Croscill Enriches Branded Presence

At the New York Market — For Croscill, it's in the displays.

The company is quietly testing a new in-store LCD fixture which runs a loop promoting an individual retailer's Croscill assortment. The flat-panel screen is set in a rich wooden frame fastened atop a headboard that floats above a Croscill-dressed bed. The frame is emblazoned with Croscill's trademark slogan: "It's in the details."

The loop isn't video. It's a satellite broadcast. In order to counter the mishaps that plague so many in-store video displays, sensors at the broadcast center sound an alert if the film goes off line, or, as has happened at one store, the fixture becomes unplugged. Croscill can phone the store immediately and get the tailored broadcast back online.

The customization factor lends other benefits, as well.

"If it's a store where you've got just one bed on the floor and everything else is on the shelf, you can still merchandise the other beds," said Julie Brady, office of the president.

The broadcast can also be used to direct shoppers to Croscill merchandise in the window and bath departments, noted Bill Heisler, vp sales manager and product development liaison. In addition, a crawl can be added to the bottom of the screen to call out special promotions.

For Croscill, which staked a resonant in-store profile in the 1990s by installing self-branded fixtures, it's a 21st century take on a point-of-sale classic — without commandeering an inch of floor place.

In-store tests have been underway for only about a month, executives said. This week they will meet with retail execs to find out what impact the display is having on sell-through of Croscill-branded merchandise.

Elsewhere, Croscill is building on two merchandise introductions from the August market, both of which are now rolling into stores.

The company's upmarket luxury brand, Croscill White Label, has expanded into window, with an entire section of the showroom devoted to new product. The assortment includes velvets, silks, and satins, some inter-lined.

"There's a lot of perceived value here," said Brady.

The company, she added, owns the fabric and will produce domestically, so that Croscill can answer small-lot orders with just-in-time manufacturing.

The contemporary Croscill Home/District line — also introduced last market — has expanded into both a casual fashion window coverings collection and trend-right hard window fixtures. In bedding, District this market has become cleaner and less print-driven. Velvet coverlets are also new to the assortment.

In the bath division, the creative studio has appropriated the hanging jewelry embellishments from the window crew and created a new accent line for shower curtains.

In bath accessories, new introductions include hammered metal over-washed with patina and lotion pumps in genie bottle shapes. Croscill continues to push the envelope on accessory décor for the McMansion bathroom, showing apothecary jars and pitchers as well as oversized washcloth platters that could easily move into the Great Room as hors d'oeuvre serving plates or rest on a side table as accent pieces.