The NAMM people are passionate. Many of them are single-store operators. They’ll tell you they don’t sell instruments; they sell a way of life. In fact, NAMM’s tagline is “Believe in Music,” and everywhere I turned there were folks playing music, on every instrument imaginable. Summer NAMM attracted 12,000 retailers, manufacturers, and musicians to the Music City. (Their January event in Anaheim attracts almost 100,000! It’s like Comic-Con for the music business.)

I was on a panel with Kevin Cranley, who runs a third generation, family-owned business called The Willis Music Company. They’ve been in business since 1899!  He was all about learning – he told retailers looking to improve their business to “go out, and get some fresh eyes.” Fellow panelist Alan Friedman, “the musician’s accountant,” talked about expenses, reminding attendees to look at their lease agreements. Alan exudes passion: he plays in a band and his corporate tagline reads: “When your Business is Music.” (He sent me a T-shirt with the slogan “My accountant can beat up your accountant.” Funny guy.)

My husband and I spent some time on the show floor. We found a patented training system called “Chord Buddy,” which allows you to play chords on a guitar with a single press of a button. Get this: an independent retailer invented it! Perry’s Music sells the Chord Buddy to other retailers around the country. I could have used this when I was young, learning on a painful acoustic guitar. The floor traffic included musicians who tried out instruments. Spontaneous jam sessions erupted throughout the day. My father-in-law, at 81, is a committed student of the piano who still plays and writes his own music. My husband kept saying, “I wish my dad were here.” These retailers are inventing new ways to be resilient during tough economic times.

Yamaha guitars at Summer NAMM

Nashville also knows a thing or two about resilience. Six weeks prior to NAMM, much of the city was underwater. Over dinner that night a waitress at Joe’s Crab Shack walked us through a photo album of the damage, and told us how thousands of residents turned out to help the city within 24 hours of the flooding. After dinner we went to the Big Bang Bar and sang along with Danny Smith’s rendition of “Bennie and the Jets.” Shops, restaurants, and clubs were back in business.

A week later I told Jim Wright of Tractor Supply Company (“TSC,” based just outside of Nashville) that I was impressed with Nashville’s recovery. He told me that TSC employees had chipped in to help six of their fellow team members who had lost their homes or suffered significant damage. Berthold Auerbach said “Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” Maybe NAMM and the Music City conspired to remind us just how powerful the combination of passion and resilience can be.

My keynote at the China Department Store Summit

“We must learn from our American friends.” I kept hearing this during my recent stay in Beijing, from retailers of all sizes. The China Commerce Association for General Merchandise (CCAGM) had invited me to deliver a keynote address at their 8th annual China Department Store Summit, which draws around 300 executives from China and surrounding countries. I spoke about the state of retail in the States and the characteristics of US retailers who are thriving in the downturn.  I was one of several “state of” keynotes, including Japan, Korea and Malaysia. (I was terrified, of course — but I shouldn’t have worried.  I had them at “Ni hao.”)

Turns out, we spoke the international language of retailing. Chinese department stores are facing the same issues that US retailers are:  maintaining customer service standards under economic pressures; differentiating product from the competition; competing against foreign retailers entering the market.  American brands have cachet in China, and they know that in order to attract these brands to their stores, their customer service standards must improve.  They understand that assortment localization is one of the best ways to differentiate as a department store retailer. And they know that Chinese retailing must reinvent itself to defend against the onslaught of foreign stores who have identified the fastest growing middle class in the world. China is the last best hope for the comeback of the “Aspirational Shopper.” (I spent some time in a luxury mall, Shin Kong Place. Coach is rocking over there.)

Coach in Beijing

So when I talked about how Nordstrom modified their product mix to quickly capture market share in the downturn, I saw nods of approval in the audience. When I talked about Kroger‘s disciplined approach to customer loyalty, they took notes. When I talked about Amazon.com‘s commitment to innovation, they took a picture of the slide. And when I spoke about all the cool stuff that Best Buy is doing both here and in China to drive sales using mobile, their faces lit up with recognition. (The US is really behind when it comes to mobile, but NRF is trying to move the needle on that a bit.)

