An ALLPRO® Publication VOL. 23, ISSUE 11 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014

By: Scott Morath

The end of another year hassnuck up on us once again. Forus, this year seems to have flownby at break-neck speed andwas one of the busiest inrecent memory.

Being busy is a good problem tohave, especially in light of thepast several years of little or nogrowth in the independent paintstores industry. It can, however,also present its own problems.When we spend every day doingall we can just to keep up with ahigh operational tempo, that’susually when we let other, lessurgent “housekeeping” choresslip through the cracks.

Problem is we can only allowhousekeeping items to goundone for so long before theydevelop an urgency of their own.Eventually they begin to createoperational drag. Rather than

being able to deal with theimportant work of selling, wehave to stop what we’re doing tofinally address the little thingsthat have suddenly grown intobig things.

Fortunately there is a seasonalityto this industry and by the timewe reach November businesshas slowed to a much moremanageable pace. In short, wehave time to do somehousekeeping.

With that in mind I thought nowwould be a perfect opportunity toreview some of the features onthe ALLPRO website that need tobe reviewed each year to ensurethe information is accurate.This applies to members andsuppliers alike, so please take a few moments to readthrough each.

Supplier Bulletins

Each bulletin reflects thecontracted program that ALLPROhas with a given supplier. Assuch, it’s crucial that thebulletin be accurate and up

to date. ALLPROmembers

regularlyrely on thiscontent andcoreprograminformation.For thatreason, itbehoovesevery

supplier partner to review theirbulletin routinely to ensureits accuracy.

For simple changes such asdistribution points, customerservice info, and such we onlyneed a source document (e-mailor fax) indicating what needs tobe changed. Items that have adirect impact on other programelements need to be routedthrough the proper channel for Sundry Committee reviewand evaluation.

Pricing

Pricing is published on thewebsite in two different places.The first is the supplierproprietary pricing section, whichallows suppliers to post theirpricing directly to the site. Oncea price file is posted, maintainingit is the sole responsibility of therespective supplier. Files can bedeleted and new files uploadedas needed. If new SKU’s areadded, discontinued or pricechanges occur it is entirely up tothe vendor to update their file.While we can post a file that yousend us, ALLPRO cannot edit ormodify your pricing under anycircumstance. Proprietary pricechanges require a minimum 30-day advance notice.

The second pricing type is theALLPRO brand pricing. This ismaintained by ALLPRO under aseparate tab. Since we maintainthis pricing the key take-away is

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It’s Housekeeping Time

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Look around your store and youcan see the significantinvestments you’ve made in yourbusiness. Your businessknowledge is apparent in yourstrong inventory managementand effective product display. Butthere is an untapped channel forincreasing your cashflow, providing extraprofit to pay for yourinventory, and securingthe financial viability ofyour business—customwindow treatments!

Custom windowtreatments are a logicalcomplement to thehome decoratingsolutions you alreadycarry in your store.Customers alreadyconsidering colorschemes and décor intheir homes will beattracted to the varietyin options that customwindow treatmentspresent. Why not offeryour customers a one-stop solution to theirhome décor needs?Whether it’s custom,real wood shutters—finefurniture for windows—or the color cornucopiaoffered in energy-savingcellular shades, thevariety of selectionsoffered by custom window

treatments is sure to impressyour customers.

Additionally, window treatmentsrequire minimal initial investment.There’s no bulky inventory tostore—just a sample book or twois all you need to reap bigrewards. Securing only a handfulof customers will cover your totalcost of investment and assurelong-term profitability.

Consider the footprint of yourstore space. How much return onyour investment are you gettingper square foot? A freestandingswivel 2’ display, with a minimumof four different window blindsand shades, can be purchased foras little as a few hundred

dollars—but cangenerate ten times thereturns. Basically, allyou need to sell is oneblind per sampledisplayed, or fourblinds total. Thetrusted windowcovering vendors atALLPRO are ready andwilling to consult withyou to choose theappropriate displaytype andcorrespondingsamples to meet yourbusiness needs, andhave it shipped to youin no time.

