HES Outlines Battle Plans For Q4 By Alan Wolf - 11/09/2009
Anaheim, Calif.— Home Entertainment Source (HES) is bracing for a bitterly competitive holiday season by planning aggressive dealer promotions before, during and after Black Friday. The spot promotions are designed to drive traffic into member stores, where the half-billion-dollar buying group’s A/V specialty dealers are adept at up-selling customers and attaching high-margin access...
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P.C. Richard Hosts 100th Anniv. Gala By Alan Wolf - 10/26/2009
NEW YORK — P.C. Richard & Son celebrated its 100th anniversary this month with 1,000 of its closest friends. Vendors, family members and assorted guests filled a ballroom at Manhattan's Marriott Marquis to mark the milestone with the nation's largest privately held CE and appliance chain, and to support the charitable P.
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Dealers Showing Q4 Confidence: Cardinal 10/26/2009
LODI, N.J. — A strong turnout at Cardinal Electronics' recent dealer show, combined with solid order-writing, may signal the return of customer confidence, the distributor said. More than 100 dealers attended the show here last month and placed sufficient orders to ensure ample inventory for the coming holiday selling season, Cardinal said.
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DSI Marks 31st Branch With Opening In Chicago 10/26/2009
CHICAGO — DSI Systems, a leading distributor of TVs, satellite equipment and accessories, has opened a new sales office in the Chicago community of Elmhurst, Ill., representing the company's 31st location nationwide. DSI marked the occasion with grand-opening specials for customers. “The opportunity to open our 31st branch speaks volumes to the success of the independent dealer in 2...
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ADI's CEDIA Event Draws 1,300 10/26/2009
ATLANTA — ADI and its suppliers drew 1,300 dealers to its fourth annual customer celebration, held at the Opera Atlanta Event Center during CEDIA Expo here last month. The Melville, N.Y.-based distributor also sponsored the CEDIA Learning Labs to provide attendees with hands-on experiences with the latest technology.
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Few Product Shortages Expected In The Fourth Quarter 10/26/2009
TWICE: There has been talk this quarter of spot shortages. Is there any tightness now, and do you expect a run on any categories for Black Friday and Christmas? Mark Gustavson, WYNIT: Remembering the amount of unsold inventory left in the channel after the 2008 season, we must expect that manufacturers have made production adjustments accordingly.
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HTSA Dealers Diversifying By Alan Wolf - 10/26/2009
St. Louis— Members of Home Theater Specialists of America (HTSA) are coping with the economic downturn by bolstering their businesses with new products and services. That was the major takeaway from the biannual meeting of custom installers, held here earlier this month at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.
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Mixed Views On Severity Of Q4 Price Cuts 10/26/2009
TWICE:
Will there be deeper price cuts than usual in the fourth quarter to generate traffic? Which categories may get hit hardest? Mark Feinberg, ADI: Although there probably won't be any dramatic price cuts as in previous years, the trend will continue, and entry-level flat panel and Blu-ray products will probably experience price cuts and be considered loss leaders.
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Signs Of Retail Growth Seen For Holidays This Year 10/26/2009
TWICE:
What is the current state of retail and what are the prospects for the holiday season vs. last year? Fred Towns, New Age Electronics: Although it's been a sluggish economy this year, consumers are benefitting greatly from the pricing model being adopted by many manufacturers and retailers this season.
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Flat Panel, Gaming Seem Hot Sellers For Q4 10/26/2009
TWICE: Which CE categories will do well in the fourth quarter? Why? Rob Eby, D&H Distributing: Gaming will be a good category. The upside of this space is the long-term usage that consumers get from the merchandise. We're seeing that reflected in our console sales as well as in the sale of titles and peripherals.
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Distributors Expect Holiday Sales Growth 10/26/2009
NEW YORK — Consumer demand, product availability, the possibility of deeper price cuts and which categories may drive economically battered consumers into retail stores are four issues on the minds of the industry as we enter the fourth quarter. TWICE contacted a panel of top CE distributors via email earlier this month and gathered their opinions on these issues for a virtual roundtable.
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Best Buy Upbeat On Holiday Prospects By Steve Smith - 10/12/2009
NEW YORK —Best Buy should have a happy holiday season, with the national chain growing same-store sales, emphasizing connectivity products and services, and “being there on price,” according to Brian Dunn, CEO. The company, a five-time winner of TWICE's Excellence In Retailing Award for Best National Retailer (see story, p.
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P.C. Richard Marks 100th Anniversary By Alan Wolf - 10/12/2009
FARMINDALE, N.Y. — Making it to 100 is no mean feat in any business, let alone consumer electronics retailing, and particularly within the dog-eat-dog New York metro market. But some things never go out of style, and P.C. Richard & Son's guiding philosophy of “honesty, integrity and reliability” has apparently served it and its New York, New Jersey and, most recently, Conn...
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Starpower Takes 2nd A/V Specialty Nod By Alan Wolf - 10/12/2009
Dallas — Starpower, the premium A/V retailer known for its high-end custom home-theater installations and celebrity sports clientele, has earned its second Excellence In Retailing Award from TWICE as best A/V specialty dealer. The 14-year-old company cultivated its high-profile clients and its reputation as a luxury retail brand through an unerring commitment to customer service and four ...
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hhgregg Cops Second Consecutive Win In CE/Majap Category By Alan Wolf - 10/12/2009
INDIANAPOLIS — hhgregg is well on its way to filling the void left by Circuit City as it seeks to become a second national CE and appliance specialty chain. But the company, founded by the Gregg and Throgmartin families in 1955, became a multiregional powerhouse long before Circuit's demise, with stores and distribution centers fanning out from its home turf in Indiana to markets as far s...
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Apple Stores Takes Best Vendor Award By Doug Olenick - 10/12/2009
New York— For the second consecutive year, Apple Stores has been named Best Vendor Retailer as part of the TWICE Excellence In Retailing Awards. Apple brought home the win by continuing to deliver top-notch customer service. The fact that Apple has maintained its retail standards chain-wide despite having grown to 208 locations over the last eight years speaks well of the organization.
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Amazon.com Reclaims The Best Consumer Direct Award By Alan Wolf - 10/12/2009
SEATTLE — Little more than a decade after adding CE to its assortment, Amazon.com has grown from a channel upstart struggling to gain credibility with vendors to a force of nature in electronics retailing. Indeed, the online-only retailer recently cracked the Top 10 on TWICE's Top 100 CE Retailers ranking with an estimated $3.
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TWICE Announces 2009 Excellence In Retailing Winners 10/12/2009
TWICE is pleased to announce the winners of its sixth annual Excellence in Retailing Awards. The awards program was created to honor best-of-breed merchants in consumer electronics and major appliance retailing. The winners were selected by the editors of TWICE in each of five categories based on channel of distribution and business model.
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Consumer Advocates Misinformed On Extended-Service Plans By Tom Hebrock - 09/28/2009
Christmas is coming, and I'm sure that once again a leading consumer advocacy magazine or television news show will take another shot at the extended-warranty business. As someone who has spent more than 20 years training retailers on how to successfully sell extended-service plans (ESPs), I'm always amazed that these outlets consistently display their prejudice and lack of knowledge toward the...
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