Cook's
Emporium: Revisited Their
Online Gift Registry Project Five Years Later
By Michelle Moran
JANUARY 01, 2005 -- The overwhelming popularity
of the extreme makeovers conducted on reality television shows these
days inspired us to revisit The Gourmet Retailer's own makeover
project, which began more than five years ago. With the advent of
the 21st century pushing us on, we created a deal with MarCole
Enterprises to make over Cook's Emporium, an independent retailer in
Ames, Iowa. The intent of the makeover was to bring their store into
the new millennium with a healthy online presence and synchronized
gift registry services. The year-long project was originally
detailed in the magazine in 2000.
Getting Better With Time While some
of today's television makeovers might not look as good as they did
when they were first completed, the Cook's Emporium project has only
improved with time. Both the creators of the software (MarCole) and
the store that first implemented it have grown during the makeover
process. "It was a very valuable project through which
we learned the needs and values of smaller, independent retailers.
We learned it's a viable and growing market," said David Pava, vice
president of sales for MarCole Interactive Services. Cook's Emporium Manager Vicky Flaws added, "It's been a
very successful project -- we have learned a lot. It's very
daunting, but we have come so far from our old notebook
registry." Yes, that's right. Cook's Emporium kept its
bridal registry in notebooks before the dawn of 2000. In fact, they
have 18 years of notebooks they still use today for anniversaries
and other special events in the lives of their prior registrants. Back when we first suggested the project, Flaws conceded,
"Yes, our bridal registry is still all handwritten in a notebook --
very 1950's. We've done a lot of talking about what we'd like to do
-- computerize the registry, get on the Web, etc., but we have a lot
of issues, such as time constraints. Margaret and I are the only two
full-time employees, as the other 10 employees are all part-timers
so talk is all we've really been able to do." Even
though the site is up and running, the issues remain the same. Flaws
and owner Margaret Junkhan remain the only two full-time employees,
but with a sales contribution of 10 percent of the store's yearly
total, gift registry plays a major role at Cook's Emporium. Flaws said she'd like to be able to spend more time
maintaining the site and wants to learn how to keep it up to date
herself. She's also interested in discovering other ways to use the
customer information captured in each registry. But all of that
requires a time investment. "It's really a full-time
job," Flaws said. "If I did everything that I'd like to do with the
Internet, it would be all that I did." Even when we
were wrapping up the project at the end of 2000, Flaws did not sound
as excited about the technology as she does today. The year 2000 was
a long year for them. It was filled with small and large victories,
big and little defeats, and huge educational growth as Junkhan and
Flaws stretched beyond their comfort zones to embrace new
technology. Even Junkhan, who admitted at the time that she didn't
believe she'd ever get the hang of the Internet, has learned some
computer lingo. Back then, Junkhan's advice for other retailers with
the same goal was patience and practice. Flaws said
the most difficult part of the project to master was learning the
language of computers, programming, and Web design. It's a lesson
she's still learning today. "MarCole's technical staff
has been very patient with us. We have a great relationship. But
understanding all of the language behind the technology has really
been a large part of my learning process. Sometimes, I have no idea
what they are talking about and I have to remind them that I am not
a computer or Internet expert. It just comes rolling off their
tongues, but to me, they may as well be speaking another language,"
Flaws explained. "I have to remind them that we are a kitchen store.
I am sure they can't make quiche."
