Tibal Fisher has to find out from the potential customers what they want? The market that they are targeting may be aging but their tastes may not be synonymous with their age. At 60 who wants to be reminded of the past everywhere you look in your home. Thats fine for pictures and mementos of family and special events, but maybe they want more than a new rocking chair or a clock that looks like something from the 70's. Maybe they want comfort, versatility, fluidity,speed, and efficency. Just maybe the 'old' customer wants a new taste of the present or future..... Thats the beauty of a question, when asked you can get an answer that is relevant to what the customer wants.

I'd probably get a team of marketeers to get into the stores, and go on to the supermarkets and the stores where the target base frequent and ask some questions, such as

What do you want to furnish your new or present home with?
What colours do you want to see when you enter a room?
How do you want to feel when you wake up and look around your bedroom?
Tell us what you've always wanted but never got for your home and why?

Hey, if I'm going to spend the rest of my life in style,comfort, relaxing, it will be to make me feel alive!

Get back to basics, and get trendy. Broaden the customer base, so the stores attract a family style generation, so it won't be an old folks institution, that no one wants to be seen in!

Keep it simple and add some depth to their marketing research.

How about recording the life: watch how this target group live and make note of particular needs to be addressed.
Seems to be a "forgone conclusion" with marketers that as people age they need special solutions; not always the case.

Nextstage doesn't have a clean slate among its baby boomer base. Once they have realized their customers true attitudes, it will take more than just repainting the walls or moving a few tables around. Customers already associate them as catering to senior citizens, Nextstage needs to be careful they don't become "catering to senior citizens with an identity crisis" (think mid 40's bald guy driving a convertible). I recommend they garage the name "Nextstage".
TF should also be concerned that his new study might point his efforts to resemble one of their competitors. You don't want to recreate another Potterybarn or SharperImage, theres no consumer added value in that.
What do TF's stores really want to provide for their babyboomers? Is he in the home furnishing market or the babyboomer service market? Earlier he flirted with the idea of cafes in his stores. Is it far fetched to suggest that he can have a business model where service revenue might outperform merchandise revenue considering the disposable income?

Very interesting indeed.
It awakes in my mind the interesting work that is doing from many years (and currently doing) Dr. Clotaire Rapaille from Archetype Discoveries Worlwide - NY.

Fabio Paron

Tibal Fisher founded TF when he was in his late 20"s, Tibal being a baby boomer himself at the age of 61, thought he knew what baby boomers wanted and focused on those products in TF's Nextstages. Tibal's company conducted telephone surveys of 200 plus people which showed solid evidence for potential in the baby boomber market to support TF's NextStages.
However, business strategist considered aging baby-boomers and their enormous numbers to be a dead market.
Tibal Fishers should have complied information from the telephone surveys along with data from the business strategists and researched why business strategists considered the baby boomer market to be a dead market along with data collected from the telephone survey.
Tibal Fishers assistant Drew, passed up a perfect opportunity to see what a baby boomer consumer, who was currently in the store curious to know what the interview was about. This customer provided excellent insight and an answer to the problem that TF's NextStages were currently experiencing

First of all the company have to find that weather the people who are old in their age are really old from their heart and feelings. May be the feeling in the old people of getting old and good for nothing restricted them to enter the store.
People do not like to be told that they have grown old. As Nokia's commercial have well potrayed that in every grown up person their is a child. The company have only seen the growing numbers of the people who have crossed the age and can be called as old people, but overlooked the fact that weather these people really think themselves as old.

This is more likely an example of thinking that because you have done something successfully one way, the rules apply across every situation.

As people evolve, so do their ideals and tastes. Some of it by choice, and some of it because not every body (and disposable income) ages as gracefully as the next.

What TF probably should have done was slowly introduced products into their existing stores and product lines. This would allow them to test not only the viability of the overall concept, but also what products were going to 'fit' into the NextStage store IF they ever go to the point where demand showed a desire for enough products to fill a store. It may have made more sense (conceptually and financially) to have just introduced a line extension of previously popular sellers.

Finally, before they opened a store, they probably should have 'mocked up' a store and asked respondents to come in and shop under observation.

Observing them interacting with the products and salespeople, observing them asking about products they saw and didn't see in the mock store and suggesting ideas in exit interviews would have given TF a better understanding of the consumer's wants and needs than just phone interviews. A phone interview just gives you an idea of whether you should even be THINKING about a concept store.

The more Tibal Fisher immersed himself among the consumers (not just his view of the world), the better his understanding of their needs and wants would have been.

