Kmart Calls on Disney Magic, Layaway to Charm Holiday Sales

As part of its new strategy to get shoppers coming into its stores and to its Web site early and often, retailer Kmart last Sunday launched a Disney “Wish & You Could Win” sweepstakes game that will extend until Christmas Eve.

The game offers in-store and online shoppers a chance to enter and win one of four types of grand Disney-themed prizes: a “Disney on Broadway” getaway vacation for four to see a live Disney production such as “The Lion King” or “The Little Mermaid”; a trip to see a “Disney on Ice” show at the city nearest the winner’s home town; a “Disney Ultimate Bedroom Makeover”, including a mural designed by a Disney artist and a complete set of either princess or “Cars”-themed furniture; and a home entertainment package of Surround Sound TV, Blu-Ray disk player, and 50 Disney titles in Blu-Ray or DVD format.

First prizes will consist of $200 Kmart gift cards, with second prizes of assorted Disney merchandise and $5 Kmart gift cards as third prizes.

Store shoppers can enter the contest as often as they like, registering which if the grand prizes they’d like to win with their entry; online shoppers can do the same at the Kmart Disney Web site.

A grand prize winner will be drawn each week for seven weeks, starting tomorrow Nov. 8 and ending on Dec. 24. The weekly drawing will also give out 15 first prizes, and 143 each of the second and third prizes. Entries will be only for the drawing at the end of the week in which they’re submitted. In other words, while entrants can send in as many entries as they like, they have to submit at least one a week to be part of all seven weekly drawings.

The sweepstakes ties into a Kmart merchandising initiative to promoted popular Disney products this holiday season, including retail offers that can only be found at Kmart. The timing of the campaign launch, coming almost four weeks before the traditional “Black Friday” start of the holiday retail season, also makes part of a concerted effort by Kmart to encourage shoppers to start coming to its stores early rather than waiting for Friday Nov. 28.

“We wanted to start early to create some consumer excitement and fun,” says Tom Aiello, vice president of public relations for Kmart and its parent company Sears Holdings. “Disney has great appeal with moms, and if they want to go to Kmart to get those items, they can also enter to win some great Disney prizes.”

Besides the Disney sweepstakes, Kmart has tried to jumpstart holiday sales this year by launching its holiday-themed circulars and newspaper inserts early, in late October. It has also been publicizing its layaway plan under which shoppers can hold an item by paying just a portion of the purchase price, then come in before the holidays, pay the remainder and take the item home.

Kmart sees layaway as an important way to differentiate itself from other big-box retailers and has begun featuring the service in its TV spots. Discount retail competitors such as Wal-Mart and Target suspended their layaway programs in 2006, Aiello says.

“All of a sudden, that has become significant in this economic environment, since it lets shoppers have an option other than using their credit cards,” he explains. “Layaway all of a sudden s a great consumer solution, because it empowers me to take advantage of early sales and to get an item before it’s out of stock without incurring any credit card fees.”

“As we were planning our holiday strategy with focus groups, starting the holiday sales early and offering layaway were two things they said would help make the holidays more manageable,” Aiello says. “We’ve also just started six months of zero-percent financing for purchases on a Kmart credit card.”