What type of business is brookstone

The new system used existing software programs, which rendered Brookstone's programmers unnecessary. The new computer system was an important addition for Brookstone, which needed a means of keeping up with a frenzied three-month period of booming sales surrounding each Christmas. Typically, the company was known to ride out a lull in sales for nine months out of each year and then achieve almost the entire year's earnings when bombarded with holiday shoppers.

In , Brookstone began testing a new sales avenue when it opened five sales kiosks during the holiday season in shopping malls where Brookstone stores were already located. The kiosks were free-standing sales "booths" that featured a limited selection of Brookstone merchandise. Designed to capture shoppers as they walked by in the mall, these kiosks opened on November 1 and operated until the day after Christmas. After five were tested in Brookstone's stronger markets and were found to be successful additions, the company increased the number in operation each year thereafter.

Brookstone's recovery seemed to be sticking. Ironically, the successful recovery that Brookstone achieved was due mainly to its retail segment, which originally had been the source of its problems. But by , the company was operating approximately stores across the United States, which were generating a huge 85 percent of the annual revenue.

Its only remaining problem arose when it decided to circulate a new version of its catalog. In addition to the hard-to-find tools catalog, Brookstone started sending a catalog containing its retail items to areas of the country that were not served by a nearby store. Because of this addition, the company began to experience a need for access to retail merchandise for the catalog segment and vice versa , but the two computer tracking and distribution systems were almost completely incompatible.

In , Brookstone constructed a ,square-foot distribution center in Mexico, Missouri, which was designed to handle all merchandise for both divisions of the company: retail stores and mail-orders. The company also switched all distribution to the United Parcel Service UPS , which eliminated confusion that had arisen with the previous use of multiple carriers and methods. The across-the-board switch to UPS was also a benefit for mail-order customers, who began receiving orders faster and at no additional cost.

Second-day air became standard delivery. Brookstone realized this was an important customer service tool, because most of its merchandise was classified as "non-essential" and was sold to people buying on impulse who wanted the product right away. Another addition to Brookstone's customer service procedure came when it was announced that if an item was ever out of stock in a store location, the company would ship it directly to the customer from the distribution center at no cost.

The reasoning behind such measures appeared in the annual report, when Brookstone's management stated: "We realize it is ultimately the customer who employs us.

We are dedicated to ensuring complete customer satisfaction. Anthony as president and chief operating officer, while Kaminstein remained as chairman and CEO. The company was operating approximately stores in 32 different states and in Washington, D. Gifts of Comfort It's all about a comfy sleigh ride.

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