The idea was undoubtedly clever and perhaps from heart. The research obviously wasn't sufficient. No one wants to feel old. The first thing that should be done is to make the stores more inviting. Primarily, a place that induces a happy feeling amongst the baby boomers. The concentration should be farthest from the idea of pitching it as furnishings for the 'old'.

If the 'old' have the money it takes, they'd pay it to have something comfortable at home, something that they can proudly keep in the living room, expecting appreciation from guests. All of this, (still) considering that the store is comparitively inexpensive.

New collections every season will do no harm either. Lets face it, people in their sixties have more time than anyone else. They spend more time reading newspapers than they ever have. Intelligent newspaper advertising is something that they can capitalise on every six months.

I strongly feel that TF'S NEXTSTAGE needs to connect with the baby boomers in a away that it makes them buy their products without being reminded of the fact that they are in their sixties and need 'special' furnishings in the name of being comfortable.

Definitely the original concept had potential but the research data to support it was poorly obtained;just a 200 phone interviews that "felt" positive towards the concept couldn´t be used as a reliable base for such a new endeavour. Now; this guy is stuck with a dying operation and worse yet, has auto-imposed on themselves the "aging niche" which IF handled properly and elegantly, could function but not looking "backwards" . He has to inmediately find out what his actual customers (while he has them) want and from that profile of visitors, go out on the road and interview more of them in those environments; get a clear idea what this particular group wants; then; he can´t mimic another "me too" store then, he has to detect WHAT are the weaknesses of his tentative competitors and improve those areas.
Once he has that done, he must create an extremely dinamic approoach to his fresh clientelle via SERVICE at a super refined level ( adequate to what his customers would like or expect to receive in a store that they patronize) and train his floor personnel so everybody is clear what is expected of them and how they can act to achieve it.
Make sure next time you have an idea, you contact a marketing Consultant with the required expertise and insight so you don´t repeat this flop again.
COURAGE !!!!

I like the words that Andy Martini has used - 'his view of the world'. Tibal thinks he knows what his customers want. When he asks his customers, they like it because it is practical and logical. This further reinforces confidence to Tibal about the success of the store. Maybe this is where Tibal fails.

I see 2 issues that need a resolution here - one being the marketing approach and second being the customer research.

1) You need to sell what the customers want and not what you 'think' the customers want. If you have a good product, no doubt it will sell. But before that the customers have to feel the need for it. Tibal needs to bring out the latent need for his products through his marketing and communication. The marketing has to appeal the target group and it has to be relevant to them. Marketing also needs to make sure that there is no disconnect between the offering and the customers demands. As of now, there seems to be a disconnect. I am sure Tibal does not want to inform or remind his customers that they are old. Its just the way in which the products and stores are marketed that makes the customers feel dated.

2) Customer research needs to dive deeper than simple 5 point scales where almost everything ends up being good-to-best. To identify the latent needs, ethnographic studies will be useful. This will help in identifying customer needs and behaviours and also help in determining the desired product features. Store research will help in understanding the shopping behaviour of the target group and make the stores more appealing and pertinent.

Cafes are a bad idea - how about adding other relevant adjacent product categories for the target segment.

Would be interesting to discuss this further. Anybody willing?

I like the idea about adding other relevant adjacent products Sachin Somiya and that cafes' are a bad idea in a retail store such as "TF's NextStages - Living for Your Best Stage." One would have to question why would you put a cafe in a retail store when one of the products you are selling are high end coffee makers with big buttons for easy programming. Hiring a sales associate to demonstrate how the high end coffemakers work while offering free pastries as part of the product demonstration would eliminate the cost of operating and maintaining a community cafe.
Retail stores such as Barnes & Noble have enjoyed great success with the marketing strategy of having a "Starbucks" Coffee and Pastry store in the building or a Target or a Walmart having a cafe for parents with small to middle-aged children. Baby boomers are becoming empty-nesters with no children living in the home.
Having other relevant adjacent products may be the durative that "TF's NextStages - Living for Your Best Stage" needs to help recopue some of the loss market share from the previous two years and restore prominice and profit gain again to TF's market shares.

I think is all about the message, old baby boomers don't feel old, they don't like to be trated or pointed as old people, in fact they build this economy, they grew up with this new Digital Economy, current management trends and so on.

So, if you want to reach their souls, show them a little respect, make them feel as important as they are, they still want to be cool !

Try something like "you did it, enjoy it", "thanks for your effort, now we are doing it for you", "you made it possible, now you can enjoy it easily"

Regards, starbucks or alike, think on their needs, many are getting alone, other want to share with their grandson's, ...

I think in order to sell those products to the old, one needs to target the things that make old happy.

