Issue link: http://osercommunicationsgroup.uberflip.com/i/808992
Chain Drugstore Daily 1 1 Monday, April 24, 2017 SHAPE THE FUTURE OF YOUR BUSINESS WITH VENTURERX In 2016, H. D. Smith announced a new program to initiate and fully support the sale, purchase, start-up and related transi- tion strategies of small chain community pharmacies. This program, VentureRx, helps pharmacies with the big decisions and questions that come with buying, sell- ing or expanding a pharmacy. Aimed at independents, small chains, long-term care facilities and specialty or compound- ing pharmacies, VentureRx ensures a smooth transition for buyers and sellers. "Recognizing the amount of phar- macies closing or selling to large chains, H. D. Smith developed VentureRx to sup- port its largest customer base – independ- ent community pharmacies," said Chris Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer. With access to one of the nation's largest networks of independent pharma- cies, VentureRx is uniquely positioned to support pharmacy transitions and keep them independent. Unlike other compa- nies, VentureRx does not charge brokerage fees for its services. Focused on ensuring clients' best inter- ests before, during and after the transi- tion, VentureRx helps clients put a plan in place and build a strategic transitional timeline. VentureRx makes customized rec- ommendations to help business owners achieve their goals, including location, financing, business plan development, buyer-seller matching and more. Since the launch of the pro- gram, more than 90 percent of VentureRx sellers have been matched with quali- fied buyers. Dedicated to both the people and process involved in starting, buying and selling, VentureRx empowers pharmacy owners to shape the future of their busi- ness. Contact VentureRx for a free, no-obliga- tions needs assessment. For more infor- mation, go to www.venture-rx.com or call 603.773.5116. MANAGING OMNICHANNEL RETURNS IN THE ERA OF E-COMMERCE By Rob Zomok, President, Inmar Supply Chain Network As a result of exploding e-commerce sales – and e-commerce returns – retailers are challenged to ensure their return capabili- ties keep up with both forward sales and customer expectations regarding returns. This is especially true for brick and mortar stores as they contend with shoppers returning UPCs from the "endless aisles" of the Internet to physical stores where those products may not be stocked. The good news is that retailers pairing Inmar's new e-Returns Reverse Logistics Solution with Inmar's best-in-class SaaS Returns Management have a comprehensive solu- tion for managing returns while capturing maximum value for returned products. Inmar's e-Returns solution helps retail- ers retain customers through a brand-posi- tive online returns experience while speed- ing reimbursement from vendors and credit- to-consumer. Inmar's Returns Management software, in parallel, enables retail stores to handle consumer returns regardless of where the purchases took place, move efficiently toward final appropriate, compliant disposi- tion and maximize product value. Providing Customer Convenience Consumers are already thinking about returns when they start to buy online and it impacts their purchase decision-mak- ing. According to InternetRetailer.com, 81 percent of online consumers say they are more likely to buy from e-retailers with flexible return policies. Customers want the returns process to be simple. They want flexibility in how and where they can return items and to be credited quickly for their returns. With Inmar e-Returns, retailers have a loyalty-building, customer-friendly process for initiating a return that is com- pletely seamless to the consumer. Retailers can leverage the addi- tional foot traffic from customers making online purchase returns in- store without concern as to the impact of the returns. Ensuring Cost-Effective, Compliant Processing Inmar's returns management solutions enable store personnel to easily handle returns and initiate appropriate product disposition for maximum value recovery. Re-stocking is facilitated as is approved on-site disposal for products at end-of- life. Products retaining market value can be returned to Inmar for liquidation while products designated as hazardous materi- al can be returned for regulatory compli- ant destruction. Retailers can leverage the conven- ience and capabilities of Inmar's nation- wide returns facility network for more efficient and cost-effective shipping, product handling, packaging evaluation, asset recovery and dispositioning. At the same time, fewer "touches" during pro- cessing contribute to a more