In-Store Displays Were Used to Attract Consumer Attention

It was felt that a key to success in getting the full Jumbo-Koter product line into retail stores was an in-store display program. The cornerstone of this program was a two- foot freestanding merchandiser that included the full Jumbo-Koter product line. Wooster Brush would give the rack free to retailers. Management felt that this would be a good way to make sure that the whole product line was displayed together. Often stores will fragment product lines and scatter the different products in the line around the store. The rack encourages stores to keep all the products in the line together. Also, once retailers get the rack in, they will tend to keep the whole product line even if some items sell better than others.

Retailers were given three display options. First, they could use the freestanding rack, which typically goes at the end of an aisle. Second, they could decide not to use the freestanding display, but take the full contents of the Jumbo-Koter rack and display them on pegboard. In this case, they would be given a detailed plan-o-gram on how the display was to be set up. All of the necessary hardware and signage would be included with the in-line display. Wooster Brush would even send out people to help retailers set up the display. The third option was for the retailer to simply buy Jumbo-Koter products without the freestanding or in-line display.

A piece of literature for the consumer was included with either display option. This was an 81/2- by 11-inch sheet of paper folded in half that described the complete program. It told the consumer what each of the different mini-rollers should be used for. It also talked about the types of paint that each of these covers was best suited for. This literature was also to be passed out at trade shows at the time the display options were being demonstrated.

The display program was primarily intended for paint and hardware stores. It was felt to be unlikely that Wooster Brush would get all twenty-six Jumbo-Koter products into a mass merchandiser such as Home Depot, as there typically is not room in these stores for the full program. It was felt that in these stores, perhaps a dozen products would be accepted into distribution upon introduction, and these products would be displayed in the stores paint applicator section. If the stores were satisfied with the initial sales of these products, they might add a few additional items.