They asked what the biggest challenges would be for the future of department stores in the US. I asked one of my traveling companions, Kimberly Grabel (SVP of Saks Fifth Avenue), what she thought, and her first response was “differentiation.” It will be interesting to see how China department stores like Beijing Wangfujing develop their differentiation models in the face of growing global competition. I know one thing for sure, it’ll develop quickly. Everything over there is changing at lightning speed.

One thing is permanent, though:  our Chinese friends have great respect for NRF, and NRF has great respect for Chinese retailing. In fact, the NRF Foundation launched an exciting new venture in China this past December – certification and training for store managers. Kathy Mance (the NRF Foundation’s Executive Director), Kimberly Grabel and I got to attend a training class, held at the headquarters of one of our partners on the ground, the China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC). It was thrilling to see the fruits of NRFF’s labor made real in a classroom setting.  (We felt like rock stars. Well, rock stars in suits.)

To our new friends: xie xie for the memories. And to the rest of the world: expect to meet our new friends at the 100^th Anniversary of NRF’s BIG Show, this January in New York. CCOIC will be sending a group to the Show, to learn more from their “American friends.” I look forward to giving them the same warm welcome when they visit New York as they did when I traveled to Beijing.

Much has been done since then to improve NRF’s relationship with our “vendors,” or our Associate Members. We reinvigorated our Associate Member Advisory Council (AMAC) – 15 representatives from member companies — whose mission is to communicate the needs of our service provider membership to NRF.

Each year, AMAC convenes a “town hall” meeting in conjunction with our BIG Show, where members provide feedback. Our newer members also get to meet with our more seasoned partners — it’s one of the ways our show can be BIG and small at the same time.

And what about the feedback? We listen and respond. For example, we announced last year we’d be moving to Washington, DC for our Annual Convention, beginning in 2011. The membership outcry was so strong that we took steps to renegotiate our contract and we’re staying in New York for the foreseeable future.

The next “town hall” meeting is scheduled for this Sunday from 12noon – 1:30pm. Associate Members will meet the new leadership of the Council, hear about new ways our members can get involved with NRF, and how AMAC plans to help our members maximize their dues investment. If you’re a trading partner attending Annual, we hope you’ll join us.

And Brian Hume? I count him as one of my truth brokers. And, he’s since joined our “peer review” committee, which provides feedback on submissions to our online Retail Reference Center. We welcome feedback, and hope to hear yours.

Kip Tindell

In advance of NRF’s Annual Retail Industry Luncheon, held next week at Retail’s BIG Show, The Container Store CEO Kip Tindell discusses how the NRF Awards committee selects retailers for specific accolades each year, what causes companies to regard another executive as a true “merchant prince,” and the store everyone needs to visit.

You’ve served on NRF’s Awards & Nominations Committee for a couple of years now. What does it take for a retail executive to truly stand out from the crowd and earn the NRF Gold Medal Award?

It is talent and brilliance that causes fellow top retailers to regard someone as a true “merchant prince.” A life’s body of work…a career that suggests this person is one of the finest retailers ever… Roger Farah certainly fits this description and we are very proud of him winning the Gold Medal Award this year.

Fast Retailing Co. Ltd. has won the International Retailer of the Year award this year. What thoughts can you share about the company?

Everyone should visit their shiny new Uniqlo store in New York’s SoHo district. But you may have to stand in line to get in! Fabulous quality and fashion at fabulous prices. Tadashi Yanai, founder and Chief Executive, may be the retail industry’s fastest moving and most fearless leader. Already at $7.4 billion in annual sales, his ambition is to be the world’s largest clothing retailer by 2020. Unafraid of making mistakes (he views them as learning opportunities), his autobiography is entitled, “One Win and Nine Losses.” This philosophy enables him to expand globally at a dizzying pace, and to promote young talent to key executive posts. Whew! Fast Retailing Company is a marvel to watch.

Zappos, the Retail Innovator of the Year award winner, has embraced social networking as a way to boost their already stellar customer service reputation. Did this factor in to their winning the award this year?

Yes, well Zappos uses Twitter and other social networking strategies to help build the company brand and culture. They’re committed to transparency. They’re committed to communication. They’re committed to fun. They’re committed to Zappos’ wonderful corporate culture. That leads to amazing customer service, and unusually committed customers and employees.

As chairman of the Awards Committee, you served as emcee of the ARIL Luncheon last year, and will be repeating your performance this year. What goes through your mind when you recognize these retail leaders in front of nearly 2,000 retail executives?

