FRAMED ARTWORK PAINTS FINE SALES PICTURE

JOEL ELSON

Merchandising framed art in a single size and price point is viewed as a key factor to the success of a promotion at several chains this summer.

"We've had tremendous success grouping things like this together as 'your-choice,' " said Steve Urgo, general merchandise buyer at Save Mart, Modesto, Calif.

Save Mart will promote San Francisco 49ers prints in a four-week framed art in-and-out that will be merchandised at 81 stores this month at $4.97. The framed art promotion will coincide with a 49ers football season promotion that will break in stores at the same time, " Urgo said. He declined to reveal details of the promotion.

Urgo described the single price point and frame size promotion as "going out with a down-and-dirty program at a nice price point with the right fashion items."

Winn-Dixie, Jacksonville, Fla., promoted one size of glass- covered prints in 16-inch by 20-inch mylar frames in a four-week promotion last month. All prints were priced at $3.97 at 342 Winn-Dixie stores in Fort Worth, Texas; Atlanta; Raleigh, N.C.; and Alabama. "It was an ideal summer promotion that went over so well some stores sold completely out of stock," said Gus Bergstrom, director of marketing at Winn-Dixie's Montgom ery, Ala., division. Promoting a single size and tagging everything at the same price point is a very simple general merchandise promotion, according to Bergstrom. "It's easy for shoppers to pick out what they want, knowing the sports figure isn't priced higher than a bowl of fruit." The Winn-Dixie divisions featured prints tied into high-profile themes in a wide range of current popular movie, sports, music, video and Olympics subjects. The selections included movie poster prints depicting "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," "Flipper" and "Independence Day," Disney characters from "Beauty and The Beast" and "Aladdin," and classics like Mickey and Minnie.

The assortment also highlighted Looney Tunes characters like Marvin the Martian, Bugs Bunny and the Tasmanian Devil, said Mike Levine, president at Super Saver Sales, Marietta, Ga., a marketing firm that arranged the promotion for Crystal Art Gallery, the manufacturer in Maspeth, N.Y. A four-week promotion of framed prints that centered primarily around Chicago Bulls players, team logos and other themed team art was a sellout at 148 Chicago Jewel Food Stores in June, according to Jay Kramer, Jewel's advertising director. "The Bulls are a hot property in this town," Kramer told SAN. Other chains that have run similar four-week promotions in June and July included 195 Acme Markets units, Malvern, Pa.; 68 King Soopers, Denver; 118 Albertson's in Florida and Washington state; 56 Abco Foods in Phoenix; 216 northern California Safeway stores; 40 Wegman's in Rochester, N.Y.; and 50 Houston Kroger units. These retailers have experienced an 80% sell-through, said Levine. Customizing subjects to store demographics also is key, according to Bergstrom.