Frame Overload
How to manage your boards and control your inventory
By Marcy Bruch
Illustrations by Jon Krause

It's a constant juggling act. Pushing older merchandise out the door while making way for new frame lines can be challenging, especially in a soft economy. If frame buyers don't keep a vigilant eye on their inventory, they run the risk of getting stuck with unprofitable stock that overfills their dispensaries and prevents new merchandise from seeing the light of day. But it doesn't have to be that way. Here's what a few buyers are doing to keep their inventory lean and mean and their displays free of aging merchandise.

Allowing time to make room for proper displays of new collections, Dan Deutsch holds off on purchase orders for his seven locations in the greater Los Angeles area until there's sufficient space to receive the new merchandise. "And when I do buy, I try not to go too narrow and deep and stick with frame silhouettes that I know are tried-and-true bestsellers," he says.

Occasionally asking vendors to delay product shipments also works for Tona Souch, an optician for Peeples Family Eyecare in Kokomo, Ind. "If there's a new launch in the spring, but I won't have room until June, I ask the manufacturer to hold the delivery until I can accommodate the line with appropriate space," she says. "Once I'm ready to receive the line, and if the vendor only has half the styles available compared to what I ordered initially, I'll do a soft launch of the new collection and keep selling off old merchandise while the new line gradually comes in. It's all about planning ahead."

To stay on top of her product flow, Souch says that she marks new launch dates on her calendar as a reminder to make room for new products throughout the year.

BIT BY BIT

Another way some dispensers keep as little inventory as possible is by ordering just a few replacement frames at a time. In fact, individual frame orders are the norm at Seattle Vision in Seattle, which showcases about 780 frames within 2,200 square feet. This works largely because more than 50 percent of the boutique-style dispensary's vendors are high-end, European manufacturers, and owner Bruce Williams notes that they are willing to accept small orders via e-mail. "Admittedly, larger companies wouldn't accommodate us like this. We're lucky because we deal almost exclusively with smaller vendors, so ordering one piece at a time is not a problem," he says.

Still, sometimes it just makes sense to bow out of buying a new line. Now more than ever, frame buyers have to carefully keep an eye on the entry of new collections and pick and choose carefully.

"It's sort of like watching your weight. All you have to do sometimes is say no to temptations, then you don't have to struggle to lose those extra pounds in the first place," says Deutsch.

Many dispensers agree that it's increasingly important to weigh your options carefully before saying yes to a collection. It's as important as ever to keep new product flowing and to demonstrate to customers that you're on top of the trends. But, it's also important to look carefully at product with an eye to what is going to sell in your market--and to your demographic mix.

When the economy is more stable, dispensaries can splurge more on colorful, cutting-edge designs. But in the harder times, make sure you have a balanced mix. Say no today to frames that won't sell, so you'll be in good shape to grow your business. "It's all about restraint," Deutsch says.

LOWER PRICES

Discount old frames. Frank Cardinale, owner of Eye Catchers in Boca Raton, Fla., keeps his stock moving by discounting older frames. To make room for new styles, Cardinale and his sales staff are quick to lower prices for patrons on any frames that have taken up space for more than six months. "Sometimes we offer a 30 percent discount, sometimes we sell them for 50 percent off. The whole objective is to get the frames out the door," he says.

Create a discount area. An entire board stocked with discontinued styles that are significantly reduced in price is partitioned off at Foss Optical in Leominster, Mass. "Even though we let people know the frames can't be replaced if they break, we still sell at least five to six frames off that board per week," owner Barry Foss says. "There is always a buyer for a frame, just like there's always a buyer for real estate. It's a matter of marking it down until the price is right."

Provide staff incentives. Drawing staffers more into the selling game gets older frames out the door as well: Deutsch gives his sales staff a $5 bonus for every frame they sell that's more than six months old. "It's an incentive to get older merchandise out the door," he says.

Display everything. People can't buy what they don't see. One way to move inventory is to keep virtually all frames out on display. "If you store inventory in boxes and drawers, you forget about it, and before you know it, the merchandise is more than six months old and you have to mark it down to get rid of it," says Tona Souch of Peeples Family Eyecare.

"I allocate a certain number of slots on boards to each manufacturer. Then I put a tag on each frame that indicates the month we received it. When I sell the frame, I stick the tag in a drawer that's designated to that particular manufacturer. At the end of the month, I use the tags to take inventory of what's sold from that manufacturer so I know exactly what to replace on the frame boards," says Souch.

The system is beneficial in two ways: Souch knows exactly what's moving and what's not moving from a particular vendor, and she has a guide for buying future frames based on what has proven sales performance.

When you are ready to bring in a new collection, locating room for new product is as easy as finding the frameboard's weakest link.

"Before I bring in something new, I analyze what's performing and what's not, then decide what existing collection will get booted out the door. Once I find the weakest link, I mark it down until it's gone," Foss says.

With the less-successful items cleared away, he generally only buys into the minimum of a new collection. "If at all possible, I only buy about 12 pieces at first," says Foss.

Advance modeling of frames by staffers in each location gives Deutsch a hint of what will sell in his dispensaries. "I have a few staff members wear frames from a new line I'm bringing in to advertise them and test how customers will respond to them," says Deutsch.

Thanks to long-standing relationships with his European vendors, they do not enforce minimums, so Williams buys as much--or as little--of new collections as he wants. But even for him, larger manufacturers minimums are often enforced, which means making room for 12 to 36 new frames at one time.

"Minimums aren't all bad," points out Deutsch. "Because when you're buying into a new collection, it implies you've got an exclusive for that line in your area. And if the new brand is hot, that can equate into some additional profit. But if the manufacturer is selling the same line to your competitor down the road without enforcing the minimum three months later, that can totally undercut the power of exclusivity. So it's a two-way sword. You have to honor your commitment by buying into the minimum, and the vendor has to honor its commitment by giving you absolute exclusivity."

TO RETURN OR NOT TO RETURN

If a frame just doesn't sell and the dispenser wants to return it, a whole spectrum of new considerations arises.

While some manufacturers allow simple exchanges for new colors, other companies require dispensaries to purchase three pieces for every exchanged frame--which can add to frame overload. Often, manufacturers try to keep return rates to less than 20 percent annually, and they reward optical retailers at the end of the year by giving them a cash credit if their returns are at 20 percent or less.

"That puts even more pressure on the dispenser to buy prudently," says Deutsch.

When buying frames, always do so with the intention of selling. "Forget about returns, just keep marking the frame down until it sells. Take the loss and move on," Foss says.

Most importantly, work with sales reps and personal knowledge of your customers to build a frame assortment that sells.

"At the end of the day, it's about supply and demand," Deutsch says. "When you have a good sense of what your customers demand, frame overload won't be a problem."