The Tale of the Sale. 

Spoiler alert, it has a happy ending.

 

Here’s the long story of why Print Decor and I expect most retailers these days offer their products at significantly lower prices than was the case pre 2020.

 

If you are a frequent visitor to Print Decor you would have observed there is always a sale of some kind or another being promoted these days. This may put a cynical spin on the subject, but truth be told the Retail Sector suffered greatly during and since the covid shutdowns. Melbourne saw a total of around 260 days of retail store closure over 6 separate shut downs from March 2020 through to October 2021.

 

Sadly many small (and some large) retail stores had to close down during and as a result of the enforced retail closures during covid. We were “clever” enough or fortunate enough to have established a strong website presence well and truly before our store suffered its first mandatory closure and survived this major imposition to our day to day trading, but sadly it didn’t stop there. On-going supply problems and crippling price increases of raw products, like, paint, ink, glass, timber etc meant the suppliers’ products took an astronomical price hike, and that of course meant many potential customers decided not to spend their income on such luxury products as we could offer.

 

Oh but it gets worse … interest rate hikes resulted in a dramatic decrease in customer demand for such items as picture frames, framed mirrors and beautiful art. Pay the mortgage or do up the home ?? Really a no brainer. Add to that the fact many burgeoning entrepreneurs decided to set up websites and sell retail products without the overhead of paying rent in a shopping precinct. OMG what to do.

 

PIVOT.

 

We could have closed our beautiful gallery / framing design store and joined the ranks of the “on-line” entrepreneurs but we would have missed the personal contact with our many long term customers, and their children … and their children. Yes, since 1985 we’ve seen 3 generations grace our retail store. We also became aware that some products like framed mirrors were being sold by on-line stores that were poorly produced. (Our website has warnings regarding product quality). Also some of the art and prints being sold on-line were of questionable quality and not all businesses make it easy to return unsatisfactory products. We considered people would tend to trust a business that still had a bricks and mortar store - you can’t pack up and vanish all that easily - and we’ve been in business since 1985.

 

So we had to PIVOT to survive. Trusty business partner and wife Lynne and I came up with a 3 way PIVOT approach. I sent emails out announcing Pivots 1 & 2. Pivot number 3 is still a work in progress.

 

Pivot # 1 Expand our selection of well-priced budget frames with a 30% discount for our subscribers. Follow the link to read more >>>

 

To summarise: We approached our framing company and did a major overhaul which resulted in more efficient framing at better prices for us and of course we pass this, and then some, on to you, our customers.

 

Pivot # 2 Increase our selection of collectible art and offer affordable framing options. Follow the link to read more >>>

 

In summary, we found customers were more inclined to spend their money on art and prints that would maintain their value and possibly increase in value, and we can also offer high quality framing of these works, often at the 30% discounted rate. Win-Win.

 

Pivot # 3. Not yet released as we are busily developing this area. So stay tuned.

 

The Sale Tale

Well that was a detailed lead up to why we are having on-going sales. It would appear to be contradictory to offer reduced prices to solve the situation, but increasing (or at least restoring) our sales levels to approach that of the “pre covid era” is vital for our business to continue functioning, even though the profit margin is less. With increased volume of sales we have sufficient financial turnover to continue in business which means we can remain in our beautiful Malvern location, and continue to keep our best staff, who by customer feed-back, offer service above and beyond what is expected. Lynne and I consider these assets our most cherished commodities for Print Decor.

 

So what’s on sale?

We are not the only players in this “tough economic boat” so too are our suppliers, who provide picture framing, art prints, original art and framed and unframed mirrors and have similar experiences to us.

 

So to answer the question, in conjunction with our suppliers we have worked out a series of sales for selected products. These will be announced as we lock-in a limited time special offer. Hence you will see an ongoing line up of products going ON (and Off) sale.

 

Our “up to” 30% discount for Custom Picture Framinghas been extended for the time being, but will be wound back to a 10% or 20% discount in due course. Most of our mirrors are seriously underpriced considering the product quality. There are some cheaper mirrors on the market, you can see many of them out for hard waste collection because they are substandard products.

 

We also offer a special art package consultation and deals. More details upon request.

 

There is currently an on-going offer for on-line orders over $499-, just use the Coupon Code LUCKYME for a one off discount for subscribers.

 

There’s a Clearance Stock section on our website with some real bargains and if you are local to Malvern there are many floor stock items, mirrors and framed prints heavily discounted.

 

Lynne and I hope you see some artworks or mirrors that appeal, or perhaps you have something that needs the caring input of custom designed picture framing. 

 

We appreciate the support our customers have given. Thank you.

 

Warm regards, Bernie, Lynne, Lauren, Wayne and the Print Decor team.