BrandSource members take giant e-commerce leap during pandemic

Covid-19 quickly rushed forward trends and consumer behavior that had been evolving for years

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — In his state of the union address during the first-ever virtual BrandSource Convention and buying expo this week, AVB CEO Jim Ristow called COVID-19 “the great accelerator,” and he had some numbers to back it up.

But first a little background. At the furniture, electronics and appliance buying group’s March Summit about six months ago in Las Vegas, Ristow made a bold prediction. Online sales growth for members, he said, would spike 600% over the next three years. The Summit theme was “Tomorrow Starts Today,” and it was focused on all the things BrandSource and parent AVB were doing to equip dealer members for the digital age, including advances in turnkey e-commerce websites, digital price tags and new website marketing tools and merchandising services on the table.

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The event wrapped up just as the World Health Organization began characterizing COVID-19 as a pandemic, adding a dimension to the theme choice no one would have predicted or wanted. The whole world changed that day, Ristow now. Store and other closings would follow shortly.

And so six months later, how much progress has BrandSource made on Ristow’s 600% e-commerce prediction? It’s not even close.

Comparable online sales have skyrocketed 825% in just that six month period over the same time a year ago. And if you add newly-joined dealers to the group and others who recently added e-commerce functionality to their websites, the total increase in e-commerce sales for the March-August period is more like 1,300%. (Later, during a press conference, Ristow said these figures lean conservative.)

The number of dealer members deploying chat is up five-fold. And the BrandSource member base is up, too, Ristow said, though the group declines to share actual numbers.

Pundits and observers weren’t predicting anything like this, he said. Some were talking about the demise of the independents. They were forecasting a 20-30% decrease in business in BrandSource’s core industries. They said independents would lose market share to big-box retailers, warehouse clubs and pure-play e-tailers.

And they wrong, Ristow said. “You’re not just surviving. You’re actually growing it,” outpacing others in the same sectors by 10% to 20%. “You’re taking market share in what’s arguably the worst financial and health crisis in almost 100 years.

“Your entrepreneurs, you’re adapting, you’re resilient. That’s something I’m really proud about.”

COVID-19, he said, “is the great accelerator.” Trends that were evolving over two, five, 10 years, that were slowly going to happen anyway eventually, “are all happening overnight.”

But he also warned against complacency. “We’re not out of the woods yet,” he said, adding that this isn’t the time to put the foot on the brake, especially when it comes to digital marketing and the online strategy in general.

Rather, members need to double down on technology, solutions and digital marketing, which again, like in March, was the focus of his talk and the convention.

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To keep the momentum going, BrandSource is introducing more new tools, including “Kiosq,” something similar to Wondersign, which many in the home furnishings industry are familiar with, but with added features. The in-store digital kiosk brings the strengths of the group’s Linq online merchandising portal in-store, presenting an “endless aisle” of offerings for sales associates and consumers to access via mobile devices and big-screen monitors. Consumers can buy on the spot and well as apply for credit. And for dealers, bundled discounts are available for Kiosq, the group’s assisted merchandising service and its turbocharged commerce version of the Alta 360 e-commerce platform.

In addition, the group will follow this convention with the launch of a complimentary vendor and business training series this fall under the AVB University umbrella.

During his address, Ristow reminded attendees how proactive BrandSources has been throughout the crisis, posting hundreds of articles to its YourSourceNews/COVID Info Hub; hosting 112 Region calls with members; and conducting more than 45,000 dealer consultations since Summit — reaching 99% of its membership.

Taken together, they provide the components of what Ristow described as a winning equation: “Entrepreneur (the store owner) + Information + Buying Right + Technology = Success.”

“If you do this, if you follow the plan, the Checklist for Success, you’re going to win,” he said. “Not just now, but you’re setting your business up for years to come.”

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