Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Chapters CEO unveils eco-gift store Pistachio
Hollie Shaw, Financial Post Published: Tuesday, October 14, 2008
TORONTO -- Opening an eco-gift store at which one can spend $30 on beeswax kids' crayons in the midst of an historic economic crisis might deter some retailers, but not Heather Reisman.
The chief executive of Indigo Books and Music Inc. on Tuesday launched her latest store concept, Pistachio, in a tony north Toronto neighbourhood and plans to roll it out nationally.
"The [target consumers] are the people who shop at Whole Foods and are getting on Bullfrog Power," she said. "It's an early and growing segment. The first couple of months might be tough, but this is a long-term strategy."
Ms. Reisman admitted that she was never "one of those people in Birkenstocks hugging trees" but was urged a decade ago by her children to start eating organic food and has realized it was still a relatively untapped market for gifts, beauty products and stationery.
The target consumer cited by Pistachio co-presidents Kirsten Chapman and Tracie Wagman is from the so-called LOHAS (lifestyles of health and sustainability) demographic, a fairly well-educated middle-class and upward segment willing to pay more for sustainable products, energy-efficient appliances and organic goods.
The store features recycled materials, a bright and airy design and is evocative of Ms. Reisman's style in Indigo's gifts - elegant, with a touch of whimsy. About 60% of stock is paper products, 25% is gift products and 15% is beauty. The last one is a segment that Ms. Reisman, who cites the debut of a new juice-based natural beauty line from Aveda founder Horst Rechelbacher, Intelligent Nutrients, is keen on growing.
Six to eight of the 2,000 to 3,000 square-foot boutiques will open in 2009, but Ms. Reisman envisions a couple of hundred across Canada and the U.S. over time.
"There has been a change in consumer buying habits in the last 18 to 24 months," said retail consultant Wendy Evans, president of Toronto-based Evans & Company Consultants Inc. "A core group is willing to go out of their way to buy green. This would not have worked two years ago, but the chances are pretty good now. Research shows consumers are not willing to pay a whole lot extra, but they will pay some sort of a premium. I [see Pistachio] as an urban concept first but perhaps as the word spreads as there are more opportunities beyond that. For a business like this it's about striking that balance between leading public opinion and following public opinion."
Half of the new chain's products are under its own private label or developed in concert with green manufacturers, a move that will help on pricing and margins, Ms. Reisman noted. The paper products will be sold at 50 Chapters and Indigo big box stores.
A Web site to sell Pistachio's wares will go live in three months.
i dont understand how not only still in business, but they keeping adding stores.
