DISCOVERING THE BOARDWALK

The Coastal Connections Conference was designed for retailers to gain meaningful connections, not only with other retailers, but also with wholesalers who offer relevant product offerings. Following the last of the educational sessions, attendees gained exclusive entrance to The Boardwalk, featuring 30 of the most sought-after beach, coastal and nautical brands. Set in a beach-themed meeting space with large windows revealing a tropical landscape, The Boardwalk captured a laid-back vibe for attendees to do their buying in a relaxed environment.

The Boardwalk exhibitor experience brought in vendors from 30 top brands to interact with and display their offerings in a tabletop exhibit area that was bright and beachy, in line with the theme of the event. Attendees had the opportunity to hear from each exhibitor during a unique session on Monday afternoon called The Boardwalk Chat. Each exhibiting company was brought onto the Coastal Connections Conference stage individually and sat down with Seaside Retailer Publisher Karen Carr for a one-on-one discussion in front of attendees. Vendors were asked about trends, top-selling product offerings and what they like about working with seaside retailers.

Boardwalk participant Victor Armendariz of Wild Republic had this to say about the entire experience: “What I found most advantageous was The Boardwalk Chat. Having an opportunity to address a room full of current and potential buyers is fantastic.” related products. The stores associated with the center carry items from “blue vendor” retailers that give back a portion of their profits to sustainable seas causes, and makes sure shoppers know that.

The Boardwalk vendors included: Bags by Bruno, Bali Queen, Bamboo Source Tropical Decor, Beachables, Beachmate, Blue Iguana, Caloosa WaterWear, Cotz, Country Home Creations, Devi & Co, Dune Jewelry, Fin Pin Shop, First & Main, Impulse Souvenirs, Jackie Gallagher Designs, Kay Hova Art, Mac Daddy, Meadowbrook Gourds, Melissa Lew, MTO Performance Wear, Nomadic State, North Swell, Nau-T-Girl Jewelry, Ocean World Imports, Patti Biggs, The Cottonseed Marketplace, The Wellington Michael Collection, Town Pride, True Ocean and Wild Republic. Attendees also appreciated being able to learn about companies from the comfort of their seats. “It was a great way to learn about each brand and what they offered. It made meeting them at The Boardwalk event more efficient and personable,” said attendee Cici Davis, of Cinnamon Bay Resort, St. John, Virgin Islands.

William Hill, manager of the Margaritaville Resort gift shop inside the host hotel, related some of the things he did to revamp and upscale the resort’s gift shop, such as placing high-demand items at the front and the back so shoppers must walk through the entire store.

Hill had some personnel ideas as well. “Hire people for their personality,” he suggests, and make sure they interact with customers instead of hiding behind the checkout counter.

“Just have fun with it!” was Hill’s final recommendation, adding, “don’t be afraid of failure — be terrified of regret.”

RETAINING EMPLOYEES, CUSTOMERS AND COMMUNITY GOODWILL

Employee onboarding and retention was the opening topic for the panel discussion, “Creating Coastal Connections.” Panelist Barbara McLaughlin, owner, Hobe Sound Beach Shop, acknowledged the difficulty in finding good employees and keeping them around.

Panelist Joshua Stewart, owner, Adventures in Paradise Outfitters, Sanibel Island, Florida, recommended memorializing on-the-job requirements in an employee manual. “It makes a small business look super impressive and it shows you put time and thought into outlining what you expect from them,” he says.

Kim Hannon, owner, Ophiuroidea, St. Michaels and Grasonville, Maryland, suggested doing happy hours and other social events with employees. “It helps make the store a fun environment.”

Dave Seehafer, business analyst, Global Wave

Ventures, suggests that employees who do outstanding work should get some recognition for it. “Whether it’s public or private, it goes a long way” toward retaining that person in the job.

Stewart has had employees who worked for him as teenagers come back after college. He attributed it to the fact that “we offer benefits, vacation, time off and sick days. Also, I think we have a great atmosphere so they want to come back.”

The second part of this session dealt with customer loyalty programs. The audience was asked what sort of incentives they’ve tried and if they were effective. Janet Otten, in attendance from Hobe Sound Beach Shop spoke of her store’s “Beach Shop Booty,” frequent-shopper reward coins she gives out. “With 25 coins, they can get four coffee mugs or six shot glasses. If they spend over $100 in one visit, they get a free coin bank.”

