While hardware departments have grown smaller over the years as discounters have gotten out of the major-repair home improvement business, the category remains a stable component of full-line and catalog showroom merchandise assortments.
Among catalogers, Best Products, Services Merchandise and H.J. Wilson are banking on their customers choosing higher-end closet organizers, while Consumers Distributing is featuring a broader mix."A final decision has not yet been made," said King.Wood closet organizers come in many different types of wood such as pine, oak, and maple. If you do not want to spend too much money on your closet organizer you can simply buy an organizer kit. These are available in wood, metal, plastic and particleboard. Particleboard is a pressed wood product with a laminate cover applied to the surface. Particleboard organizers look like solid wood but are less expensive.One of the most popular choices in closet organization systems are wood closet organizers. These attractive systems come with a number of adjustable shelves, clothes hanging rods and pullout drawers. You can buy organizers that are prebuilt and ready to be installed as soon as you get it home."Closet organizers do well chainwide, but they're particularly strong in our stores in Pittsburgh and Baltimore," said Murphy's Mart's Balawajder.In contrast, Consumers Distributing offers a broader mix of closet organizing products, ranging from the $67.97 Quaker organizer down to lower-end storage boxes priced at $10.67.Because of stiff competition from home centers, slow turns and low profit/space ratios, few discounters--most notably K mart and S. E. Nichols--remained in the paneling, bulk insulation and lumber business. The space which might have been occupied by these items is instead being devoted to department basics or, at chains such as Gold Circle, Richway, Venture and ALCO, to more fashion oriented, home fix-up products like wallpaper.Ceiling fans are one area expected to keep growing through this year and into next. After much promotional footballing and experiments with price points above $200, merchandisers at most chains expect fans priced in the $100 area to be the star performers. The value discounters can offer at this price point is enhanced because manufacturers have lowered prices. Many fans that were priced at $150 last year are now being sold at or near $100 every day this year.For full-line chains, hardware sales are projected to reach $4.8 billion; catalogers, with very narrow assortments, are expected to produce another $800 million by the end of 1984--10% of that industry segment's total volume.Kits need to be assembled before they can be installed - but they come with instructions that are easy to follow. The only downside to a closet organizer kit is that you can not easily customize them. They come with a predetermined number of rods, shelves, and drawers. If you need more you can buy them separately at the time of purchase and install with the kit.Further DevelopmentsUnlike other chains, Zodys, which carries 8 running feet of lower-end Wire World and Gray Line organizers with a top price point of $22.99, is planning to either get out of the category altogether or to reduce its sku's by as much as 75%, according to King.
In power tools, discounters look for growth from accessories or nontraditional electrical tools. Overall, 1984 may not be a banner year for the segment, with total sales growth a virtually flat 5%. According to most merchandisers, any real growth will come from items such as Black & Decker's popular Workmate assortment and the portable Hirsh Iron Horse, as well as small vacuum cleaners, portable lights and similar products. However, most chains expect little growth from hand-held power tools such as drills and saws or from bench tools.
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