STORES Magazine - June 2008 - (Page 44)

NUTS AND BOLTS / BRANDING “We wanted to focus on what is going to grow our business quickly — the merchandising and the marketing.” — Tadd Crayton, Loserkids Winning Strategy SaaS solution helps keep Loserkids on message BY REBECCA LOGAN oserkids is on a mission to rule the action sports set. And its management team has little interest in messing around with IT issues. That’s why the California-based retailer of brands such as Macbeth, Innes, Element and Volcom recently deployed a Software-asa-Service solution. L Loserkids general manager Tadd Crayton says CORESenseIE (for Integrated Enterprise) from Saratoga Springs, N.Y.-based CORESense has helped the retailer address two major needs. The company was looking for something that could quickly and easily fill in missing pieces when Loserkids.com cut URL ties with ARTISTdirect, and it wanted a solution that would help foster brand consistency as Loserkids — previously an onlineonly retailer — ventures into the realm of physical stores. 44 STORES / JUNE 2008 “We obviously didn’t want to employ an IT staff,” Crayton says. “We wanted to focus on what is going to grow our business quickly — and that is the merchandising and the marketing.” Both have been key for Loserkids since the company was founded in 1999 by former Blink-182 bandmates Tom DeLonge and Mark Hoppus. (DeLonge remains a co-owner of Loserkids.) When the former bandmates were young, they’d lament that “there was never anyplace cool for them to shop,” Crayton says. “So they essentially started an online skate shop [that] has morphed into what it is today. It was kind of fun and games at the beginning … but it has become a much larger project.” The first Loserkids store, in San Marcos, Calif., held a grand opening bash in December, complete with a performance by DeLonge’s current band, Angels and Airwaves. Loserkids might open another store or two in California this year, most likely in the third quarter, Crayton says, and could follow with another five to seven stores in 2009 “if it makes sense.” Keeping things consistent Consistency across channels is a common goal of the CORESense customer, says Chris Martin, the company’s director of marketing. The solution “is all centrally managed, so whether you’re WWW.STORES.ORG http://Loserkids.com http://WWW.STORES.ORG

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of STORES Magazine - June 2008

STORES Magazine - June 2008 Contents Executive Editor's Page President's Page Tesco Tests Carbon Labels What Shoppers Think 10 Things You May Have Missed Numbers Worth Counting Full Price/Markdown Retail People Cover Story: Boom - or Bust Green Retailing Concept2Watch Online Marketing Building Traffic Water Management Branding Digital Marketing Loyalty Programs Special Report: Taking on Teens Supply Chain - Robo Crop Human Resources Supply Chain - Directory Assistance Loeb Retail Letter Arts Update Point of View NRF News Retail Crossword Retail Industry Calendar Last Laugh

STORES Magazine - June 2008

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