Gift manufacturer C.R. Gibson is trying to get the attention of independent booksellers. The company, which makes a variety of gift items, including photo albums and stationery, has partnered with sales services company OneCoast to get more of its products into independent retailers. Gibson has joined a new sales program from OneCoast dubbed ND1 (for National Division 1) that offers selected companies a heftier, more focused, national sales team.
ND1, which launched in December, gives a limited number of companies access to a 95-person U.S. sales force. Currently, there are only four companies in the program; in addition to C.R. Gibson (which owns frame company Burnes of Boston), there's New Creative Enterprises (which makes outdoor living products), Mud Pie (a high-end baby and pet line) and Woodstock Chimes (which, predominantly, makes windchimes). Before salespersons can sell an ND1 line, they go through a training program and must pass a test to become certified, said John Keiser, OneCoast's senior v-p of strategic relationships.
Joseph Moore, president of Gibson, said it was too early to judge how joining ND1 has improved its business. But a rep for OneCoast said the company has opened up a number of new accounts for Gibson in the first quarter, not only at independent bookstores but at florists, card shops and other small businesses.
Moore said that, up until now, the company has had "a fairly limited representation among the independents." Noting that sidelines have long been a strong component of independent booksellers, Moore hopes ND1 will make merchandising, ordering and displaying C.R. Gibson's products easier for them. Moore knows that retailers have a lot of options when it comes to choosing what products to stock, but he believes that having a local salesperson will be an advantage. "I know a lot of retailers want to work with someone in person," he said.
