Gifts keep giving for drug chains

Drug Store News,  Sept 8, 1997  by Allene Symons

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Gifts are enjoying a halo effect from at least three trends that show no sign of stalling.

First is the sustained popularity of gift bags, which make gifts easier to wrap and give. Second is the popularity of gift/home environment items, products ranging from environmental-sound CDs to scented candles and holders. A third trend is the continued growth of alternative greeting cards for non-occasions, from celebration of friendship to cards offering encouragement in trying times.

These three trends create an opportunity to satisfy the impulse shopper's gift needs and, at the same time, boost front-end margins for drug chains. That's why, in the past year or two, more gift displays have begun to appear year-round on end caps or adjacent to cosmetics -- often on attractive fixtures of wicker, glass or wood -- in chains such as Walgreens, Longs, American Drug's Osco and Sav-on stores, Rite Aid (Thrifty PayLess), Genovese and Drug Emporium.

Gift displays are a natural adjacency to greeting cards. "We round out the offering of the social expressions department," said Victor Longworth, vice president of field sales for Mason, Ohio-based C.M. Paula Co., whose customers include Genovese and Drug Emporium.

Paula's product lines, all less than $10, include decorative plaques and refrigerator magnets, but Longworth explained, "Our thrust in the last year has been in dimensional desk or home counter topper figurines. It's very hot for us right now."

One line is Cheerful Reflections polyresin figurines featuring a small mirror with a phrase (such as "Good friends are for keeps"). Teddy bears, angels and "anything floral" are best-selling figurine motifs, according to Longworth.

Enesco's top-selling line is its Precious Moments figurines. Among Enesco's new mass market offerings in the less-than-$8 price range is Pretty as a Picture porcelain covered boxes, featuring Kim Anderson's photography of children dressed up as adults.

Enesco's director of sales Kevin White thinks "the consumer wants to find gifts in the $4.99-$7.99 category. If you can satisfy that, there is clearly an opportunity to grow [the gift category] in the drug chain channel." White cites Walgreens for doing "a great job" of reaching the impulse gift buyer -- another reason why Walgreens ranks above other drug chains in percentage of high-margin general merchandise sales.

Walgreens has a knack for offering items good for home decor and gift-giving, from decorative clocks and cookie jars to silver-toned tea sets.

In the gift/home decor category, Osram Sylvania offers Chandelle Reflections, a line of decorative candle holders, such as three-legged votives and hanging wall sconces.

American Greetings is targeting the gift/home environment market with its introduction this month of the Guild-House Candle Collection, which includes a variety of candle types, colors and scents along with holders ranging in design from colorful ceramics to sophisticated wrought iron.

Another gift thrust for AG is its Wish Box line, keepsake boxes priced less than $10 with pop-outs or voice chips and themes including gardening and music (one box has a pop-out piano, for example), so the consumer can match the gift to the recipient's interests. AG recently won a POPAI award for its spinner display housing 16 different Wish Box designs along with color-coordinated gift bags and padded mailing bags.

New this year is AG's personal stationery sampler, which includes a themed design (examples are Monet, angels and sunflowers) in three sizes -- an 8-inch by 11-inch pad and envelopes, a 4-inch by 6-inch pad and envelopes, and eight notecards with envelopes.

AG plans to expand its Positively line of motivational-inspirational cards, scrolls and bookmarks to include gift items in 1998. One reason for adding gifts to the line was because when consumer testing the Positively line, "we found that shoppers were looking for a themed assortment to purchase as a gift item," said AG spokesperson Sara Eames. Other popular everyday gift items from AG include the "Gifts Under $10" supertrays or satellite displays, which always include a ceramic mug in the mix.

Hallmark offers a trove of gift ideas, including mugs, in its Shoebox departments. These are presided over by life-size sculptures of crabby Maxine and her dog Floyd, who signal that light-hearted cards and gifts can be found nearby. These include caps, mugs and T-shirts with themes like music, pets, golf and retirement.

Calendars are another opportunity for consumers to match a gift with the personality of the recipient. Hallmark's 1998 calendar selection (arriving in stores this fall) includes dozens of themes for all ages and interests, including some of Hallmark's best sellers like Looney Tunes, Vintage Disney, Elvis, and Marilyn Monroe.

Hallmark Keepsake Ornaments are themed, collectible, and a good gift idea with prices starting at $7.95. Nostalgia is a strong theme in ornaments, reports Hallmark, whose new-but-nostalgic ornaments this year include Scarlet O'Hara, Howdy Doody and The Lone Ranger, to name only a few. Hallmark reports that in a recent survey, it found out that three quarters of respondents purchased Hallmark ornaments as gifts.