Do it Best builds business in Indy

Indianapolis -- Do it Best Corp. welcomed its army of dealers to the Indiana Convention Center, where it officially opened its fall market with a kick-off presentation and a Friday night Sneak Peak buying spree.

The Fort Wayne, Ind.-based co-op's executives encouraged dealers to take advantage of its Color Bar paint program -- introduced at the 2017 Spring Market -- and exhorted them to take their marketing to the next level.

[Do it Best points to $3.2 billion in full-year sales. See article here.]

Do it Best VP of Marketing Rich Lynch pointed to a national retail landscape facing upheaval and disruption like never before, and he identified a lesson that independent hardware stores would be wise to recognize. "The thrivers and survivors have adapted to change and have adjusted their marketing strategies," Lynch said during the Kick-Off presentation Friday afternoon. "The others haven't done that."

Lynch also encouraged dealers to not only participate in a rewards program, but to lean on the marketing data that rewards programs generate. "Intelligence is going to be the key to marketing going forward," he said. "The thrivers are going to gather it, embrace it, and use it to make wise decisions."

In addition to promoting the Best Rewards loyalty program, Lynch encouraged dealers to check out the Merchandising Essentials, described as planograms to allow stores to gain market differentiation with the right products. The plannograms work in concert with a new MAX product and profit optimization system that integrates with POS data. 

Friday's highlights also included an outdoor Power Preview of lawn and garden equipment, power tools and related merchandise presented in the friendly confines of Victory Field, adjacent to the Indiana Convention Center. And the traditional and popular 90-minute Sneak Peak event on Friday night was promoted as offering "lowest prices of the year" and "deals so good they are only available for this limited time."

Nick Talarico, the co-op's VP of sales and business development, kicked off the kick-off event with a tour of The Color Bar, the co-op's store-within-a-store paint program. "It's not about selling the liquid in the can," he said. "It's about selling the color and the completed painted room."

The Do it Best Fall Market runs through Oct. 16.