand for signings.

Meet the artists. Speaking of artist

signings, here’s the current schedule:

Thursday at 5 p.m., Jill Alford with Glory

Haus; Friday at 4 p.m., an artist from The

Dish; Friday at 4:30 p.m., Joyce Birchler

with Switchables; Friday at 5 p.m., Amy

Griffith with Glory Haus; and Saturday at

4 p.m., Jennifer Stevens-Nicholson with

Brushfire Designs.

We hope you’ll stop by the showroom

often and can’t wait to see you soon!

Get ReadyAt summer market, prepare for music, food, parties, great products and more, all in the Darrah & Co. showroom.

COMING AT TRACTIONS

www.annaleece.com/darrah • 866.401.6700AmericasMart • Darrah & Co. Showroom #1818

Annaleece is a proud new partner with Darrah & Co. and is happy to offer a Summer Show Special of

10% off purchases of $750 or more.

www.annaleece.com/darrah • 866.401.6700AmericasMart • Darrah & Co. Showroom #1818

Annaleece is a proud new partner with Darrah & Co. and is happy to offer a Summer Show Special of

10% off purchases of $750 or more.

Darrah & Company, Ltd.Atlanta Gift Mart, Suite 1818230 Spring StreetAtlanta, GA 30303

Ph: 866.953.1762www.GloryHaus.com

Fax: 770.919.0154

Darrah & Co, Building 2, Suite 1818

darrah & co. summer 2012 magazine

Documents

darrah company

pm darrah

madison miles media

wonderful sales reps

special vib day

contents summer

great reps

gift mart comevisit