Amaze With Your Merchandise

How often do your products astonish your customers? Are you creating products that stop consumers in their tracks and make them say, “I must have that”? How many crave-worthy, swoon-worthy, need-it-now, amazing products are in your current line?

Too many times our merchandising plans fall short of this important component. I realize not each and every product your brand offers is meant to be in the amazing category, but a percentage of your offers should be. Customers don’t like to be bored.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art Store offers an entire pay-attention-now “Met Watch Collection” that's downright amazing on several levels. First, this grouping of eight truly unique watches is all on brand in a very big way. These timepieces are all minireminders of the various treasures in the museum’s actual collection. Whether you loved seeing these collections at the museum in person, you're a Klimt or Tiffany lover, or interested in Egyptian or Japanese art, these watches offer wearers a “mini-Met experience” that travels with them wherever they go.

The watches are colorful, eye-catching and priced exceptionally well. No doubt, these bold and artsy watches will become conversation starters — exactly what every brand manager and merchant hopes will happen.

“Being amazing” means different things to different brands. For The Metropolitan Museum of Art Store, it means being artsy, relevant and accessible. Certainly Rolex and Patek Phillipe offer their versions of incredible watches. What does “being amazing” mean for your brand?

Long-time retailer Macy’s has a motto that says, “Never fail to astonish your customer.” Products should impress your customers and give them something to talk about. Why not take an “amazing” inventory of your product line this season to see if there are enough buzz-worthy elements in your offer?