Live from ACCM: Appleseed's Claire Spofford Keynotes at 26th Annual Conference for Catalog and Multichannel Merchants

May 5, 2009 — The 26^th Annual Conference for Catalog and Multichannel Merchants (ACCM), co-produced by the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) and Multichannel Merchant kicked off yesterday at the Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana. This morning, Claire Spofford, president of Appleseed’s Holdings Inc. addressed attendees with her opening keynote presentation entitled “Profitability in Times of Turmoil: Appleseed’s and Orchard Brands Measure for Success.”

“Keeping your focus and discipline, in good times and bad, are a foundation for success,” said Spofford. She outlined eight key points that Appleseed’s follows and encouraged attendees to do the same: know your core customer; brand clarity and consistency; multichannel approach; leverage available data; process discipline; cost savings and fiscal conservatism; scale; and learning organization.

Orchard Brands, she explained, operates as a single entity powered by aggregate customer data and a corporate culture of openness to leverage scale and purchasing power across all brands. Appleseed’s winning 360° approach begins with brand clarity and consistency which ultimately builds sales and a powerful, coordinated product marketing plan.

To further that point they use behavioral data to inform channel investment. Appleseed’s sets targets and disciplines itself in order to avoid costly mistakes.

“Cost savings is a part of the culture,” said Spofford, whose profitability team delivers over $1 million in savings annually. Nobody ever said being profitable in times of turmoil was easy — the Appleseed’s organization works diligently to stay proactive and flexible, and keep an attitude of openness and learning across all companies and brands. The success is earned, Spofford remarked in conclusion, and that begins with focus and discipline, whether times are good or bad.

About ACCM

Co-produced by the Direct Marketing Association and Multichannel Merchant, the Annual Conference for Catalog and Multichannel Merchants (ACCM) is the largest gathering of multichannel marketers who use catalogs, transactional websites, and retail stores to reach their customers. ACCM is an annual event which brings together multichannel professionals from a wide breadth of job functions and seniority levels for four days of education, access to new products and services, and peer networking.

About Multichannel Merchant

Multichannel Merchant is the leading information source for senior-level executives at catalog, online, retail and b-to-b merchants. Our suite of print, online and event services takes these industry professionals to the heart of multichannel retailing, helping them stay on top of tactics and techniques that are crucial to improving market share and profitability—while integrating front-end and back-end operations and everything in between. Our editors provide the expert strategic advice and practical techniques that operations professionals urgently need to improve efficiencies, productivity, cost savings, and customer service covering the entire fulfillment process—from the moment an order is entered to its delivery at the customer’s doorstep. For more information, visit http://www.multichannelmerchant.com.

About Direct Marketing Association (DMA)

The Direct Marketing Association (www.the-dma.org) is the leading global trade association of businesses and nonprofit organizations using and supporting multichannel direct marketing tools and techniques. DMA advocates standards for responsible marketing, promotes relevance as the key to reaching consumers with desirable offers, and provides cutting-edge research, education, and networking opportunities to improve results throughout the end-to-end direct marketing process. Founded in 1917, DMA today represents more than 3,400 companies from dozens of vertical industries in the US and 48 other nations, including half of the Fortune 100 companies, as well as nonprofit organizations.

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