Today's Logistics Our initial
project goal was to computerize the store's registry, secure a
non-commerce registry presence on the Internet, experiment with
scanning guns, and help Junkhan and Flaws become more adept and
proactive in promoting and implementing product incentives for
bridal couples and consultants. At the close of 2000,
Cook's had spent just under $8,000 to overhaul its gift registry
system (including a second computer system in the office that was
linked to the main floor PC), allocated approximately $1,000 for an
initial Web presence, and invested thousands of hours of personal
time. The software, Gift RegistryWorks, was provided
by Walnut Creek, Calif.-based MarCole Enterprises. The interactive
software company agreed to overhaul Cook's Emporium's gift registry
system, donate the software, and charge a nominal fee for hardware
from its business partners. In addition to packaging a
hardware/software system for Cook's, MarCole educated the staff and
management at Cook's on the new operating system. These goals that seemed so daunting five years ago have
been well surpassed. Cook's Emporium's registry is fully integrated
with scanning guns, updates automatically in the store and online,
and provides customers with an online purchase option. The Cook's Emporium Web site is their own. The gift
registry section is hosted by MarCole's site but branded with Cook's
Emporium's identity. Once at the site, the user has the choice of
creating a gift registry, updating a registry, or purchasing a
registry gift. "It's a seamless integration with
their existing site," Pava explained. "Currently, the system does
not support selection of items online. But what these small
retailers want is for their customers to start the registry online
and then come to the store and start selecting items. This way, they
can really guide them through the store and build that personal
relationship." Registrants can update their registry
online and guests can purchase items from an online registry. Pava continued, "Guests can print the registry and go to
the store to select the item or the site is e-commerce enabled with
the information processed via a secure server that is captured by
MarCole. The retailer is notified via a secure manner and they have
access to a secure site where they can retrieve the order
information. The online functionality is being kept in constant
synchronization with the system that's being used in the store." Flaws explained that while the site is not what one would
consider truly "e-commerce" capable, she is happy with the
purchasing power it's provided her customers to date. "We get a fax from MarCole alerting us of the order and
then we either call them for the credit card information or contact
the customer directly to follow through," she added. The improved services have allowed Cook's Emporium to
significantly increase bridal registry participation and compete
with the national chains. "The customer experience
parallels service that you'd find in Neiman Marcus, Linens n'
Things, or Sur La Table," Pava said. "A small single-store operation
like Cook's Emporium has the opportunity to compete worldwide. They
can take an order from anywhere. We provide a tool that really
allows the independent retailer to compete in an e-commerce-enabled
economy." And that competitive edge is critical these
days. The majority of wedding registrants is selecting where they
register with online services in mind. Their desire to update and
maintain their registries from their personal computers is changing
the wedding registry landscape. "Younger registrants
are Web savvy. They register for gifts because they want them. They
want a service that provides them the best opportunity to get all
the items they want. Even with an 800 number, these consumers
believe it's an antiquated way of doing business," Pava said. "What
we have learned is that a fair amount of volume is generated for
these small retailers by an e-commerce Web-generated business. It
allows them to compete effectively." Flaws agreed,
saying, "Once they realize we provide this service, it really helps
us. What they really look for is the ability to change their 'wants'
and 'needs' themselves from their own computers without having to
come back or call the store. They expect us to be able to compete
with the big-box stores and offer advanced services like this. And
we do -- we can compete with Williams-Sonoma and other national
chains."
Coming Soon Cook's Emporium's Web site is an entity all its own. The
gift registry service offered through MarCole acts like a site
within the site. Flaws maintains her own Web presence, which is one
area of focus for her now. "The work to maintain the
Web site has been completed outside of the store. I would like to
see it kept more up to date, so it's the next thing that I have to
learn," Flaws began. "Maintaining the site and getting true
e-commerce capabilities are our next goals." MarCole
has goals of its own with plans for a fully hosted model requiring
only a personal computer with a Web browser. "What it
means is a change from a Windows-based application to a
browser-based application though it would function the same way,"
Pava said. "We're providing another option. Rather than licensing
the software in the store, which starts at $1,200, the hosted model
would provide for a nominal setup charge and hosting fee." Plans are also in the works for online item selection
next year, which would allow wedding couples to start a registry
online and begin the selection process there as well. Flaws would like to see the creation of programs that
allow retailers to search their databases for items wedding registry
couples have on their lists -- whether they are active or inactive
registries. This way, when a manufacturer notifies a retailer of a
discontinued item or pattern, the retailer can search the registry
database and create a mailing list. Postcards urging married couples
to come in and complete their collections could then be mailed and
engaged couples can push for the purchase to be made quickly or
change their selection. Sounds like Flaws is starting to venture
further out in this new Internet-enhanced world.
HEB Central Market to Open
in Texas' Southlake FEBRUARY 08, 2005 -- San Antonio-based H.E.
Butt Grocery Co. plans to launch its fourth
Central Market in North Texas at The Shops of
Southlake in Northeast Tarrant County. According
to The Dallas Business Journal, HEB still must
obtain city and neighborhood approvals before
building the 75,000-square-foot building.
IGA Announces 2005
International Retailers of The Year FEBRUARY 08, 2005 -- IGA has named its 2005
International Retailers of the Year, who were
chosen for the annual award from the more than
4,400 IGA retailers worldwide.
Sneak Peak of
Introductions at the International Home and
Housewares Show FEBRUARY 08, 2005 -- A media event previewing
exhibitors' products at the 2005 International
Home and Housewares Show next month revealed new
trends expected to drive consumer purchases. Some
of the products have already been introduced this
year, while others will be introduced at the show
in March.
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