“Give your customers something free with your logo on it,” suggests Seehafer. Several store owners in the audience shared their own experiences offering customer-retention and reward programs.

The third topic of this discussion dealt with how seaside stores can connect with larger communities. Many good suggestions were put forth by both the panelists and the audience members. For instance, Stewart talked about “Drinks with Josh,” a live Facebook vlog he did during the COVID shutdown where he went around and talked to other store owners on Sanibel Island.

BRIGHT, EASY AND ECO-FRIENDLY

“Emerging Beach, Coastal and Nautical Trends,” was moderated by SeasideRetailerEditor Kristin

Ely. She opened the panel discussion sharing trends from Seaside Retailer magazine coverage, including that “tourists are looking for highquality products that will make their day at the beach easier, more enjoyable and safer,” and that this will be an ongoing trend in 2023.

Bright colors and fun patterns in beach accessories and apparel are also trending, according to Ely. As for home decor, Ely says the pandemic has made people value comfort as part of the equation.

Tommy Brown, retail manager and buyer of conservation goods, Saint Louis Zoo, shared how eco-friendliness, green-sourced materials and reducing or eliminating plastics has become important to customers.

“Seventy percent (of consumers) said they would change their shopping habits if they discovered a store or brand wasn’t operating sustainably,” he says, adding that shoppers increasingly desire products that give back to environmental causes, are socially responsible and are fairly traded.

Rochelle Lynn, divisional buyer, SSA Group, also talked about sustainable product trends. She stressed how it’s really important to use responsible sourcing in creating sustainable goods.

She said that SSA released a line of sustainable plush toys made from 100% recycled materials in 2017. Since launching the Quest Toy line, close to 7 million single-use water bottles have been recycled.

The Monterrey Bay Aquarium, where SSA manages the gift store, was the first facility in the U.S. to eliminate all single-use plastics.

Seehafer’s presentation was “The Evolution of Shop-Branded Goods.” He told the assemblage that it’s still a great idea to offer name-dropped items in one’s seaside store. Further, items that carry a store’s logo on them help establish a store’s brand and distinguishes it from all the other shops on the street.

Seehafer stressed that a shop’s logo should be simple and easy to read, saying, “If they can’t read it, you’re not going to build awareness.”

Getting Smart

The last session of the event, “Drive Traffic, Sales and Profits with Social Media,” served as a motivator for beach, coastal and nautical retailers to invest time, ideas and implement improvements to their stores’ social media platforms.

Steph Bechard, brand and content manager for Crystal Media, said, “I hope you are able to write something down during this session that you can implement right away.”

She encouraged retailers to play the long game when it comes to social media; don’t expect tremendous results overnight.

“The long game is the social selling mindset where you are committed to consistently showing up for your audience as a small business owner, building your community (versus just selling to them) and building your brand,” she says.

She encouraged attendees to set SMART goals — Specific, Achievable, Relevant and Timed.

During a special ceremony on Monday, Jan. 23, recipients of Seaside Retailer’s starfish awards were recognized. The awards honor seaside retailers who support charitable causes and several were in attendance to accept their awards.

SAVE THE DATE!

Coastal Connections Conference

October 22-24, 2023

Margaritaville Resort Orlando

Orlando, Florida coastalconnectionsconference.com

“We enjoyed all of it! The location, the professionalism of the coordinators,” said attendee, Pam Smith, retail director, Turtle Central, Bald Head Island, North Carolina. “The food was delicious, the content, meeting new friends in the business who have shared experience with coastal trends, business challenges, seasonal changes, etc. So priceless to be able to share similar experiences and learn how to overcome specific challenges when dealing with a coastal business!”

The Coastal Connections Conference returns to the Margaritaville Resort Orlando, Oct. 22 to 24. Information will soon be available at www.coastalconnectionsconference.com.

Partying In Paradise

There’s nothing like unwinding after a long day of learning with margaritas, appetizers, live music and new friends. That’s what attendees of the Coastal Connections Conference experienced Sunday and Monday evenings, Jan. 22 and 23.

Steel drums played in the Seagrass Terrace at Margaritaville Resort Orlando during the festivities. Monday night’s It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere party included a live painting from artist Kate Shore. As part of many giveaways throughout the event, one lucky attendee got to take the coastal painting home.

STORY BY NICOLE WISNIEWSKI