Off to the Champions League

Stefano Galli, Maurizio Basciano and Luigi Testa (from left) get their best ideas strolling through the alleyways of Arona.

Do you want the salami with Barolo or truffles?" asks the saleswoman at the farmers’ market in Arona. She holds a tray of slices of different types of salami under the noses of Maurizio Basciano, Luigi Testa and Stefano Galli and looks curious. The men dauntlessly dive in; Luigi Testa, National Key Account Manager and International Trade Marketing Director at Simba Toys Italia, chooses the rare mushroom, while Maurizio Basciano, Managing Director for Simba Toys and Smoby Toys Italia, prefers to go for a piece of cheese. Marketing Manager Stefano Galli doesn’t get a chance to buy anything; he’s just bumped into some acquaintances in his hometown and is shaking hands. The three men are spending their lunch break at Arona market because they want to pay a visit to a supermarket on the outskirts of the picturesque little town at the southern tip of Lago Maggiore. Store checks are one of the requirements for perfect trade marketing: "You should be familiar with your customer’s environment," says Luigi Testa.

Twice a month, he meets his customers to discuss the next steps in the collaboration. In his luggage he carries individual customer business plans, which contain precise overviews of details such as market developments and sales channels. Luigi Testa also regularly presents the figures from npdgroup EuroToys, to convince the customers of the strength of his products. These precise analyses and intensive discussions are indispensable, says the expert: "We want to sell as
many products as possible, just like our customer; no one wants to see warehouses full. So we find joint ways to perform well. The objective: a win-win situation for our customers and for us."

Simba and Smoby Toys Italia also offer their customers an additional service. Once a month, merchandisers visit the branches of the major trade partners and perform a stock take. How many products are still available, and in what quantities? What is on the shelves? What is in the stockroom? How are the products presented? The merchandisers reduce the work for the customers of Simba and Smoby Toys Italia. At the same time, Simba and Smoby Toys Italia guarantee a good sell-through, instead of focusing solely on sell-in. What do they get in return? Good shelf spaces, special sales areas and priority when it comes to promotional campaigns. This is especially important in Italy because the retailer structure is very multifaceted. There are large, purely non-food department stores, which sell lots of toys all year round. The same goes for large hypermarkets with food departments and motorway service stations, where sales are particularly strong. Smaller supermarkets, on the other hand, do not have room for toys all year round. Here, the aim is to show a presence in the run-up to Christmas and at the height of summer with special promotions. "Anyone in Italy who doesn’t go on holiday in August, spends their money shopping," says Marketing Manager Stefano Galli.

The team likes to try out the toys themselves sometimes, with
Francesco D’Orio, President of Smoby Toys Italia (third from right).

Another reason why good trade marketing is indispensable in Italy is that the market has an unusual structure. "Here, it is particularly difficult to prevail over the competition," says Maurizio Basciano. A domestic supplier holds a 25 percent market share; the next four places are shared by large national and international players.

The Managing Director and his colleagues have arrived at the supermarket on the outskirts of Arona. "This chain has a particularly high amount of fresh produce in its range," says Maurizio Basciano, as he walks between piles of courgettes and oranges. A couple of steps on, there are a few rows of shelves reserved for non-food articles. For products of the Simba Dickie Group, for example. There’s a toy clock from Nicotoy here, a lorry from Dickie there. "This is how it looks in lots of supermarkets," says Luigi Testa. "The toys are on the shelves – and no customer can tell at first glance which manufacturer they are from." This is why the 43-year-old, who worked in the field of trade marketing for one of the world’s leading toy manufacturers for 13 years, is developing a concept for the entire Simba Dickie Group that aims to optimise this situation with the aid of trade marketing. Luigi Testa is convinced: "A clever trade marketing strategy can successfully increase sales figures."

Managing Director Maurizio Basciano has his sights set firmly on the goal: "To begin with, we plan to double Smoby and Simba’s market share in Italy this year – and in a few years we definitely want to play in the Champions League. We can only do this if we raise the profile of our brands among consumers." To achieve this, the interplay with retailers has to work effectively, as this allows an appropriate presence at the point of sale. In the future, the products will be presented in as many department stores, large hypermarkets, supermarkets and motorway service stations as possible and in such a way that it is obvious to customers that they are toys from the Simba Dickie Group.