In this modern era when grandchildren don't like spending time with old as their homes don't attract them.

I believe the newly invented products will definitely provide the much needed comfort and only thing thats needed is the buying delight.

One way out is try to make these products attractive to small kids. Like printing cartoons on new breakfast table will make children take interest in that also will give the proud feeling to old that they have grandchildren.

Also try to make the shopping place attractive to kids so thats old can take their kids along.

Lastly, show that products that are useful to old are also useful for kids, try to show that they have the same limitations.

All should sell!!

I think in order to sell those products to the old, one needs to target the things that make old happy.

In this modern era when grandchildren don't like spending time with old as their homes don't attract them.

I believe the newly invented products will definitely provide the much needed comfort and only thing thats needed is the buying delight.

One way out is try to make these products attractive to small kids. Like printing cartoons on new breakfast table will make children take interest in that also will give the proud feeling to old that they have grandchildren.

Also try to make the shopping place attractive to kids so thats old can take their kids along.

Lastly, show that products that are useful to old are also useful for kids, try to show that they have the same limitations.

All should sell!!

I think, there's still "a meanigful & successful tomorrow" waiting for TF at the end of the day!Hey, Tibal relax...the world is not over yet and you just need to do some midnight oil burning. No big deal for somebody like you who has been in this business since his 20s. The reason for me being optimistic, is your enthusiasm and confidence, which I consider very important resource in any turnaround process.

Two sentences of Michael Porter come to my mind, when I read this case. Tibal this is for you (specially for your marketing & customer research tem):
1. Business keeps moving faster, but you better make time for strategy.
2. Strategy is a race to get to the position you want to occupy.

Be clear as where you want to go, why, by what time & how. These are the basic questions which anybody in the business has to keep asking. Understanding the mood, mood swings, emotion, emotinal connect of 'my' customer is vital for me to survice & grow in the business. And, this understanding must be continous, updated and scientific. Just because, I did my homework yesterday or I got distinction in last exam is no excuse for not doing the 'real work' once again.

I am sure, Tibal would not like to turn his venture into a oldage home. Such 'niche' business venture is not working with TF. The two important steps, which TF needs to take are:
One, defining the market segment -- are we going to be an organisation which will be there exclusively for baby boomers? If yes, then how can we bring more life, more fun, more of action -- in the store? How can we reach out to them more convincingly (and more politely) without reminding them of their age? If my market segment is going to be people of different age group, then where are such products/items?
Second, get such marketing managers who know their basics, undersand the consumer behaviour, understand the emerging markets & products and above all, for whom 'a customer' is not a sample object but a simple human being!

Amitabh Jha
BHEL, Hyderbad, India.

I would by-pass the marketers totally. Their science is anachronistic and limited. I'd seek the insights of anthropologists to get under the surface into the World of Why. All TF did was supportive of conventional wisdom, but if that jaded term has taught us anything is that CW more often than not suggests what we should shun, not what we should embrace. A successful formula under one set of circumstances (the baby boomer successes) should not - and indeed did not - apply to the new.

The most appropriate question to ask is not what do they do, but WHY do they do what they do. That opens fields of ethnography which start exploring fundamental motives. Once you have a handle on the motives, match the product and marketing to to it. Then there is a chance of getting it right.

It sounds like he has a great product line-up. He just needs to change the marketing message. People are affiliating with younger groups as culturally we've heard 40 to be the new "30" and 50 to be the new "40". He could "young" up his message and give it a cool factor. Remember "this is not your fathers Oldsmobile", that sent a strong message that it WAS your fathers car, he's old, and now your old... We know what happened to Oldsmobile. Targeting a younger, hipper audience will allow older customers who feel younger to also feel comfortable in his stores.

The store is insulting to the target market.

On the one hand, baby boomers are aging -- just like everyone else. On the other hand, we know we're getting older, but still don't want to be told that we are "old" and that we have "special needs and interests" that are older-age related.

We still want to be acknowledged as trend-setters, and as a driving force in the economy. Just because we are aging, doesn't mean we don't have interests in "cool" and that we aren't innovative. The age range for baby-boomers right now is what, 62 down to 44, or close to that? There's a lot of smarts and wisdom and, for many, still many years before "senior" kicks in. Plus, a 62-year-old may have a completely different viewpoint from a 44-year-old, so lumping them all together might not be a good idea.

I think that it is too early into the boomers'aging to have this type of a store.