For stores with limitedfloor space or thosebusiness owners justwanting to dip theirtoe into windowtreatment sales, thereare window clings thatshowcase eitherwindow treatmentsinstallations orphysical samples ofthe products

themselves, in a variety of room

and product color schemes. Oneexample is a window clingfeaturing a portion of colorfulcellular fabric. The benefit of thistype of display is the real-timeillustration of light and colordiffusion as the sun shinesthrough the fabric. This vibrantdemonstration of the product will prompt inspiration andconversation amongst your customers.

With the multitude of colorsoffered by cellular and pleatedshades, it’s a no-brainer that thisis a product that goes hand-in-hand with the paint sold in yourstores. In fact, some cellular andpleated fabric colors are deriveddirectly from brand-name paintcolors and RGB values! If youwant to start with just oneproduct, cellular and pleatedshades are a logical choice.

In addition to the naturalcomplement to your currentproduct that custom windowtreatments offer, they’re also amade-to-order product that is asafe, high margin addition to yourinventory options. Consider atypical sale of paint: two to threegallons to cover a room, and $15– $30 per gallon. Now multiplythat by a factor of five—that’s atypical window treatment sale tocover just one window. Ofcourse, depending on the size ofwindow and type of windowtreatment, this amount can beexponentially higher; andremember that houses havemultiple rooms, each withmultiple windows to cover! Youcan see how these lucrative,double-digit margins can quicklyadd up.

And you don’t have to be aprofessional decorator to get intothis business—your suppliers

Custom Window Treatments Equal Profit in Your PocketBy: Jeff LaRico, National Account Manager

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The strategy of protecting yourcorporate and personalcomputers from viruses, worms,and trojans is a topic that is avery common point of discussionwith our clients. This month’stechnology article will discussand provide some generalguidance so that you canimplement or ensure you havean effective strategy in place toaddress this important issue.

What are Viruses, Worms &Trojans?

Computer Viruses are malicioussoftware or programs thatoperate on your PC without yourpermission or knowledge. Quiteoften the virus will replicate itselfand attempt to spread to othercomputers through your network,via email or thru use of storagemedia that goes from machine tomachine. A virus will attach itselfto a file or program on your pcand then propagate and do theirdamage when the program isrun. Viruses often spread viaemail and require a humaninteraction to allow the virusto spread.

Worms

A worm is a subclass of Virus,with one difference - it does not

require any human action tospread from PC to PC. Wormswill do devious things likereplicate by sending a copy ofitself to everyone in your emailcontact list, and then replicatingagain and again by doing thisaction over and over with eachcontact in your address book.Worms will bog down websiteservers, internal servers,workstations and cause them tostop functioning properly.

Trojans

A Trojan gets its name from themythical Trojan Horse. These areextremely devious programs thatwill present themselves aslegitimate software, but onceinstalled or run a PC will causemany problems with normalcomputer functionality. ManyTrojans are annoying as theychange your computer fonts oryour desktop environment, whileothers can be very malicious andremove key operating files and/ordestroy important informationfrom your PC.

The most dangerous Trojans arethe Back-Door Trojans which canallow unauthorized access toyour PC or network PC's overthe internet allowing unauthorizedaccess to your confidentialfiles.Trojans are not designed to replicate.

Protect Yourself!

The only way to properly protectyour PC and the network that youconnect to is to ensure you haveanti-virus software installed on allof your PC’s and NetworkServers. Not only must youensure the software is installed,but you must check regularly, orarrange for a staff member toensure that the software isrunning and is up to date. I repeat - KEEP YOUR ANTIVIRUSSOFTWARE UP TO DATE. Newviruses and threats appear weekly,keeping your antivirus software upto date and running will minimizethe threat to your PC.

Perform a Google search on “anti-virus software” and you will see amillion different options toprotect your machine with. Ithink a valid approach is to selectan anti-virus tool from a reputablesoftware company that you trustis developing solutions on a dailybasis for new viruses that appearevery day.

Anti-virus software works toensure that known viruses do notinfect your PC as you read email,surf the web or read data in yourCD-Rom drive. Reputable Anti-virus software also allows you toschedule regular full PC scans todetect and eliminate any virusesthat may be present.

