Discount soccer apparel

Discounters are championing their children's apparel assortments after years of taking these destination departments for granted.

New fashions, better displays and more coordination are key. Private label expansions and the introduction of traditional and direct-to-retailer licensed lines are also growing. These are all moves to restore vitality to a core business--one that mass merchants have long dominated, but have not always pampered.

Discounters in '96 gained back some of the share of boys' apparel that they had given up in '96, when specialty chains and mid-tier chains showed solid improvement. According to the NPD Group, Port Washington, N.Y., mass merchants saw their share erode by 2.1 percentage points in '95, down to 31.8% of dollar volume. The share bounced back to 33.1% last year, however, while the competing retail channels stalled out.

Specialty chains are still gaining on the girls' side, having moved up from an 8.1% share of dollar volume in '94 to a 10.1% share last year. Discounters' share of girls' grew more slowly, up from 33.7% in '94 to 34.8% last year.

Kids' apparel sales in all channels reached $20.6 billion in '96; NPD said the components were: $11.7 billion for boys', up 4.4% and $8.9 billion for girls', up 1.9%.

So what are discounters doing with their $7 billion worth?

"We have narrowed our assortments, as we have throughout all apparel, and we make the floor look fresher," said Mark Minsky, senior vp, gmm, soft lines, Caldor. "Narrowing helps in several ways. It has helped a lot with staying in stock; it has helped give more identity and focus to the department, which is more impactful to the customer."

Minsky noted that a narrow assortment "runs the risk of being boring." To combat that effect, Caldor is flowing fashion colors more frequently, as often as every two months. "We are changing the focal corners more often, too," he said.

Vendors applaud more frequent palette changes. Larry Plitnick, national sales manager French Toast, said all discounters should continue their efforts to "shorten the seasons" and increase product turn by flowing in more fashion for transition periods after Back-to-School and the spring season.

Good advice, and retailers increasingly choose to bring freshness to assortments through their own labels.

Among the private labels Hills Stores is adding is Pro Sport, a boys' activewear line introduced this spring. "It has performed well above our expectations," said Manny Francione, vp, gmm, men's and kids'.

Hills plans to unveil a girls' fashion private label for fall. The chain already uses Great Moves for girls' active "funwear" and On Cue as a step-up, fashion-forward basics line.

"For girls, we'll see a turnaround this fall in the bottoms business," Francione said, adding that wide leg and carpenter looks are helping denim sales. "And the limited amount of casual pants we tested for Easter did well."

Wal-Mart continues its roll-out of private label, captive brand and direct-to-retailer licenses. In addition to the all-cotton sportswear Basic Equipment, denim-driven Faded Glory and basic activewear in the McKids line Wal-Mart translates its captive brands White Stag into girls' sets and Catalina into boys' items including 100% cotton polos.

Wal-Mart has also built up its SporTrax soccer-style private label line, introduced last year, and continues to work with Garan for boys' low-priced polos and tees and Gitano for girls promotional denim-friendly styles.

At Kmart, the Route 66 direct-to-retailer license is now translated into kids' denim as Lil' 66, abundantly visible in fashion silhouettes and bright colors. Kmart's launch of the Sesame Street line for fall '97 will be another differentiator.

Sports and entertainment licensed goods produced by resources including M. Hidary, Haddad, Team Glasgow and Gemini play an important role, as do brands such as Wrangler, Chic and French Toast. But the array of new and extended house labels are aimed at differentiation, margin dollars--and Target, which continues to set the pace in kids' apparel.

Jack Hidary, principal at M. Hidary & Co., pointed to floor presentations as the most persistent challenge for discounters. While praising Target for its "department store level" of flow and ambiance, Hidary said each retailer must develop a niche. "It might be `tonnage' for Dollar General. At their stores, for their customers, low-priced goods in a broad assortment stacked up in piles is a winner.

"Make it easier for consumers to shop," he added. "It could be done in 10 different ways; there is no single method. Every chain can improve."