It just reinforces my passionate opinion that retail is the greatest of all professions. What a joy and privilege it is to have these amazing award winners as colleagues and friends.

Has serving on the Awards Committee taught you anything new that you’ve been able to apply to your day-to-day operations at The Container Store?

Of course. I learn something every time I’m around another retailer. Several thousand of the top retail leaders in the world are at this NRF event. Interacting with them is hugely valuable and fun.

I’d like to think this is due to the BIG Show’s best-in-class line-up.  Retailers doing well through the downturn — Deb Shops, Tesco, 1-800-Flowers, Wal-Mart, McDonald’s, Cabela’s — will share their secrets for success.   Home-grown and imported hot brands will strut their stuff:  Tory Burch, AllSaints, Uniqlo, Dunkin’.  New attractions such as Innovation Station will inspire retailers to think differently.  Original research from Shop.org, the NRF Foundation, Stores Media, A.T. Kearney, Gouvêa de Souza & MD, and RichRelevance will condense a year’s worth of intelligence-gathering into four days.  And Bert Jacobs will remind us all to celebrate life’s simple pleasures.

Given the fact that headcount is up 8% over last year, I’d say a lot of folks are looking forward to the “give and take” (with respects to Billy Joel).  Join us in our New York state of mind.

Spirit Halloween is owned by the iconic Spencer Gifts, an NRF member with over 600 stores. Spencer is unique – they’ve managed to find the “secret sauce” to fun at the mall, and they’re Halloween fanatics.

At an NRF Networking Nights dinner in Philadelphia recently, I had the pleasure of chatting with Steven Silverstein, the CEO of Spencer Gifts and the driving force behind Spirit Halloween’s expansion and national presence. I reached out to him later to get more information about their “Spirit of Children” program, how Spencer Gifts has managed to survive and thrive through several tight credit environments, and what they think the holiday season will bring for them over the months ahead. Read on:

Last year, Spencer Gifts raised over $625,000 to fund child-life programs in hospitals all over the US through your “Spirit of Children” program. How did this program start?

It began in 2006 as a small way to thank local communities who supported our Spirit stores. We simply hosted Halloween parties in 11 hospitals, with events hosted by volunteer Spirit employees. Pediatric wards were treated to pumpkin painting, games, and costumes. The next year we added collecting donations at our store registers to further support the child life department in those hospitals and expanded to over 30 hospitals. It has been an astonishing success.

Today, we’ve built a strong partnership between our customers and our local hospital partners to support this worthy initiative, bringing Halloween to kids who may not otherwise have a chance to celebrate. Now we host our “Spirit of Children” parties at over 50 hospitals and we are raising money for more than 70 nationwide. This year we’re hoping to raise $1 million to support these children. This is where you find the “heart” of our company.

You’ve recently advocated moving Halloween to the last Saturday in October – or, as you call it, “HalloWeekend.” Why?

Halloween gets lost when it falls during the week. Trick-or-treating in the dark, on a school night, has its problems for safety and homework. It’s also better for our industry and the economy to have Halloween on Saturday – revenues have ticked up by as much as 30% when the holiday falls on a weekend versus a weekday. And we’ve moved holidays before – I believe it was Franklin Delano Roosevelt who decided to make Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday of November, at the request of the retail industry. Even though the states rebelled at first, eventually the holiday was changed. Regarding “HalloWeekend,” obviously we’re having some fun here, but it does make sense from many perspectives.

How have consumers reacted to this idea?

For the most part, we’ve gotten a lot of support. The first reaction from most is to laugh, and then once they think about it, shrug and say, yeah that makes sense. Then again, there are others who think, it is dumb, self-serving and heretical. That’s okay, too. We’re not new to criticism at Spencer’s. If you’re dealing with new ideas, you’re bound to make waves. We think Halloween has just become overwhelmingly popular – a “national party” – and it’s all about the fun and fantasy of being whomever you want to be for a day. Why not give folks more time to enjoy it by moving it to the last Saturday in October?

You were previously the President of Linens ‘n Things, spending 11 years there up until 2003. You became CEO of Spencer in 2003, and you’ve also spent time with Bloomingdale’s as a merchandising VP. How did you get into the retail business?

