The Home Is Their Store

'Shopping Parties' Entice Hosts' Friends to Spend

Retailing's biggest names are throwing a party, and it's BYOW -- bring your own wallet.

That's because it's a shopping party, better known in the industry by the more mundane name of direct selling and once the sole province of Tupperware and the Avon lady. But recently, established brands have rediscovered the concept as they search for ways to connect with busy, and often fickle, customers.

Crayola jumped into direct selling two years ago with a division called Big Yellow Box. Jockey's Person to Person launched last year, and the company recently hired a "comfort specialist" for the Washington area. And in March, Jones Apparel Group, which owns Nine West and Barneys New York, started Million Wishes to sell fashion accessories at home-shopping parties. All of these companies have recruited teams of representatives, a la Tupperware and Avon, to push products in home settings.

"A growing number of companies recognize the benefits associated with direct selling -- low overhead, robust cash flow, a highly motivated workforce and loyal customers, among others -- and are diving into the direct-selling market," said Neil Offen, president of the Direct Selling Association.

According to the trade group, membership last year was 265 companies, up from 204 five years ago. That number includes other well-known brands such as the Body Shop and the Pampered Chef. The industry racked up $29.73 billion in sales in 2004, the last year for which data are available. In 1994, sales were at $16.55 billion.

Several retailers said direct selling is attractive because it helps customers connect with their brands in a positive way. The parties, usually thrown by a company's female sales consultants for their friends and acquaintances, can be as much about socializing as they are about shopping.

Often, established companies will create separate, higher-priced lines of merchandise for their direct-selling divisions to avoid competing with their products sold in stores. Direct-selling lines can include merchandise that may be complicated to use and require a trained salesperson to demonstrate.

At Jockey, the direct-selling division has become a home for fancy undergarments that didn't fit the brand's traditional comfort-first image, said Kim Gentile, vice president of sales. The Person to Person line allows Jockey to branch out into silky microfiber and rayon fabric made from bamboo -- and charge more for it. The line costs about 15 to 20 percent more than its regular label.

"This is a chance for us to offer fine fabrics, wonderful details, laces on the bras," Gentile said. "A lot of times, people will look at our products and say, 'Wow, that's Jockey? I had no idea.' "

Jones Apparel Group is using its Million Wishes division to target women between the ages of 30 and 55, an underserved demographic that fashion retailers have just begun to tap, said division President Betty Palm. The merchandise follows fashion trends, such as "global village," which employs spice colors, and "nautical prep," which emphasizes gold chains and red, white and blue.

"Women are often overwhelmed by the breadth of product choices out there," Palm said. "They were really looking for someone to help edit."

Some of the products created for the Million Wishes line require a tutorial to use, such as a multi-strand necklace that can be taken apart or a black belt with several buckles. Direct selling allows such product demonstration, Palm said. But most important, a salesperson can help translate fashion trends for the customer. And the fact that the two are often at least acquaintances may help clinch the deal.