Direct recently talked with King Arthur Flour’s president Steve Voigt and spokesperson Shannon Zappala about the Norwich, VT-based catalog’s recipe for success. The 213-year-old company started its catalog operation in 1990. It now circulates about 7.5 million copies each year, and direct sales represent half of the company’s annual revenue. We asked Voigt and Zappala about the current state of the industry and how the company’s structure helps drive the business.
DIRECT: What impact has paper and postage price increases had on the catalog?
VOIGT: I think we’re like a lot of other catalogers. We absorbed [the increases] for a period of time, and then there’s the natural tendency to test papers. We did side-by-side tests and our results are similar to a lot of other folks I’ve talked with. We have traded to lighter papers over the years.
DIRECT: What do you think are the biggest challenges facing the catalog industry?
VOIGT: Amazon offering free shipping is a challenge, [because everyone now expects that]. And I think catalogs are increasingly getting a run for their money from traditional retailers. For decades, it felt like we were able to steal a larger and larger slice of the retail pie. My sense is that as of late, big box retailers and their Web components are fighting back. They’re improving their game and sticking these huge stores everywhere.
DIRECT: In the catalog creative, is there anything you look back on and wish you could have done differently.
VOIGT: We used to put props on the cover, and then found we’d have customers call and ask [to buy] the prop. We’ve learned that if we’re grabbing something that looks like a prop, we have to think long and hard. Do we make one special or do we order 10,000?
DIRECT: Which were particularly popular?
ZAPPALA: There etched glass coffee mug with the company logo.
VOIGT: Another was a baseball hat that we had originally ordered for employees.
DIRECT: King Arthur is an employee owned company. What effect does the corporate culture have on your business?
ZAPPALA: It works to increase our drive, because we’re working for each other, and not lining someone else’s pocket. [It makes you think] ‘if I do this really well, my pocket will get lined.’ The more incentive you have for that, the more creative you are, the more willing you are to take risks and work a little harder. It comes together and hopefully results in sales. You feel like you’re investing in something a little more long term if you see stock being added to your name every six months.
For more on King Arthur, see the June issue of Direct.
Network
