Petrie Stores Led Customers Into 5th Season

Many years ago, Milton Petrie’s Petrie Stores flourished with spring colors in December. Milton’s stores, in the late 1970’s, with Hilda Kirschbaum Gersten’s help, were full of ladies’ fashion apparel at budget prices. It was a specialty store with many units throughout the U.S.

There is a lesson to be learned here.

Milton anticipated spring. He wanted his stores to be ready and customers responded enthusiastically. Most of the department stores were still full of winter apparel and that was good for Milton’s plan. He created a 5^th season and while he disposed his winter merchandise in the back of the store, his new merchandise attracted customers and gave him extra sales. Spring was coming and Milton was ready.

There is a lesson to be learned here.

As we fast forward to 2022, we find stores full of winter fashions, that they hope they will sell in the next three weeks. It is a tough assignment at a time when global warming hurts winter shopping. Our temperatures are very mild and stores look drab. Heavy markdowns are likely to be taken around December 17, 2022.

Milton had many good ideas that would help merchants today. Many stores have negative sales after Christmas, since they often have more returns than new sales. The period post-Christmas can be used effectively to generate new sales. Retail stores should develop their own or partner with an existing shopping App to help customers find the wanted items that Santa forgot. The assortment after the Christmas Holiday is huge.

Stores have a challenge in developing “repeat” customers, customers that return to buy more and make the establishment “their” store. It could be the brand or it could be a new product that related to the first purchase. Stores must be prepared to literally knock-on customers doors with e-mails and other social media contacts to highlight merchandise that relates their previous purchases.

The availability of related products will help for retention of customers in a store. If people enjoy what they have bought, they might want to repurchase the product. Stores must be able to tell customers that their product is worth the money, and any related product helps strengthen the purchase.

I am suggesting that the period after Christmas must be used for focused promotions on the best value items. Customers have received some money, instead of another present, and they want to spend it. The customer must be convinced that there is lasting value in the product or apparel that she or he bought. Maybe an influencer might help.

POSTSCRIPT: The days of Milton Petrie are gone. He purchased a lot of store chains and his powerful concept of anticipating seasons was no longer enforced. Men like Michael Gould, who ran Bloomindale’s, were passionate about merchandise and Tony Spring who restructured the stores by moving departments, are leaders who understood their customer’s and their needs. Hopefully, retail leaders will continue to understand the need to anticipate seasons.