Next are advertising that they design, sell & install kitchens, that's fine If a company wants to set themselves up as kitchen specialists then they have as much right as anybody to do so.
This is were the sticky bit comes in:
Next are a national retailer with branches all over the country and some of those branches that they will set up kitchen displays in will be close to other kitchen retailers, not a problem so far, a little competition never hurt anybody and national advertising will bring in general enquiries to other kitchen retailers in the area. But what if I have a kitchen showroom set up with the same kitchens that Next are selling, this brand being the JJ Ormerods Colonial kitchens using the same range names as the independent retailer who may have a showroom nicely and expensively fitted out with the same kitchens and the same range names as the Next kitchens, I can tell you I would be miffed.
It is not beyond common sense that the kitchens that Next and the independent retailer displays should have been given different names with different brochure shots, by not doing this I think it cheapens the brand and thus makes it look like a mass produced product similar to what you can pick up from a DIY outlet which I know is not true of Colonial kitchens because they are good quality and have a great range of sized cabinets.
I currently have eight kitchen displays from Chippendale / Sheraton (soon to be nine) and one other, if my supplier suddenly decided to supply another kitchen retailer with the same kitchens as mine using the same range names, brochure shots etc then I would be looking for a new supplier who will show respect to the time ,effort and investment that I have put into their brand.
Russell
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ReplyDeleteThis is a big problem these days. Next do bathrooms too!
ReplyDeleteIt's not just Next. Look at Mark Two, they effectively run Tesco Bathrooms and compete with their own customers.. this doesn't make sense to me, even if they do change the names.
I can only talk from a bathroom point of view, but I think the problem is essentially the same. JJO or who ever it may be need to increase their sales.
They have huge overheads and as such taking on a name like Next is a way to guarantee orders on the books.
Why? It's a sad fact big businesses often work simply because they are big, not because they are as good as the little guy!
In the long term this move will hurt JJO, but short term they will be laughing all the way to the bank...
That is unless Mark Two and JJO are predicting the end to the independent retailer and are getting out now...
I can't see that though, I think it's more about hitting those bonus targets.