PRO-MARK RECEIVES 'BEST IN SHOW' HONORS AT WINTER NAMM
Pro-Mark Corporation, the Houston-based manufacturer of drumsticks, mallets, and percussion accessories, was one of only a few companies singled out for discussion at NAMM University's Best In Show breakfast held on Sunday, January 28, 2007. The breakfast was attended by over 500 people.
The "Best In Show" panel consists of 6 industry experts who shop the show Thursday, Friday and Saturday and pick their favorite company, product or service. These favorites, arranged in five categories, are presented during the Sunday morning panel.
Pro-Mark, in particular, was a winner in the "Companies To Watch" category as a result of its new color coded product identification system. Panelist Victor Salazar noted "Drumsticks are very important. They are a drummer's primary tool. The guys over at Pro-Mark have developed a new packaging and navigation system for all of their sticks. All of their new packaging is color coded into five different groups that most people can understand. It takes the guesswork out of selecting a stick".
"Color coding is just the tip of the iceberg", says Pat Brown, Pro-Mark's director of sales and marketing. "It's really about educating the customer at the store level so he or she can feel good about the choices being made. With the in-store signage we've developed, it takes only a few minutes for the customer to understand the affect that diameter, length, type of wood, taper, tip and finish have on a drumstick. The signage also explains what types of music a particular size stick might be best used for."
Brown continues, "One of the benefits to the dealer is that it can remove the sales staff from the equation and free them to concentrate on selling bigger ticket items!"
He also notes that "while we talked to hundreds of drummers around the world, we didn't ignore mallet players. So, while our sticks are now being classified by The Anatomy Of Feel, which we define first as diameter, our mallets are being classified by The Anatomy Of Tone, which we define first to be the hardness of the heads. This is consistent with what we were told by hundreds of mallet players around the world. As with our drumsticks, signage to support the new mallet classifications will also be available."
Brown concludes, "The new packaging and signage will begin making its way to retail stores in May or June of 2007. The end result will be smarter, better educated customers and increased sales at the store level. That's good for everyone!"
Pro-Mark Corporation
11550 Old Main Street Loop Road
Houston, TX 77025
Tel: 713.314.1100
Fax: 713.669.8000
Toll Free: 877.PRO.MARK
E-mail:
info@promark.com
Web:
www.promark.com
