Quri Reveals Keys to Merchandising Success for Big Brands Ahead of Labor Day

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Quri, the leader in Performance Driven Merchandising™, is announcing today critical lessons learned from its "Summer of Merchandising" data, giving brands the keys to drive ROI ahead of Labor Day. Quri has been tracking merchandising performance both on- and off-shelf for 45 brands in 14 categories at Walmart and Target stores for 16 weeks from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Results show that by making key adjustments, merchandisers could see up to a 5% sales gain and close out the summer strong.

Lesson #1: Close That Gap On In-Store, On-Shelf Availability! Brands Need High Margin Sales Growth In Today's Challenging Macroeconomic Environment

Properly defining and measuring on-shelf availability (OSA) by capturing a true shopper view of the shelf is vital to maintaining sales. Quri found OSA levels dropped as much as 50 percentage points immediately after the Memorial Day and Fourth of July in-store promotional periods. Furthermore, data indicates OSA levels are consistently between 2 and 20 points lower than the 98% OSA rate reported by the industry when using inadequate monitoring strategies. 

Quri's data indicates that nearly every brand in the study had significant gaps in OSA during key summer weeks. For example:

• Banana Boat Sunscreen averaged only 89% in Walmart for the past 10 weeks ending July 24th
• Aquafina Water maintained only 74% in Walmart for the 2 weeks ending July 17th
• Hershey Bars dropped to 77% in Target the week ending July 24th  
• Breyers Ice Cream averaged only 87% in Walmart for the 3 weeks ending June 19th
• Repel Insect Repellant bottomed out at 43% in Target for the week ending June 19th

A two-percent drop in OSA typically results in a one percent loss in sales. For highly seasonal categories, it is imperative to maintain strong levels of OSA in order to capture full ROI during this critical period.

"In an industry challenged for growth, uncovering a significant and highly achievable growth opportunity is welcome news," comments Justin Behar, CEO and co-founder of Quri. "Through routine reporting based on what shoppers actually see on-shelf, leading brands are increasing OSA levels on a store-by-store basis by both fixing routine execution problems and diagnosing more systemic forecasting issues."

Lesson #2: Keep It Fresh! Maintain Summer Displays Routinely For Incremental Sales and Share Gains

There is a tendency to "set and forget" summer displays when in reality these need to be maintained routinely. Quri found that from Memorial Day through July 4th display coverage dropped 41% to 21% overall. For seasonal brands under time restraints to maximize ROI, coverage fell from 61% to 30%. This highlights missed opportunities to capitalize on promotional spending for increased incremental sales throughout the summer.

Sunscreen brands included in the data (Neutrogena, Coppertone, and Banana Boat) saw a 43 percentage point decrease in display coverage in Walmart from Memorial Day through July 24th. These same brands saw a 36 percentage point decrease in display coverage at participating Target stores. 

Every three points of display compliance lost, typically results in a one percent loss in sales, making it imperative to maintain strong display execution throughout the summer promotion period.

If armed with a real-time, quantified shopper view of stores, innovative manufacturers can instruct retail execution teams on where to go and what to do routinely at the store-level and avoid sales loss. Additionally, these CPG brands are not only maximizing return on spend from trade promotion, but also gaining share relative to competitors who fail to keep pace.

Lesson #3: Get Those Displays Out of the Home Aisle! Your CFO Will Appreciate the Profitability Increase

Quri's data indicates displays are placed in the home aisle 42% of the time, on average, across all categories. Yet, displays outside the home aisle are up to three times more effective at driving incremental sales. Examples of brands frequently displayed in the home aisle include: Carbonated Beverages 52%, Condiments 52%, Bottled Water 45%, Personal Care 64%, and Beer 39%.

Displays that are interesting, appealing, and clearly communicate the product are far more profitable when they disrupt shoppers outside the brands' home aisle.

"Customers like Target and Walmart are more likely to execute on a brands' promotion plan, as intended, if they understand the ROI that's in it for them," comments Behar. "Brands who consistently show customer's the benefits of a quality location see much better results from their promotional spend."

About "Summer of Merchandising"Quri's "Summer of Merchandising" service is a free industry offer, giving merchandisers and major CPG brands a close look at the in-store performance both on- and off-shelf of 45 brands in 14 categories at Walmart and Target stores from Memorial Day to Labor Day. This data is supported by a series of informative webinars and private events with the next one taking place on August 18 at 2pm ET/11am PT.  The discussion will focus on everyday applications for manufacturers across a variety of functions.

You can register for the webinar and also find additional information by visiting Learn.Quri.com. Additionally, any of the 45 brands, or category competitors, tracked in Quri's Summer of Merchandising are invited to review data and insights for their brand privately by contacting us at [email protected].

About QuriQuri is the leader in Performance Driven Merchandising™, transforming the in-store experience by providing consistent, real-time, store-level visibility into merchandising conditions across all major channels and retailers in the US market.

Procter & Gamble, SC Johnson, Nest, Red Bull, Tyson, Nestle, and Johnson & Johnson plus 100+ other global companies rely on Quri to help optimize the $4 trillion dollars spent annually on retail go-to-market and in-store merchandising. Quri is powered by proprietary data quantifying the shopper view in-store and collected by an on-demand retail workforce. For more information, visit http://quri.com.

Quri Media Contact: North 6th Agency, Inc.  212-334-9753, [email protected]

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SOURCE Quri