By accident, of course, like so many others before me. My family was in the motel business in Daytona Beach, Florida, and every summer I’d work at the motel. This taught me a lot about the attitude you have to have to be a great retailer. When I graduated from college (Cornell University, Class of 1981), I was preparing for a career with Merrill Lynch. I set up a “practice” interview with a recruiter named David Kanal from Macy’s. He hit all my buttons – how store management is the equivalent of running your own business, how retailing is results-oriented…It was just one of those fateful moments in life where you really connect. Retailing from Day One got in my veins.

How did you move up to CEO?

Back then Macy’s had a 13-week training program. I joined 25 other recent college grads (we were called “The Training Squad”) on the same day in the classroom. One of those trainees is my closest friend in life to this day. We learned retail math, we learned about all parts of the organization. I was assigned as a “white flower” (designating me a department manager) at Roosevelt Field Mall in sportswear. I started out on the sales floor, which is the only way you really understand what’s happening in stores. I moved up from there, over the years. Today I still take two trips a month visiting stores.

You’re on the advisory council for the Jay H. Baker Retailing Initiative for the Wharton School of Business. What do you look for in new hires right out of college, and what advice do you have for today’s graduates?

A: I recently spoke about that very subject. We’re looking for people who can articulate why retailing is for them – people who are targeted, who’ve done their homework. With today’s economy, students can start before they graduate and find creative ways to figure out if retailing is a good fit. For instance, Spencer Gifts offers internships. Becoming an intern is a great way to get your foot in the door. Use your network—family, friends, schools. If all else fails, if you really want to be considered for a career at a particular organization, write a letter to the CEO of the company and express your interest. What’s the worst that can happen? The NRF Foundation is also a great place to research the industry.

Spencer Gifts has managed to secure funding in very creative ways over the years. In fact, you’ve “risen from the ashes” a couple of times in your history. Spencer has survived several acquisitions (MCA in 1964; Seagram’s/Universal Studios in 1995; Vivendi in 2001; GB Palladin in 2003, and most recently ACON Investments in 2007). What advice do you have for a CEO facing today’s tight credit market?

Leverage is a very dangerous thing. Be as conservative as possible. Be realistic. Do not get overextended. Make sure that you have enough room in your liquidity. You can’t be in a situation where the first air pocket you hit is going to cause a crisis. Retailers have enough leverage on their books already through their leases; debt is debt. I suspect that many retailers will be re-engineering their balance sheets in the coming months.

Are you concerned about what’s going on at CIT?

We’ve worked with CIT since 2007; they have continued to support us and we hope that they will find our way out of their current situation. However, we aren’t solely dependent on them and we can manage through it either way. It’s more of an issue for companies that aren’t financially viable.

In your opinion, what is the most powerful characteristic that a retail CEO should possess to survive this environment?

Employees are looking to their leaders to provide a clear way forward in these unprecedented economic times – to help them understand and navigate what they are doing and why they are doing it. It’s more important than ever to demonstrate leadership: communicate clearly what you expect and be open about your company’s performance. Even if it’s tough news, it has to be delivered, told in an honest and open fashion. You have to lead the way.

How do you think Spencer Gifts will do this season?

We’re hopeful that we’ll do better than NRF’s Halloween prediction, but we know that with seasonal businesses, we have to play it all the way through. Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, so there’s a lot of opportunity for consumers to participate in several different ways.

What’s next?

Spencer Gifts has recently announced a new concept, seasonal toy stores to be open from November to mid-January, called “ToyZam.” We’re planning to open 25 mall-based locations this season, taking advantage of the void in the retail toy market. The first one opened on October 16, as a matter of fact. So, happy Halloween rotates directly into happy holidays!

My first groupie moment was when I saw Terry Lundgren congratulating Tom Brady after a playoff game in January 2008. Right there on television. I jumped up, pointed at the screen, and yelped, “That’s Terry Lundgren! He runs Macy’s! He’s on our Board!”

My latest groupie moment happened compliments of BataCorp. What began as a cobbler’s shop in Moravia in 1894 grew to become the largest and best known shoe manufacturer in the world, selling a million pairs of shoes daily with operations on five continents.

