ACME'S BABY DESTINATION LAUNCHED FOR IMPULSE SALES

JOEL ELSON

MALVERN, Pa. -- As part of its renewed emphasis on nonfood, Acme Markets here, a division of Boise, Idaho-based Albertson's, hopes to stimulate traffic through its new Baby Care destination, Marc Ehle, director of general merchandise sales, told SN.

Acme launched the first Baby Care department in a 850-sq.-ft. section with 1,200 general merchandise and health and beauty care items at its 65,000-sq.-ft. Voorhees, N.J, store in September.

The nonfood items are grouped in a large selling area along with baby food to foster one-stop shopping.

The wide product assortment in the Acme Baby Care area is arranged to trigger impulse turns, with selections that range from baby HBC, toys, children's greeting cards and partyware, safety implements, vaporizers and humidifiers and kids' sell-through video.

A blue, pink and white header identifies the department, which Acme has positioned at the rear but can also be seen from the front of the store. The space needed for baby merchandise came by eliminating a department devoted to knockdown furniture.

Products merchandised in the large selling area are displayed on two facing 56-foot long gondolas with two 12-foot long low profile island cases and two 3-foot spot display fixtures down the middle.

"The baby care section has been well received by customers," said a store associate. Baby Care center products were previously offered from a number of areas around the store. During the re-merchandising for the baby destination center, Acme increased the amount of linear footage for the products by 25%, the associate added.

In a move to offer a well-rounded baby care variety, Acme merchandisers shifted a number of these product segments into the new destination center. For example, coloring books and crayons, kids cards and partyware were removed from greeting cards and set up close to kids' party goods and invitations at the baby care area, and baby HBC was shifted from the regular HBC department near pharmacy to near the baby food and diaper gondolas.

Products displayed on the island cases include 8 feet of safety accessories with retails from $1.49 to $5.99, 4 feet of health appliances, priced from $12.99 to $34.99, toys and dolls priced up to $15, and plates, bowl and drinkware priced from $2.69 to $9.99.

A six-tiered, three-foot wide metal-rack endcap with about 30 assorted sell-through video titles like Disney's "Winnie The Pooh" ($16.99) is set up at the back of the section.

Acme cross-merchandises a number of small items around the baby care areas, including clip-stripping safety devices like plastic outlet covers at $1 for a 12-pack.

Other items cross-displayed include magnetic picture frames for refrigerators ($2.39), jar openers ($1.19), children's plastic medicine spoons ($1.99), and non-toxic baby toy sets ($2.49), electrical socket covers ($1.99), pacifier holders ($1.89), cabinet locks ($1.99) and 3-packs of Pilot ballpoint pens ($1.99).

A spinner rack of baby photo albums, tagged at $3.49, is set up at the front of the baby care department. The albums hold 24 photos in sizes up to 4 inches by 6 inches.