The results of the trade marketing strategy include targeted sales promotional measures and home sites (branded shelves), as well as strategically positioned displays and specially designated special offer areas. "If we are successful and the figures are good, we will ultimately secure excellent shelf positions and extra areas from our trade partners for the long term," says Luigi Testa after the visit to the supermarket, on the journey back to Pombia. This is where Simba Toys Italia and therefore Luigi Testa and Stefano Galli have their offices. Managing Director Maurizio Basciano commutes between Pombia and Pioltello, a suburb of Milan. This is where the offices and warehouses of Smoby Toys Italia are based.

So that employees at all subsidiaries and distribution companies of the Simba Dickie Group can make collective use of their experiences and strategies more easily, and to promote a more intensive exchange of these, Luigi Testa is planning a special trade marketing database. All members of staff from every country would have access to this: "Using this platform, our staff will be able to present examples of best practice and measures that everyone can integrate into their own strategies."

Back in Pombia, it’s time for a meeting with Luciano Menichelli, Sales Director at Smoby Toys Italia, who has travelled from Milan for the occasion. The meeting is primarily about introducing SAP in summer this year. Maurizio Basciano, who worked as Marketing and Trade Marketing Director for Italy’s largest toy manufacturer for a long time before joining Simba and Smoby Toys Italia, emphasises how important the software is for putting the trade marketing strategy into practice: "Only with this analysis tool can we evaluate data, such as our product sales, daily. The new system is therefore an indispensable investment in our infrastructure which will create a basis for further development and more success."

The perfect layout

Special sales areas – like the one here for a Smoby adventure playground – offer good sales opportunities in large department stores.

The next day, the Smoby Toys management team heads to Pioltello, an important customer is on the afternoon’s agenda. On the way in the morning, Maurizio Basciano and Luigi Testa take the opportunity to pop into a few department stores where the new trade marketing concept is already taking effect. Here, the home sites are visible to customers from far away. The head sections of the shelving units bear the brand name; the fronts of the individual shelves are branded with the company name and logo. There’s no doubt about it – thanks to the home sites, shoppers can find Steffi Love and a whole range of accessories at a glance. A few rows on, there are shelves for Eichhorn, and right next to these is a special sales area for outdoor Smoby toys; licensed products from Disney are presented in appropriate displays.

Luigi Testa shows how the home sites concept is implemented in one hypermarket.

Luigi Testa hopes that lots of other hypermarkets and supermarkets will soon look just like this: "Among other things, I’m planning a merchandising guidebook, which our partners will be able to use as a guide for the layout of shelf spaces. In this way, we can guarantee a consistent presence for the brands of the Simba Dickie Group."

Independent and strong
The managers take the motorway towards the city centre. Before meeting the customer, there’s time for lunch with their colleagues from Smoby Toys. The meeting place is the famous cathedral in Milan city. From here, the men walk through the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II to the restaurant. On the way, Managing Director Maurizio Basciano recalls the merger of Simba and Smoby Toys in
Italy: "Smoby Italy was a subsidiary of the French parent company. When the Simba Dickie Group took this over in 2008, the two Italian companies merged." Maurizio Basciano himself joined the team as Managing Director for Simba and Smoby Toys Italia in November 2008.

From the very beginning, he was actively supported by Francesco D’Orio, who the Simba Dickie Group management brought back from retirement and put in charge of familiarising Maurizio Basciano with his new role. Francesco D’Orio used to be Managing Director of Simba Toys Italia; today he is President of Smoby Toys Italia. "Francesco supported me very much in negotiating contracts and really helped me over the first one and a half difficult years. Today, Smoby Toys Italia is independent and strong. The employees also have a great deal of autonomy." The success speaks for itself: the figures are constantly rising. "As you know, the Champions League awaits," says the Managing Director with a smile, holding the restaurant door open for his colleagues.

The Simba and Smoby Toys Italia management team in front of the world-famous Milan cathedral (from left): Umberto Sabucco, National Key Account Manager at Smoby Toys Italia, Stefano Galli, Maurizio Basciano, Luigi Testa and Luciano Menichelli, Sales Director at Smoby Toys Italia.