Get to know the "feelings" of the intended customers first and during those two years of sales - have periodic surveys of consumers (those who come to the store) and potential consumers' feelings. I would not leave it two long years to realise that things do not happen as I enviaged. Keep the wheels of connection and communication turning !

i assume that Tibal had done his homework in regard to the various standard issues re retailing (location, access, footfalls of target population, etc...) - I will also assume that he had done a fair bit of thinking about the nature of products and the level of "desire" among the target population. to wit, what sounds like a good idea didnt turn out to be a block buster it was expected to be. perhaps it is time to review what really works and what doesnt and take it up from there.

for instance - there are - i assume - some people today walking into these shops and buying things. what do they buy ? - what do they like ? - what do they not like ? - is your actual footfall corresponding to your target population ? - Which store outlets / departments / products are moving and which are not ? - try small experiments in 1 location, learn as you go.

forget market surveys and what business strategists think - and focus on the customers who are coming in ? - they are self selected - they wanted something when they stepped into your shop - figure out why they came in, what they buy, what they browse through - what they liked / what they didnt - segment and analyse your sales and footfalls - then figure out how to get more of them to come in ? - is it a case of the right nighbourhood ? the right price points ? / the right product portfolio ? / the right service / shopping experience ? - or is it a communication issue ? (branding ?) or the messaging (do they want "young" even when they need "old" ?) - walk the floor personally and talk to your customers. figure out the answers first - and pilot and prove / disprove them by experiments in your chosen outlet. if the business concept is any good, you can as well roll out the success formula 1-2 quarters later. and dont pls look for standard solutions. there is no need to hurry to transform. but keep experimenting and innovating every week. small low cost experiements that give you answers to your questions.

right now - is the time to learn. keep things small (roll back if need be to cut costs and save some money) and work out the right model in 1 shop / 1 city - before rolling out large scale.

Turn the flop to unique success...with a cause!

I feel the root cause lies in an unaddressed thought...much more 'concerning' than the 'insulting' factor!

In one's retired life, it is very hard to see themselves 'invest' for their 'own' well being...so the 'target audience' could be the mid-40's to 'invest for their parent's wellbeing'!

That way it would be a great feeling to walk in to NextStage and 'shop to gift' our loving parents! What better way to 'understand our ageing folks' needs' and doing the needful than getting them embarrased by asking us, out of compulsion, as to what they need for their basic well-being!

A different perspective and a clear positioning would make a world of difference!

Context is un-impressive. Basic thing that is missing in the case is the emphasis of MIND SET OF THE PEOPLE. Serving old customer, market niche, lies in the philosophy that don’t let them remind that they are “ old”.
Instead “all for old people” phrase “youth is in your hand’ has definite merit. For further psychological boast ‘if not believed we are here” seems appropriate. To substantiate young energetic executive, with positive attitude and amicable nature dedicated to serve customer should be employed in the organization so that a humane touch prevails everywhere. Café idea is good if it is a cost effective.
Customer Data base to be enriched and monitored constantly along with creating provision for appropriate merchandise.
R K Raul, AUS, India.
August 29,2008

TF should massage the ego of the old people that they arent yet old. Phychologically TF is hurting old or senior citizens. TF should help them feel younger in hearts and minds and probabaly
a) restructure the store to attact 'middle aged' community
b) extend the brand for 'really older' people that the current set of target customers feel young at hearts to buy the current items on display

Looks like Tibal was looking to sell what he wanted rather than
selling what his customers wanted.

the idea @ TFS surely merits its research , customer interaction , surveys , market trends & preemptions yet despite all that ; the jig that followed failed to get its trout.To me the faltering communication quotient got to the peril of TFS.

I am just upwards of 40 , the very thought that I am 40 + and now is the time for the age to pace ,skin to sag , drive to go lull and so on ... gives me jitters ... imagine a scenario someone hammering it into my unassuming head ; trying to rub off on my unaging attitude that I am getting just there on my downhill trip!! Do i take it ! recipe for a lump ... thats what TFS failed to comprehend with their Next Stage message which naggingly sneered right into the clients face holding the crystal ball and showing what the customers never wanted to see ...

marketing is a NOT about what you want to direct home its the message that gets you home; TFS should have matched up with their prospective clientele's frequencies ... a simple exercise as posted by Donna Luisa would have got TFS there NEXT Stage.

How can someone expect business by saying your customer that you have become old, you need special attention now.....

First of all I would say the entire idea is not worth it. If you really want to exploit this market then you should promote yourself someone who have a unique range of products..You should not sound sympathetic for whatever reason to your customer. The name itself is so unwelcoming....

Most of the people lying in front of people who are conducting the survey,and people respond differently when company launch the product after conducting the research. in this case people are not interested in purchasing the product which has 'OLD AGE' appeal. even the old age people don't prefer to purchase the product which has old age appeal.
Instead of launching product which has old age appeal they have make arrangement which help to customer who wants to purchase the product which help the old age people

Products designed for the aging population can be divided in two essential subsets.Healthcare and personal safety solutions and general home furnishing solutions.