responsible, sustainable solution. Enabling Greater Visibility A key advantage for retailers using Inmar returns management is greater visibility throughout the returns chain. The combined intel- ligence delivered by these two solutions allows product tracking from return initiation through cus- tomer credit. As every item scanned becomes trackable inventory with data capture including "reason for return," visibility into product performance is extensive – providing actionable insight into what's coming back. In the era of e-commerce, retailers must have an efficient and customer-friendly returns management process in place that is capable of handling omnichannel returns. By combining Inmar's e-Returns Reverse Logistics Solution and SaaS Returns Management, retailers can effec- tively manage all returns while minimiz- ing business impact. Visit Inmar at booth #334. For more information, call 866.440.6917 or email solutions@inmar.com. DAVID BIERNBAUM SUCCESSFUL AND "SMART!" By Tara Kane, Director, Retail Communications David Biernbaum is Founder and President at David Biernbaum & Associates LLC., Consumer Goods Marketing, National Retail Sales, Consulting, and Equity Development. Since 1977, David Biernbaum and his teams have achieved remarkable suc- cess delivering brand-equity for client- companies, retail partners and more than 200 consumer products on today's shelves, mostly health and wellness cate- gory expanders. Since January of 2016, David Biernbaum heads up business develop- ment and strategic retail sales and market- ing for the SmartMouth oral rinse brand. Previously, Biernbaum was strictly a con- sultant for SmartMouth since 2010. Under Biernbaum's skilled brand- development leadership in 2016, SmartMouth oral rinses have grown to become a $21 MM brand, up 47 percent year over year, (IRI Data Ending 1/22/2017) and SmartMouth's trends continue to accelerate into 2017, up 70 percent year over year through February, 2017. As a company, growth is up more than 57 percent in just over a year. Biernbaum summarizes SmartMouth's retail mission, "SmartMouth expands retail oral health solutions with innovation, sci- ence and technology, to create incremental category growth, premium profits and exceptional shelf-space productivity." Recently, Biernbaum sent out a retail-executive newsletter stating that 2016 was a giant step forward with record sales, but cautioned that this was only a foretaste of the brand's rapid growth and expansion; "The SmartMouth brand is delivering on all key initiatives; SmartMouth is driving category expan- sion, innovation, elite technology and sci- ence, advanced oral health solutions; all supported with aggressive marketing. The brand provides retail partners superior shelf-space productivity, unparalleled customer loyalty." Biernbaum explains the "Smart Marketing" approach; "We instituted the practice of targeting behavioral markets, expanding to platforms that enable SmartMouth to inform and educate chron- ic sufferers of bad breath the real causes, and how "Smart Science" actually works, and why SmartMouth's technology is the solution for not only eliminating, but also preventing bad breath from returning, for 12 hours with each rinse." Biernbaum points not only to aggressive TV, radio and print marketing, but also, he explains, "an in-house every-day non- stop relentless approach with digital media that successfully 'finds con- sumers,' even moreso than traditional reliance on consumers finding the brand!" Biernbaum explains success is accelerating since taking control over the brand's own website rather than out- sourcing that functionality. Biernbaum gives a lot of credit for success to the client. "First and foremost, SmartMouth is an amazing oral rinse that delivers on its promise. The brand loyal- ty is off the charts." Additionally, Biernbaum shares credit with his SmartMouth associates. "Last year, Chief Executive Officer Andrew Burch put his trust and confi- dence in me, personally and professional- ly, and that in itself was all I needed for motivation. I'm blessed to have a hard- working, very talented team to work with at the company, and of course, in the field with my independent network of very loyal brokers, many whom I've worked with for decades, with two and three gen- erations!" Biernbaum has other currently suc- cessful clients, too, including Australian Dream, makers of arthritis and back pain creams, and now a newly released for- mula for carpal tunnel pain relief, already on the shelves at CVS Pharmacy and other retail chains. For more information, email david@ biernbaum.com or go to www.biernbaum .com or www.smartmouth.com.