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SpecialREPORT PUFFED Front-End Merchandising BOOSTS Impulse Sales impulse categories By Kathleen Furore ANDY, GUM AND MINTS ARE HIGH-PENETRATION, HIGH- frequency, high-impulse purchases. So, what do you do to capitalize on those high-profit categories? Understanding just how customers decide what to purchase is an important step retailers can take to capture a significant portion of impulse sales. "It's important to understand want and make the shopping trip as quick and simple as the customers want," Jackson-Luth says. what signage to have are some of the merchandising approaches meant to make the purchase decision easy for the shopper. Better understanding of the shopper's buying habits can help retailers decide the best merchandising approach to use at the front-end or the in-aisle candy section. at Wrigley, concurs. "Understanding the nuances of customers' buying habits enables retailers to offer customers what they Jennifer Jackson-Luth, senior manager of corporate affairs " 32 SEPTEMBER 2012 front-end check stands are the last opportunity the retailer has to get the shopper to drop one more item in the shopping cart. And that one more item is generally incremental," Dusek says. "Knowing what assortment to have, how to segment that assortment and shoppers' buying habits so you can influence those habits, especially at front-end check stands," says William Dusek, managing director with Dechert-Hampe Consulting (DHC) and project manager on the Front-End Focus, a 2009 research study conducted by Mars Chocolate North America, Wrigley, Time- Warner Retail Sales & Marketing, and The Coca-Cola Company in partnership with DHC. "Candy, gum, and mints at the the categories most commonly purchased at checkout. According to Front-End Focus, 69 percent of shoppers bought candy at checkout within the past year and 58 percent of those shoppers bought candy once a month or more. The numbers gum and mints posted were even more The Data Candy, gum, mints, magazines and soſt drinks are impressive: 72 percent of respondents bought candy at checkout within the past year, and 63 percent made that purchase at least monthly. Candy also ranks #2 in the impulse purchase category, just below magazines and above gum and mints, the study reveals. "We know that 80 percent of all front-end confectionery purchase decisions are made in-store, compared to 63 percent in-aisle," Jackson-Luth adds. "Confections are highly impulse-driven, with most brand decisions made in the store," concurs Tim Quinn, vice president of Trade Development for Mars Chocolate North America. "For example, the Mars Chocolate top brands have over 95 percent household penetration, so they are highly impulsive and generate high margins for retailers." While front-end check lanes deliver over $5.5 billion in retail sales, significant opportunities for increased sales remain, according to the Front-End Focus study, which identified a $2 billion potential in incremental sales. "The key to realizing those incremental sales is following front-end merchandising best practices," the study suggests. "Managing your front end as a department will allow you to optimize your merchandising to meet the impulse purchase needs of your customers." The Strategy There are indeed easy-to-implement, cost-effective ways to prompt customers to pick up a candy bar or other confectionery NPN Magazine n www.npnweb.com