Aging population has two subsets too .The physically dependant and the physically independant.

Tiber might want to capitalise on their brand equity by addressing specific subsets of the market .

Well geared and focused marketing, for example ,trying to sell a bed which helps you stand up to an old gentleman with arthritis should face no back lash .But pooling the whole geriatric lot together,reminding them that there old, is not intuitive at all.

Hypertension,arthritis,pulmonary affections and cardiac ailments are the commonest ailments that plague the old population.Home furnishing which addresses these issues can help Tiber focus on definate revenue pools.

One sure way to quantify this subset is to check up the home care and geriatric registry of the hospitals in the area of distribution.Working in liason with health care providers and social welfare groups can also help in brand recognition.
Tiber should also remember that their window of oppurtunity to actually strike a sale with an elderly is between the age of 55 to 75 .More often than not ,mentation and Critical thinking sharply deteriorates as you reach your eighth decade.

Establishing these new constraints within their marketing campaign can will help Tiber focus their campaign .

I would start first by getting into the unconscious mind of the target group and understand their unmet needs in general than confirm the common added value needed for the products that would satisfy their unmet needs.

A major issue, I guess, is that this age group wouldnt for sure love to be associated with AGE. They would love to be rejuvenated through all the project mix, starting from a lively message till the products, passing by the stores image.

Ideas: Modern tools fitting their capabilities would trigger their appetite; like an easy to use Internet tool (not a regular computer) something like the net phone
I like the cafe idea, note for revenue generation but rather for mingling and sharing ideas between the guests and maybe asking their feedback about the product offerings

I was surprised when Mr. Shankar Dada (83 Year Old) reprimanded a sales girl of an optical store when she directed him to spectacle frames of ‘old’ design, and demanded her to show the latest ones. Mr. Shankar Dada can’t change his sight deficiency, and has to use the same lenses as priscribed by his doctor; but he can always wear a frame of choice. After all, he wants to live the way he likes.

In this case, Tibal Fisher certainly identified the compelling needs of a generation beginning to enter its sixties. The initial surveys supported their assumptions. Probably surveying markets related to hospital furnishings segment might have given some more insights.

But the methods to address their findings need to be re-visited. I agree with the argument of Donna-Luisa Eversley “Just maybe the 'old' customer wants a new taste of the present or future…” The customers are averse to a restricted choice.

The competitors are already selling their products to this segment, may be better than TF. Tiber Fisher can access competitors’ customers, identify the gaps, and address these gaps including those which are not presently articulated by customers.

More importantly, it is essential to understand “those emotions trigger--or block—purchases” as prescribed by Donna J. Sturgess of current target segment as well as the early 50’s segment to formulate a long term strategy.

Finally, Tibal Fisher can turn to Technology for better solutions. Why should a high-end coffeemaker have big buttons? Instead a touch screen with the font sizes of customer’s choice is more appealing.

TF's NextStage brand message "Living for Your Best Stage" certainly get the people into the stores but the products do not sell themselves.

Let me first assume i am connected with them and need to analyze.
I see the problem that they couldn't hit hard the targeted and expected audience and most worrying the customer base or the new customer hunt is declining. For the first many will see its simpler- requires deep market survey and to understand their taste and psycho as everyone mentioned above but moreover the influence of the environment like social involvement means those who will comment on their furnishing before hitting again.

According to me latter is of much worrying it seemed to requires a change in the brand image. It has taken the image "only for old" and "Cheap(price) for the old". It is highly demanding that to get out of it as fast as possible because they are not selling antiques. If the products good and impressive it can capture vast horizon. Some well planned but witty(the wit that can capture the generation new and as antique(like Gregory Peck) need to be launched and some hired good criticism from the business and news dailies can change the image well.

Finally it is highly require to determine the targeted audience as poor, middleclass or the rich and their sub-categories as they have different taste and state of mind.

Advertising as cheap or less priced can not be advise as it contains a wrong message of poor quality even it is not. let it be cheap but lets not advertise.

The company should try to relate its product with the emotion with which these boomers live rather than age. No doubt in this age, people have different requirements but most of them do not want to show that they have become old and weak. The feeling is more important than the quantification of the years they lived. The TF wants capitalise on the basis of a satisfied customer without looking into their emotions and feelings.
Secondly, the research methodology should be modified and be made more interactive and observable. This will help in undestanding the feelings more precisely.

Posted by M. Khalid Azam