We are fortunate that BataCorp has been an NRF member since 1991. Bata’s second generation CEO, Thomas J. Bata, Sr., served on our Board for many years before he passed away in late 2008. He was known as “the Shoemaker to the World,” who relocated his company to Canada to escape Nazism and stayed permanently when his Czech operations were nationalized by the communist regime. He once said, “We have no preferred nationality, after all, all men have two feet.” We at NRF knew Thomas and his wife, Sonja, quite well and mourned his passing.

His son, Thomas Jr., now runs BataCorp and is a member of the NRF Board. I had the pleasure of dining with him at a recent meeting and was fascinated by his breadth of knowledge, his unique perspective on family-owned businesses, and how his mother, Sonja, created the ultimate shoe museum in Toronto.

The groupie moment didn’t happen at dinner. It happened a few weeks later, when I was reading the Sunday paper. There it was: a full-page spread on the “must see” Bata Shoe Museum. Again I yelped, proud to claim the Batas as my own.

Sonja Bata, born in Switzerland and married to Thomas Bata Sr. in 1946, agreed to share her insights on retailing and how something as simple as a shoe can bring cultures together. Prepare to be amazed, and to join me as a Retail Groupie.

What did you think of the article that appeared in the Washington Post here? Has it been your experience that men start off the tour rolling their eyes, only to realize the “cool factor” by the end?

A lot of men come to the Museum – we have an Olympics-inspired display of how ski boots, ice skates, and curling skates have developed over the years. Wayne Gretzky’s hockey skates are a favorite with the men. The history of the basketball shoe is also a favorite. Dr. Naismith, a Canadian, invented the game, you know.

How did you come up with the idea of a Shoe Museum?

My background is in architecture and design. I married Thomas in 1946, and began helping him with market research. I would bring back shoes from all over the world. Over time I had amassed quite a “Market Research Collection.” It’s fascinating how shoes differ so much by country…I began to see that shoes exposed historical developments among cultures. We launched the Bata Shoe Museum Foundation in 1979 to get the collection into shape and to conduct footwear research, and by 1995 we had opened the Museum in downtown Toronto. It is designed by Moriyama & Teshima Architects, world-famous and the most prestigious group in Canada. There are other museums around the world with smaller collections, but ours is the most unique.

I understand the shoes span 4,500 years of history. What was the most exciting find you’ve come across in the history of building the Museum?

Everyone has a shoe story to tell. I am most excited by the fact that we attract over 100,000 visitors a year. In fact, the Canadian government partners with us to provide virtual programs in our schools. For example, “Shoes that Walked Across Canada,” a program about Inuit culture, has been translated in French and English. A group of Tibetan refugees were brought to the Museum to see our Tibetan Field Collection, and they offered to provide demonstrations on how to make Tibetan boots. Once we featured an exhibit on the history of dance shoes, and the Argentine government contacted us – and offered to arrange tango lessons for us. People are so proud of their own shoemaking – I think that is the most exciting find I’ve discovered. I did not expect the multicultural embrace we enjoy here at the Museum.

You’ve been involved in manufacturing, distribution, design, and merchandising for over 60 years. What advice do you have for today’s workforce?

It’s very important that one doesn’t work only for the money. One works to do something absolutely exceptional. In Bangladesh, Bata is working with the local women to sell school shoes there. The women gain an opportunity to participate in the local economy and gain some level of self-sufficiency, and they are able to sell shoes at a much lower price than what is typically available there. It’s a micro finance program that I’m quite proud of.

(I learned later that Sonja’s philosophy of “doing something” isn’t just talk. She has partnered with Carleton University on a project designed to revitalize Batawa, a factory town founded by her husband in 1939. The factory closed in 1999, and now the village is in need of new life.)

Do you think you’ll ever “retire” from the Museum?

We have a wonderful team. But I love to do research; I love to be involved in opening new exhibits. In October we’ll be unveiling our Renaissance exhibit. It’s quite exciting.

Can you share with us some thoughts on your husband Thomas?

He believed in responsible capitalism. He was really determined to put shoes on every person in the world. He was totally committed to it. And he loved people. He was truly exceptional.

We chatted a bit longer, and I ruefully admitted I hadn’t been to the Museum. Upon further research I learned that they once had an exhibit of Johnny Depp’s pirate boots. Now I’m really hooked.

