Newood’s brick and mortar customers can select from 20 plus product lines, ranging from $10 to $2,000. Available store display fixtures include cash wraps, point-of-purchase displays and show booths, direct from the manufacturer with no minimum purchase requirements. Thaxton adds, “The store owner can purchase fixtures one at a time, until they have exactly what they want. When most people order fixtures for their stores, it is usually one of this or two of that.” With such tailored orders there is limited opportunity to get any kind of volume pricing. “If we have the opportunity to run volume pricing on an order, then we most certainly try,” notes Thaxton.

Durable Display Designs and a Catalog to Show All

As with any tool, a retail display is only a means to an end, and in the hands of a skilled user any retail display fixture can be used creatively and produce remarkable results. Take for instance Newood’s most popular line, Designer’s Choice Perimeter System fixtures. This display system provides maximum design, finish and display options to meet ever changing retail needs. Retailers achieve the right look and functionality by selecting from a variety of standard components, and then dress up their store by adding molding, special features and finishes that complement the fixture. All standard components, run less than $100 each. “Coming in a close second is Newood’s NewSelect stockroom pine shelving, which is 100 percent Lundia compatible,” says Thaxton.

Standard catalog fixtures are available in Oak and Maple. Oak, a reddish-brown hardwood, is very strong and hard, with a prominent and distinctive grain. Maple, a blonde to reddish-brown, dense hardwood, is very strong and hard with a subtle grain. Some fixtures are also available in wood-grained Melamine. Upright fixtures are solid wood, while shelves and panels are Oak and Maple veneered plywood. Other types of wood are available for custom fixtures.

Pricing and lifetime, however, have taken the lead in helping to determine a retailer’s decision in store display fixture design. Thaxton only briefly remarks on a third factor that will soon be added to the list of criteria. “One major shift over the next few years will be eco-friendly materials. We have already switched to a 100 percent water base lacquer, and we are currently switching all lighting over to LED,” he says. Whatever the criteria, Newood’s business is finding new designs that meet its customers’ needs.

For more information:
Newood Display Fixture Mfg. Co.
PO Box 21808
Eugene, Or 97402
Toll Free: 800-233-9663
Fax: 541-688-5868
Email: newoodsales@newood.com
Website: www.newood.com

“When you furnish great customer service, along with great pricing and product, you get repeat customers,” continues Lebor. “A retailer who opens their first store and is satisfied with us, will use our company again on their second, third and fourth stores. That is how we have been able to grow to where we are today. Beside M. Fried Store Fixtures, we recently acquired ABC Target, a store fixtures company that has been around since the 1940s, and we purchased the assets of a company called, Naythons Display Fixture Company, in Philadelphia.”

M. Fried carries over 10,000 products in its line; virtually everything a retailer needs. Manufacturing these products domestically and through partnerships with factories in China, Taiwan and Mexico, the company is able to provide some of the lowest prices in the industry.  Further, with corporate offices in New York City and satellite offices and partner warehouses throughout the United States, M. Fried is able to provide retailers across the country with shorter transit times and quicker delivery; a critical factor in getting that retail outlet open and making money.

One of the greatest challenges for M. Fried today is exactly the same problem that has affected many of its retail customers: the economy. However, while volume and sales have dropped off for some, retailers who sell the basics have done quite well through this recessionary period. “We are all in the same boat,” says Lebor.  “We cannot be successful unless the retailers are successful. Our largest and most successful product line is gondola shelving; the shelving you see in pharmacies and supermarkets. In the past couple of years, even during this recession, those two sectors have done quite well, and we have been able to leverage that.”

In opening a new store, time is of the essence, which is one of M. Fried’s strengths. “We are a stocking distributor, which means that we have items in stock,” says Lebor. “The manufacturers typically have a three to four week lead time on fixture delivery. We have multi-million dollar inventory on hand, and if someone calls us today, we can ship tomorrow. We have five teams of installers and we know how to do it. We have design and layout professionals who can layout the entire store and help a dealer come up with a great retail plan. We have a showroom that our customers visit, which is also quite effective. Our success is a combination of all of these factors.”

With a great website and catalogs, why would M. Fried customers want to take the time to trek to its showroom in Brooklyn? Says Lebor, “There are a couple of important reasons why a customer will come into our showroom. For one, many retailers want the fixtures now. Further, many dealers need more than a website or catalog to make a product selection. They need to touch the product to make sure that it is sturdy and stable, and will stand up in the retail environment. There is another reason as well. We have a talented staff on hand that is not only willing and able to answer questions about products, but also to share design and layout ideas and concepts, based on their many years in the business.”

Even though M. Fried has thousands of products in stock and an experienced staff on hand, it continues to be focused on both its small and large customers. “We have had customers who want us to do just a little space, and then we have those who want us to design a 20,000 square foot retail floor,” notes Lebor. “We appreciate our customers and their business, no matter what their size. We do not take anyone for granted. We value everyone from a small mom and pop store that places a $13 order, to the large national chain with a $130,000 order. It sounds mundane, but we treat every customer well, and that means getting the product on time as requested. We try to deliver great customer service every single day.”

For more information:
Michael Lebor, director of sales and marketing
M. Fried Store Fixtures, Inc.
Customer Service Department
176 Flushing Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11205
Toll Free: 877-544-2999
Fax: 888-624-9699
Email: help@mfried.com
Website: www.mfried.com