Anti-Virus Protection & Spam Filtering By Al Kinnear, Bigeye Productions

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What is Co-Op?Co-Op is a cooperativeadvertising program that isoffered by many suppliers,manufacturers and distributors asa way to help you advertise yourcompany and their product.Cooperative in businessadvertising context means justwhat it says; if you spend somemoney, they will also spend somemoney. Collectively,manufacturers set aside $30Billion dollars annually to helpbusinesses stretch theiradvertising dollars. Surprisinglythe majority of it goes unused!

Getting the best ROI (ReturnOn Investment)

As you look into what you tospend your Co-Op dollars on, youwant to make sure you aregetting the best return on yourinvestment. What is the mosteffective way to use your Co-Opdollars? Is it newspaper, TV,radio, billboard or promotionalproducts (including apparel)?

Recent studies* show thatpromotional products offer abetter ROI than all the other typesof marketing out there.Promotional products have alower out of pocket expense forthe buyer. Calculating the ROI, isdone through comparing cost perimpressions, which is the averageamount of money spent for acampaign, to the number of timesthat a person(s) see theadvertisement.

Cost per impression for marketingitems:

• Hats, Calendars, Bags, Pen $0.002

• Apparel - $0.005

• TV Ads - $0.019

• Half Page Black/WhiteNewspaper Ad - $0.019

• Magazine Ad - $0.033

• Radio Ad - $0.005

Why Promotional ProductsWork

Promotional Products work wellbecause the same people will seethem repeatedly and more newpeople will come in contact withthem on a daily/weekly basis.Repeated impressions are animportant part of creating brandrecognition. The averagepromotional product lasts 9months, whereas the averageradio ad last 30 seconds. A recentstudy* shows 84% of peopleremember the names ofadvertisers that have given thema promotional item.

Use – Don’t Lose Co-OpDollars

As we come to the end of theyear, be sure you check with yourvendor reps to see how many Co-Op dollars you have left to spend.No matter how big or how smallthere is a promotional productthat you can use your Co-Opdollars on. After all, it is yourmoney and 62% of consumershave done business with thecompany after receiving apromotional item from them.

Unsure of your unused co-opdollars? Reach out to yourvendor rep for more information.The ALLPRO BusinessDevelopment team also has a listof vendors and the percentage ofco-op that they offer.

Facts about Co-Op Purchases*

• A logoed pen is used 3 to 4 times per day for its lifetime.

• 57% of US Consumers feel

more favorable to the business that has given them a t-shirt.

• More than half the consumerswho receive a reusable bag keep it for 2 years or longer

• 66% of consumers are morelikely to do business with anadvertiser that gives them a calendar.

• 42% of consumers keep promotional hats, because theyare attractive, second only to outerwear.

What are members doingwith their Co-Op?

Getting the most out of your Co-Op DollarsBy Doug Evatt, BrandRPM

*Advertising Specialty Institute2014 study involving 4,147 people.

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Member HappeningsCongratulations to Clement’s Paint who recently added another location to their growing number of stores. The new store is located in Austin, TX and is Clement’s Paint’s third location. HillCountry/Rooster’s Paint also recently added a new location. Their New Braunfels store is their 5thlocation in Texas. Along with Clement’s and Hill Country/Rooster’s, Hessler’s Paint and Decorating hasexpanded its presence in the South Florida market with a new location. Their Lake Worth store is theirthird Florida location.

Several ALLPRO members were recently featured in the September issue of Paint & Decorating Retailermagazine. Adler’s Design Center & Hardware’s Harry Adler shared his “out-of-the-big-box” approachto providing a one-stop decorating experience for his customers. Reineke Decorating Center’s CarlReineke has watched his customers take a more informed, personalized approach to their decoratingpurchases.