It begs the question:  how does one maintain a retail business for the long haul these days?  We asked the President of Eneslow Pedorthic Enterprises, celebrating its 100th anniversary on June 11, to reflect on this question.

His comments may surprise you – but one thing won’t:  for real staying power, stay true to your core values and strengths.

Q:  Eneslow Pedorthic Enterprises is celebrating its 100-year anniversary on June 11.  Can you sum up how you have kept your doors open for a century?

The key is that we pay attention to details that nobody even thinks are details. The details are in taking care of the customer in the way that we would want to be taken care of, with the skills that we have as pedorthists. We know that fitting a foot properly requires paying attention to the foot, having the right shoe to fit the foot and then knowing how to modify the fit of the shoe to really create this experience of foot comfort that is available in very few retail environments in America. And that’s basically because we’re not selling a pair of shoes; we’re focusing on fitting a pair of feet. All of our people are trained in pedorthics; they are biomechanically trained to understand the relationship of how a foot functions, how the body functions, and how a shoe enhances or detracts from each individual’s optimum performance and comfort. When you come into Eneslow, you’re having a completely different experience than you do in any other shoe store.

It’s an expensive formula. It’s laborious; you have to hire more people to provide this higher level of customer service, so it’s costly. Each salesperson who works for us maybe sees 10 to 12 customers a day to give Eneslow service. Sales staff in other shoe stores may see 20 to 30 a day because they’re selling shoes: they bring them out, they hand them to the customer, and then they go take care of the next one. We’re sitting and fitting and measuring and analyzing every single customer’s feet. We’re providing a service that’s almost unaffordable, but we can’t afford not to; otherwise, we become just another shoe store and then we won’t have another 100-year legacy. Our tide is to go the opposite way, to be more creative, provide more effective results and benefits even though it’s maybe not as profitable a model on a per-sale basis. We also don’t suffer the great lows, and we don’t gain the great highs of being just a shoe store.

Q:  You were honored by the National Shoe Retailers Association with their Al Singer Award last year.  What did that award mean to you and to Eneslow?

Al Singer was a close personal friend. He spent his career encouraging footwear retailers and vendors to work together to improve business for all. He was an innovator who cared about people more than he cared about business. It was an honor to receive the Al Singer Award from my peers at NSRA. Eneslow staff is proud of our accomplishments, especially when its leader is recognized by his peers.

Q:  Eneslow is a full-service retailer, with a pedorthic training center, an e-commerce site, a custom shoe center, and three Foot Comfort Centers.  How have you kept each of these business lines profitable and growing?

Through our Eneslow Pedorthic Institute we are providing an education and training service and that doesn’t have as much competition as our shoe business. There are only five pedorthic pre-certification education facilities in the United States, and no others are in New York, so we basically have the geographic market to ourselves. We also have an amazing faculty at our Eneslow Pedorthic Institute. They train and strengthen our staff’s skills so when they get back on the fitting stool and see their next client, they’re more knowledgeable and focused.

The focus right now is staying true to the core purpose, the core products, the core uniqueness, and the core benefits of Eneslow. We’re not trying to compete in every hot item. If it’s hot, if it’s comfort, if it’s quality, then yes, we’ll jump right on it — but if it isn’t, we can’t worry about it. We can’t worry about the last dollar. We have to worry about the first dollar, the first customer who really needs us, wants us and desires us rather than trying to go to audiences who really don’t care so much about some of the things that we stand for.

Finally, it’s always about the people who work for you, how to train them, how to get them better skilled, how to get them to follow a formula that works. I have  very high expectations not only for myself and Eneslow, but also for the people who work here. I consider it my responsibility to pull them up by their bootstraps to help them reach their potential, if they are willing to be pulled up; and give them the opportunity to grow and really become more highly qualified, much more professional, and make this a career rather than just a job.

Q:  You are also the managing director of New York’s 23rd Street Association.  Can you comment on what your members are going through during this economic climate?

Our members are mostly small business people. They are focusing more on networking to find leads and keep their business afloat. Having a vehicle like the 23rd Street Association to help them reach potential customers is critical at this time.

Q: What advice would you give an independent retailer right now?

Be true to your core values and strengths. If your formula is not working, figure out what is working and focus on that. Look for ways to be unique. Offer benefits that your customers can relate to. Don’t shortcut.