First aid for pets

First Aid for Pets

Two of these key programs, one by Lees Curtains, the other by Aberdeen, have taken markedly different approaches, but both aim to increase sales either by increasing product appeal or through a more efficient use of space.Pets suffering from exposure to the cold,or hypothermia, will appear weak and will be cold to the touch--at the paws, for instance. Usually, animals with hypothermia have been left outdoors for a very long time when the temperatures are extremely low."When you get to 18 numbers, I guarantee that six of them are look-alikes. Most stores can't support 18 tiers. It's very hard to get 12 or 14 winners that are not look-alikes," he said.The display system is the key element of the program and it revolves around two curtain fixtures -- preassembled by the supplier -- that allow maximum use of space while presenting considerably more sku's in the curtain department.The relationship between the economy and redecorating is expressed succintly by Frank Ruggieri, director of franchise sales with Window Works, Inc., based in Pompano Beach, Fla.: "What happens if we hit a recessionary time and people aren't building or buying? They'll stay in their existing homes. What do people do when they stay in their existing homes? They redecorate.'Industry insiders trace the current raised expectations back a couple of years to strategic decisions by department stores like Macy's to drastically reduce their position in curtains because of lagging sales. Not long after that, major discount chains became even more sensitive to the need for improvement in the category.From a first-aid standpoint, foreignobjects lodged in the throat should be removed immediately. Whether that is safe to do with one's own pet is an individual decision. It helps if one person restrains the pet while someone else dislodges the object. If the object is visible, use your fingers to remove it. But if it can't be seen, the use of tweezers or some other gripping device is best left to a veterinarian, who is familiar with the animal's anatomy.For a small wound, apply direct pressureabove the wound with a finger. Clean the wound with a weak solution of hydrogen peroxide: about one part peroxide to three parts water. A minor cut not caused by a bite can then be bandaged, but bite wounds should never be covered as that makes an ideal environment for the growth of bacteria that can lead to infection. If the wound is caused by a broken leg (called a compound fracture), keep the leg from moving by gently placing it between two sticks and wrapping it with gauze. Take the pet to the veterinarian promptly. If you don't know whether the victim or the attacking animal has been vaccinated for rabies, tell this to the doctor.Aberdeen has taken a bold new approach of its own by joining its kitchen curtain and kitchen textiles division with a line of ceramics, all in two coordinated patterns -- its top selling Curio Shelf and Kissing Cousins."The stores are choregraphed. The products are put in actual room environments, and the people in the store are there to demonstrate,' says Michael Boehm, whose Space Options stores provide space-planning services and merchandise for homes, offices and automobiles.A major retail decision yet to be made involves choosing the right method of presenting such a broad category of merchandise, as well as choosing the right in-store location.At Lees Curtains, a division of Arlee, company president Bud Frankell said the company is offering a new system of fixtures, which, when combined with polybags and a pegboard system, can boost turns far above the industry average of 2.3 to 2.4.Frankell said the displays have the potential to generate sales of $500 per square foot because they take up so little space."We're different from home centers,' he adds. "They'll replace products if they're defective, but that's about all they'll do. If you buy the product that's inappropriate, that's your problem.'Cuts from sharp objects or bite woundscan sever blood vessels, so the first objective is to control bleeding.The proverbial ounce of preventionthat's worth a pound of cure for dogs and other pets starts with a pet first-aid kit. Here's what such a kit should have:tweezers or small pliers, to remove objectssuch as thorns from the skinTheir marketing strategy is based on offering design consultation and installation.At the National Home Center Show in March, Kenney introduced a space-saving merchandise program for window shades. The assortment creates interest at the point of sale without forcing overstock on retailers, according to a company spokesman."I think the average consumer would opt to spend more money and buy a quality product if he or she really knew the difference,' says Streb, whose franchise offers finished and unfinished furniture and a full range of finishing services.When combined with the pegboard underneath, the display stands 102 inches high and can be used to display several patterns and colors that formerly would have required at least twice as much space.Photo: Today's busy, double-income homeowners don't want to spend their limited free time on do-it-yourself home projects. Increasingly, they are turning to custom home-decorating franchises such as Susan Howe's Decorating Den, which brings samples and a consultant's services to your door from the back of a van.Custom home-decorator franchisors see personal service and high quality as the keys to expanding their 10 percent share of this market.It's not that window treatments have had a free ride all these years, but as the impact of sluggish overall sales has made itself felt, chains are becoming ever more sensitive to the need for maximum performance from every category and some buyers for window treatments are now being pushed to produce more from the same space, or less.POISONINGCustom home-decorator franchisors call their salespeople "design consultants' and train them to provide customers with advice on how to use what the franchise offers."Purchases ordinarily made during a boom time are put off, but what people might do to compensate for that is to buy something to spruce up their homes, remodel a bathroom, a kitchen --something that will stay with them,' he says.Home-decorator franchisors take account of economic realities in another way: When the economy makes buying a home difficult, they orient their marketing towards remodeling existing homes, as opposed to work that is tied to housing startsAnother fixture measures 48 inches by 36 inches and is designed to be dropped onto a gondola. It, too, offers the pegboard system of poly-bagged curtains underneath in complete sets.And combined with the advantages of the space-saving fixture comes a caution from Frankell that retailers sometimes exacerbate their own space problems by too many choices that, in the final analysis, are not all that different.The effectiveness of Kenney's field staff has been heightened by a lap-top computer system that gives field staffers the ability to transmit orders direct from stores to headquarters via telephone modems.Decorating Den's James Bugg counters such questions by asserting that home-decorator franchises have filled the middle ground between pricey interior designers and what he terms impersonal home centers.One fixture measuring 30 inches by 60 inches is designed for use on an endcap and allows for interchangeable valance, tier and swag in the same window display.Frankell said that 1988 is going to be a tough year, a year in which retailers will need all the support they can get from their suppliers while using their own merchandising expertise to make the most of a tough situation."Store for store, the retail business is going to be off, and the home textile business is bearing the brunt of it," concluded Frankell.SHOCK"If she is going to buy a curtain, why shouldn't she buy the whole accessory program that matches it?" Especially when Aberdeen has used its two hottest patterns for the program.

Photo: Stocking a first-aid kit for kitty or any other pet is agood way to prepare for possible emergencies.

Author: Dianne McRae, Melba Smith