Shelby Paint & Decorating’s Brian Eisbrenner is certain his company will continue to thrive because ofhis business model and the training he provides to his employees. Spectrum Paint was recognized forits explosive growth. With 52 successful stores, Spectrum Paint has achieved the distinction of beingthe largest independent paint retailer in the United States. Spectrum’s Marketing and CommunicationsDirector Gentry Stafford attributes the company’s longevity to their quality employees and support fromtheir suppliers, and predicts continued growth as Spectrum nears its 30th anniversary.

Tanner Paint Company of Tampa, FL is proud to have received the industry-wide honor of being theinaugural recipient of the Robert E. Petit Memorial Education Scholarship. This scholarship entitlesTanner Paint the opportunity to become certified specialists by choosing between two PDRA onlineeducational programs: the PDRA Coatings Specialist Course or the PDRA Customer ServiceSpecialist Course.

Supplier HappeningsTower Sealants of Gainesville, GA was recently featured in Paint & Decorating Retailer Magazine. Theindustry profile highlighted the success of Tower Sealants since its inception in 2005. Tower strives tokeep painting professionals in mind as they develop quality product lines, including private label SKU’s,for their customers, like ALLPRO. Their product line has grown from seven SKU’s to approximately 250since 2006, and is distributed nationwide, as well as in Canada and Latin America. ALLPROcongratulates Tower on their accomplishments.

2015 ALLPRO “U”Benjamin Moore Facility

Flanders, NJ Jan 20th – 22nd

2015 Spring Show & Sales MeetingRosen Shingle Creek

Orlando, FL, Mar 18th – 22nd

2015 Stockholder MeetingGrand Hyatt Atlanta in Buckhead

Atlanta, GA, Nov 4th –7th

2016 Spring Show & Sales MeetingJW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa

Palm Desert, CA, Mar 16th – 20th

2016 Stockholder MeetingThe Westin Michigan Ave.Chicago, IL, Nov 3rd – 6th

2017 Spring Show & Sales MeetingThe Westin Diplomat

Miami, FL, Mar 8th - 12th

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Over the years ALLPRO has hadthe good fortune of attractingsome of the hardest working,conscientious individuals wecould ask for. We like to thinkpart of that is because of whatALLPRO is and who we serve.Over the past several monthswe’ve brought on several newstaff members who work in arange of capacities from AccountRepresentative to Warehouse andMarketing Coordinators. We’reproud to formally introduce thesenew staff members to the group.

Olivia DavisOlivia Davis joined the ALLPROteam on September 8th as anAccount Representative. She iscurrently working on her LiberalArts course work at HillsboroughCommunity College. Whilejuggling both a full-time job andschool keeps her quite busy,Olivia still finds some free time topaint, sing, and learn piano. Sheis quite an avid reader and canoften be found browsing theshelves of her favorite book storewhile enjoying an iced coffee.

Olivia loves spending quality timewith her family and two Maltesedogs, Oliver and Milo. Aboutworking at ALLPRO, Olivia says, “I really enjoy interacting with my members and helping theALLPRO Accounting Departmentrun smoothly.”

Jon ClemmonsJon Clemmons joined theALLPRO team in July as theWarehouse Coordinator for theSoutheast Distribution Center.Jon’s prior work experienceincludes many years at PublixSupermarkets, where he began asa bagger and worked his way upto the Customer Service Desk.Jon uses his organizational skillsand attention to detail to ensurethat every order that leavesALLPRO’s warehouse is neatlypackaged and accurately shipped.Jon’s many interests includeplaying soccer, going to thebeach with his Schnauzer/Terrierpuppy, Maxwell, and learningabout computers. In his sparetime, he can be found buildingand refurbishing computers, andpracticing website design. Abouthis experiences here at ALLPRO,Jon says, “Working at ALLPROhas been a great learningexperience. Everyone I work withis very friendly.”

Susie FontanaSusie Fontana became apermanent member of theALLPRO team on September 8thas our new MarketingCoordinator. She has aBachelor’s degree in Elementaryand Early Childhood Educationfrom Florida Southern College.Before joining ALLPRO, Susieworked at PANGO Sales, Inc. inAccounts Receivable/ InventoryProcurement for two years, andtaught Kindergarten-3rd gradesfor 20 years prior to that.

