IWCO Direct Agrees To Acquire Transcontinental
Direct US Operations
IWCO Direct (http://www.iwco.com)
entered into a definitive purchase agreement to acquire Transcontinental
Direct’s US operations, a high-volume direct mail organization
with a network of facilities throughout the United States. Transcontinental
Direct’s parent company, Transcontinental (http://www.transcontinental.com),
is the largest printer in Canada and Mexico and Canada’s
leading consumer magazine publisher. This acquisition positions
IWCO Direct’s platform as an unrivalled solution in the
industry for the optimization, execution, and delivery of direct
marketing campaigns. Terms of the deal are not yet disclosed;
the transaction is expected to close in the spring of 2010.
“We are pleased to combine the strengths of these organizations
to provide a robust national total package footprint for our
customers seeking innovative and cost effective programs for
customer acquisition, loyalty and engagement programs anchored
by powerful strategy development,” said Jim Andersen, IWCO
Direct president and CEO. “The IWCO Direct team is looking
forward to working with our new colleagues from Transcontinental
to create exceptional direct marketing programs for our customers.”
“Combining the production technology and world-class manufacturing
techniques and processes of Transcontinental Direct’s US
operations with IWCO Direct’s exceptional campaign execution
will provide tremendous opportunities for our customers and employees,” said
François Olivier, Transcontinental’s President and
Chief Executive Officer.
IWCO
Direct will acquire Transcontinental Direct’s US operations
in Warminster and Hamburg, Pa., Downey, Calif. and Ft. Worth, TX.
The acquisition will further IWCO Direct’s position as
one of the largest service providers of paper-based and digital
marketing programs in North America.

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Long-Term Brand Relationships Sacrificed For
Short Term Efficiency
For many of
us, gift registries no longer provide the personal experience
they once did as technology and self-service have replaced true
customer service. A Mystery Shopping Study of Gift Registries
conducted by the e-tailing group (http://www.e-tailing.com)
in 4Q '09 revealed that today merchants often opt for self-service
models where customers drive the experience and service levels
vary from a supporting cast to accessible only upon request.
Unfortunately
such cost-effective solutions may fail to connect the customer
to the brand and not take advantage of this important life experience
to make a lasting impression. "Merchants
must weigh these options to determine the right mix of technology,
resources, branding, and service to ensure that they present their
brand in its best light to garner the greatest short-term dollars
yet still make a lasting impact on each shopper," emphasizes
Lauren Freedman, President of the e-tailing group.
By exploring the relationship between the store and the online
world across a series of category verticals including the wedding
(58%), baby (27%), and general gift (15%) sectors, the e-tailing
group analyzed available consumer choices for building and buying
from registries noting the variances in the experiences.
Mystery Shoppers
tested 26 registries by tracking Amazon online only and visiting
25 retail stores to gain the consumer perspective by participating
in a multi-channel registry experience with a combination of
channels involved for research, setup, editing, and shopping. How
merchants approach registry execution and subsequent communication
were also tracked with best practices throughout the process
recorded.
Registry initiation
was available both online and in-store for 76% of the 25 merchants
with a store channel; none of these merchants limited signup to
the store channel. Self-service and cost containment factors were
clearly evident as 27% of these merchants offered registration exclusively
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likely
due to resource issues. Informational kiosks were found
in 79% of the stores, all
of which utilize them for customers to access and print registries.
However,
registry setup and subsequent revisions were a secondary option
offered by 60% with just under half (47%) enabling the registrant
to enter their initial information or the shopper to access the
Internet for order placement.
The
placement of registries within the retail store was split with
42% providing a dedicated, signed area vs. 58% handling registry
functions at a generic register. Only one-third of these
retailers had dedicated registry specialists, instead a general
cashier (68%) was apt to provide assistance. The role
of the associate ran the gamut from entering initial information
into the system (63%) to assisting customers with self-service
registration (79%) to non-involvement in the self-service process
(32%). As merchants try to do more with less, multi-tasking was
pervasive, even in this area as 23% of associates were also focused
elsewhere while assisting with registry functions.
Although changing
dynamics and continual shifting in our culture to a self-service
world can be seen in gift registries, some merchants do deserve
accolades for delivering notable customer experiences. The
following table lists the top merchants who made extra efforts
in-store and/or online. A top in-store experience often
included merchant efforts to either truly personalize the process
for the registrant through dedicated registry specialists who
were exceedingly knowledgeable and helpful or efforts to make
the registry process as streamlined and flawless as possible. A
top online registry and shopping experience entailed compelling
merchandising, helpful guides and checklists, as well as branding
messages that touted registry features and benefits.
Top In-Store
Experiences – Bed Bath & Beyond, Bloomingdale’s,
Buy Buy Baby, Giggle and JCPenny.
Top Online
Registry & Shopping Experience – Amazon, Babies ‘R’ Us,
Bed Bath & Beyond, giggle and JCPenny.
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