CONNECTICUT-BASED upscale men’s clothing retailer Richard’s of Greenwich has seen sales increase 20% annually since 1995, when it adopted the database marketing approach favored by its then-new parent company, Mitchell’s of Westport (CT).
Mitchell’s president/CEO Jack Mitchell saw the purchase of Richard’s as a way to test the effectiveness of its own database strategies. Before the purchase, Richard’s used a 15,000-record Rolodex to track its customer base. While Richard’s sales associates were initially skeptical of having customers’ personal data accessible in an electronic format, within six months they were believers.
Mitchell’s has gathered information on its own database sporadically since 1972, and with a vengeance since 1989. Salespeople are trained to record information gleaned through the fitting process, including style preferences, occupation (which might influence business wear) and recreational activities. A comments section allows miscellaneous information to be recorded, such as: “Customer will only wear natural fibers; won’t wear brown.”
Purchase data is recorded, too. All items in stock are barcoded and linked to the customer’s name in the database, which runs off an IBM business intelligence system based on an AS/400 server. Customer preferences can be called up on in-store terminals during a store visit, or merchandise can be preselected if a customer calls ahead. But the information is also used on an “outcall” basis: Customers who have given permission to be contacted are called whenever circumstances warrant.
Sometimes the benefits are immediately noticeable. Mitchell recalls one customer who’d forgotten his wife’s birthday was a week away. Was he grateful Mitchell’s reminded him? “We made a $6,000 jewelry sale, and he was in my office thanking me!” Mitchellsays.
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