Her diverse work experienceshave enabled Susie tosuccessfully wear the many hatsof a Marketing Coordinator. Susiespends her days collaborating,planning, organizing, anddisseminating information toALLPRO members. In her freetime, she enjoys reading,scrapbooking, crafting, cooking,and spending time with her twoboys. About working at ALLPRO,Susie says, “I enjoy working withthe talented ALLPRO team andcontributing to the success of theMarketing Department. It is quitesatisfying when I am able to helpa member or a fellow ALLPROemployee.”

Please join us in welcomingOlivia, Jon and Susie to theALLPRO family!

ALLPRO Welcomes its Newest Staff MembersBy Susie Fontana

Olivia Davis Jon Clemmons Susie Fontana

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that we require a 60-day advancenotice and the ALLPRObrand/proprietary brand files bekept separate.

Company RosterWhether you’re a member or asupplier you no doubt receive aroutine flow of e-mail traffic fromALLPRO. For members ittypically takes the form ofMember by Supplier reports,purchasing updates, bulletinboard traffic, show info and such.Suppliers receive monthlypurchase reports, paymentexceptions, show info, storelistings, etc. Each e-mail isgenerated to specific individualsbased on their role within thecompany. For instance, showannouncements are sent to theprimary sales contact whereasstore listings are sent toaccounting contacts.

If we don’t have the correctlisting and e-mail address for theappropriate contacts thenimportant information will missits intended mark. Over theyears there has been more thanone supplier partner miss a showbecause contacts changed andrecords were never updated.Likewise, more than one memberhas run into a delay when tryingto buy for a new store becausewe were never notified a newstore had been added.

The importance of updatingcontact lists, program records,pricing, etc. can’t be overstated.It’s essential to maintaining anefficient and smooth flow ofbusiness whether you’re amember or supplier. I encourageyou to take advantage of theslower season and over the nextfew weeks review your informationon the ALLPRO website. Now’sthe time to catch up on thosehousekeeping chores and ensureeverything is up to date andyou’re ready for the year ahead.

have created all the toolsrequired to make you successful.Some even offer online trainingcourses to help explain theproducts, trends, and installationprocess. Really, all that’s requiredfrom you is a small initialinvestment. Your company’s cashwon’t be tied up in resources,waiting for a sale. Eachtransaction is high dollar, and willgenerate profits that will createliquidity to float investments inother areas of your business andmaintain financial viability. Youcan see that an investment incustom window coverings isreally an investment inyour business.

Take a moment to considercustom window treatments foryour store. Your supplier is readyto assist you in implementing thishighly profitable option. They canintroduce you to other ALLPROmembers that have been in yourposition, or even get you enrolledin online training courses. Thechoice is yours; get your cashflowing today.

For more information on addingcustom window treatments toyour product mix contact Jeff at608.828.4005 or e-mail jeff.larico@springswindowfashions.com

Three of the larger anti-virussoftware companies are (in noparticular order) McAfee, NortonAntivirus, and AVG. Certainlythere are many other fineantivirus software suites, and youshould speak with you I/Tconsultant about which softwarethey recommend.

The important thing to realize isthat without anti-virus softwareyou are not only risking yourpersonnel PC and its data, butother PC’s on your store network(including your Point of SaleSystem potentially) and also yourisk spreading viruses to everyoneon your email contact list.

There is a cost to anti-virussoftware, but the cost of losing allof your point of sale data,inventory or accounting recordsis much larger than theinvestment required to defendagainst virus attacks. Make sureyou have anti-virus softwareinstalled, that it is up to date, andthat you are performing scheduledfull system scans to protect yourPC and network from PC viruses.

