For Immediate Release, March 26, 2001                    Contacts:     Jana Muntsinger

                                                                                                                                                615.376.9442

                                                                                                                                                jana@mmpublicrelations.com

 

 

Parable’s Super Saturday 2001 Sale Exceeds 2000

More than 95% of Participating Stores Had Increased Sales

 

San Luis Obispo, California—Parable Member Stores announces its 3rd Annual Super Saturday Sale on February 24, 2001, was its most successful to date.  Sales jumped by more than 101% over a typical Saturday for 23% of participating stores—and nearly half (48.1%) posted sales gains of better than 51%.

Parable had its largest Super Saturday event ever, with 117 stores participating, an increase from 108 stores in 2000.  Chordant Distribution, Big Idea and Word Publishing were the three main sponsors for this nationwide sale exclusively at Parable member stores.

Sales increased an average of 56% for participating stores over “a typical Saturday this time of year,” and store traffic was up an average of 47.6%.  Following are more specifics from the Parable Super Saturday survey:

·         95.3% increased sales over a “typical Saturday this time of year;”

·         Almost a fourth (23.1%) increased sales by 101% or more;

·         Nearly half (48.1%) increased sales by 51% or more;

·         Average increase for music sales was 65% (1-in-3 stores reported music sale increases of more than 101%), and;

·         Average increase for book sales was 48.1%.

 

            Response from individual storeowners was extremely positive.  Jim Whitaker of New Life Christian Store in Lynchburg, VA, had more than 50 people waiting outside his store 20 minutes prior to its opening on February 24.  Carl Miller from Majesty Christian Store in Greensburg, PA, thinks the Super Saturday promotion is a great traffic builder for February.  “During a Super Saturday, we typically do twice what we would normally do in sales,” Miller states.  Pauline Holsopple of The Anchor Room in Fort Wayne, IN, echoes the enthusiasm: “We had a lot of sales and a lot of fun.  We had a store full of people all day long, and we even had more people than last year.  Super Saturday is great!”

-more-

Super Saturday 2001, page two

 

Word Publishing promoted more than 13 titles, including product by best-selling authors Max Lucado, Anne Graham Lotz and Tim LaHaye.  Chordant offered special pricing for the WOW 2001 CD, Plus One’s “The Promise” CD, dc talk’s “Intermission” CD and Jennifer Knapp’s “Lay it Down” CD.  Big Idea, creators of the 20-million-selling Veggie Tales® video series, aggressively priced “Esther: The Girl Who Would Be Queen” and “3-2-1 Penguin.”

Parable promoted Super Saturday 2001 extensively through catalog placements and in-store promotions.  Parable included a four-color 8-page insert in the February 2001 catalog, reaching 1,176,500 consumers.  Each participating store received an extensive promotional kit, containing the following custom printed items:

·         Merchandising bags

·         Posters

·         End-cap headers

·         Entry box and forms

·         Balloons

·         Multiple handouts with coupons for 45 different products

·         Hourly prizes

·         Video in-store loop

·         Outdoor banner (3’ x 6’)

·         Lanyards for retail staff

 

Parable made sure its stores had the tools needed to implement a successful Super Saturday.  Parable provided an extensive Planning & Strategy Guide for each store.  92.5% rated the Guide as either good or excellent.  In addition to the guide and kit, Chordant shipped 400 CD samplers to each store, featuring music and artist interviews from its best-selling music.  During the day, each store gave away a grand prize package containing 30 CDs, a 10-book library and a complete set of 14 Veggie Tales videos.  The grand prize package had a retail value of more than $875. 

The Parable Group is a California-based marketing and retail services company representing over $400,000,000 in annual sales of Christian products to consumers.  Parable Christian Stores consists of more than 300 independently owned Christian retail outlets located in North America.  The Parable Group provides diverse marketing tools for its member stores such as e-commerce sites, in-store merchandising kits, exclusive products, weekly bestseller lists and catalogs.  In 2000, Parable distributed more than 29.7 million catalogs, newspaper inserts, and other promotional mailings in 25 marketing campaigns.

###

March 26, 2001