Lifestyle/ Trimco - Global Visual Group

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with Ken Stolls, President,
Lifestyle/
Trimco
Q
A
Q
How would you describe your
business in one sentence?
Lifestyle/Trimco is a true turnkey
visual merchandising manufacturer
and supplier.
How different does your company
look today from five years ago?
A
Five years ago, we were two separate companies, and we merged in
2009. We each had a different core
competency—trim and decorative versus
mannequins and forms, with some crossover
of fixtures. This was a strategic merge, because people were asking for more products
to streamline their vendor base. It was an easy
transition, and we took the best of the best
and put it under one roof. Now our product
offering is much more robust.
Q
A
www.lfs-trimco.com
http://lfs-trimco.com/lfs-trimcoblog
What differentiates your company from other competitors in the
marketplace?
There’s no other company that offers the range of visual merchandising product solutions that we offer. What we have the ability to produce far
exceeds everyone else, and we are constantly
looking for new ways to develop innovative
products. We want to be the ones that are
leading the way. We see what the trends are
and come up with solutions that meet those
needs. Additionally, we are direct manufacturers and direct importers. We have our own
personnel abroad and do not rely on agents.
One of our many competitive advantages is
that we have a 100,000-sq.-ft. manufacturing
plant here in Brooklyn, N.Y., in addition to
factories abroad.
Q
What is your company’s philosophy toward customization?
A
Every retailer and brand wants to
have their own thumbprint. Visual
merchandising has to be customized
to create that differentiated experience. You
have to be able to customize and meet the demands of your clients, and you have to be an
extension of them and a partner. Decorative
changes just as fast as fashion, while mannequins have a little more longevity—but you
have to be able to maneuver as trends change.
Q
What does “partnership” mean
to your company today?
A
Partnership means everything. We understand the visual departments are getting smaller and smaller, and retailers are
relying more on vendor partners. It’s our responsibility to help get them to the finish line together.
We have to be responsible and honest with our
customer partners—don’t “yes” them to death!
We’re in it together, whether it’s good or bad. It’s
not us versus them; and a partnership must go
both ways. With open communication and sharing of parameters, we can better help them.
Q
A
What else should we know about
your company?
Viaggio—an iconic fashion textile display house—is now part of our company. We’re keeping the same team
in place and all their members are still there, so
the transition for customers will be seamless. It’s
another component of our company now, and
they’ll have better infrastructure to do more and
offer more. We always continue to look for new
ways to offer more product and services to our
client-partners...stay tuned; more is to come.