For more information aboutprotecting your computer systemplease contact Al Kinnear at.403.604.3726 or e-mailakinnear@bedsp.com

Custom Window Treatments...(Continued from page 2)

Anti-Virus Protection...(Continued from page 3)

It’s Housekeeping Time(Continued from Cover)

Is Pay by Phone the Next Big Thing?Pay by phone has been around for a while now. Coffee retailer Starbuckshas been using the feature for years. Just place your order, hold out yourphone so the barista can scan a bar code on your Starbucks App, itcharges a previously set up account, and off you go. That’s the old modelof pay by phone. The emerging trend for pay by phone is based onsomething called Near Field Communication (NFC), which is a form ofshort range wireless communication. Essentially the smart phonegenerates a small electric or magnetic field, which can be picked up withina few centimeters of an appropriately tagged receiver. The user then keysin a PIN number or taps their new iPhone’s Touch ID fingerprint sensor andpayment is made. The NFC method was attempted by Google phonesback in 2011 but with little success. What is making this an emergingtrend? Apple. The new iPhone 6 platform uses NFC technology in itsApple Pay feature. Apple has partnered with Visa, MasterCard and AmEx,eleven banks and over 220,000 merchants in the U.S. to accept ApplePay.* As a result, it’s expected that Apple will be able to generate thetraction Google couldn’t and jump start mobile payments. It may take afew years but look out, it’s coming. *Advertising Age, Sept 24th, 2014

Who’s Boosting Housing Market Sales in the US?According to website exclusive.multibriefs.com immigrant homeownership is on the rise and even gaining on native-born Americans.While native-born home ownership in the US fell between 2000 and 2010,immigrant homeownership increased from 49.8% to 52.4% during thesame period. That number is expected to continue to rise. The NationalAssociation of Home Builders expects that foreign-born home ownershipwill account for more than one third of the growth in the housing sector by2020. This will have a significant impact on the evolution of the marketrelative to the past few decades. It will affect not only the housingindustry but the interior design, home decor and home improvementindustries as well. It would seem that while there is a significant wealthgap between native-born Americans and immigrants, immigrants aremuch more conservative with finances. Culturally speaking, they areoriented more toward saving rather than debt creation. This focusprovided a financial cushion that allowed them to weather a pooreconomy better than their American-born counterparts.

There’s an App for thatIt’s a ubiquitous catch phrase that is almost a cliché, were it not such arelevant and apt descriptor. According to USA Today, nearly 300 newapps are developed each day. Google Play and Apple collectively haveover 700,000 apps available for download. There’s one for just abouteverything – even homeowners looking to redesign and renovate.According to Reuters, last year Americans spent ~$130 Billion on homeremodeling projects. That’s the highest amount since 2007. As spendingcontinues to rise app developers are aiming to make design andrenovation a bit easier. One such app is Sweeten, which linkshomeowners to contractors, interior designers and architects. A userposts their project via the app and Sweeten finds experts best suited for the project, regardless of size. SimilarlyThat Décor allows users to point their smartphone at a piece of furniture or pattern and it finds complimentaryitems that might match the home. It uses image recognition technology to search millions of products from morethan 4,000 stores then provides a link for users to purchase.

ALLPRO supplier partner Brewster Wallcovering recently joined the movement by offering its own app. TheBrewster Interior Wallpaper Finder app helps homeowners and decorators alike. Users can specify colors and stylesthat are of interest and the app delivers a selection based on that criteria. The user can then take their selection into aretailer to see the actual pattern before making a final decision. It essentially eliminates the need to sort throughmultiple wallpaper books in search for a design. Technology continues to evolve at a rapid pace and how theindependent paint channel integrates these developments may impact the channel’s success in years to come.

Editor/ProductionScott Morath

ProofersJulia ThomasSusan NicholsSusanne Fontana

Contributing WritersScott Morath, Susie Fontana - ALLPRO

Al Kinnear, Bigeye ProductionsJeff LaRico, Spring Window Fashions

Doug Evatt, BrandRPM

ALLPRO® PresidentMichael Gleason

Exec. Vice PresidentJoe Poliseo

SUGGESTIONS WELCOMEYour suggestions, ideas, articles and

comments are encouraged.

The Scouting Report is an important communications media for ALLPRO®.

Mail all correspondence to:The Scouting Reportc /o ALLPRO® Corporation

4946 Joanne Kearney Blvd.Tampa, FL 33619 • (813) 628-4800Website: www.allprocorp.com

The Scouting Report is a bimonthly publicationof the ALLPRO® Corporation.

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