Sunday, March 3, 2013

Unit Price Grab-Ass

Now let's see. We open this edgy new store that fills the angst-irony-urban twee void that Rugby's departure created. Twenty or so days into it, we start the markdown goat-rodeo. "Now wait a minute, ADG, 15% off the entire inventory is a small concession for driving traffic into the store for a true, "in-store" experience."

I wonder if the consuming public are really this gullible. Build in margins on the front-end so that the discounts, the "specials", the "this weekend onlys", the "preferred customer whatevers" and the like are just part of the promotional mix, the marketing strategy, the commercial plan. What it tells me is that we've conditioned consumers to wait. For if they do so, they are bound to get almost the entire season's line in any and every store, at 25% off...if they are only slightly patient.

As for York Street? Whatever.

Onward. In a Pee Wee Herman Suit.

ADG II


4 comments:

Anonymous said...

If by this time next month "York St." is not marked down to 25% off or more I'll be shocked...what a disaster!

PW said...

I understand having to pay for quality, but how much "better" is a $59 t-shirt versus a less expensive one? This whole endeavor just reeks of crass commercialism.

Anonymous said...

20% off- the cuffs and the legs, and almost as much off around the middle...

Triumph of literalism

ADG said...

Gentleman Mac...It's all according to who's the grabber and the grab-ee. bam.

AnonLiteral...your clever corollary will be even more so when the stuff goes to 30% off.

PW...yep. It gets to the age old wisdom regarding "how good do you want it/does it REALLY need to be?"

Anon25%...I'm pretty sure they are building margins in that will easily accommodate the 25% tweak.