Seymour Daiches - Travel Goods Association
Seymour Daiches - Travel Goods Association
Seymour Daiches - Travel Goods Association
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The Industry Awards<br />
The 2012 TGA Award<br />
<strong>Seymour</strong> <strong>Daiches</strong><br />
By Garrett Lai<br />
<strong>Seymour</strong> <strong>Daiches</strong> isn’t a<br />
retailer. He’s not a product<br />
designer. He isn’t a<br />
manufacturer. But as the<br />
long-time luggage buyer for<br />
Macy’s, he might be one of<br />
the most influential personalities in the<br />
travel goods industry.<br />
When TGA Board Chairman Jack<br />
Holodnicki introduced <strong>Daiches</strong> at the<br />
TGA Awards Ceremony in Las Vegas, he<br />
explained, “The reason why Macy’s is<br />
the best luggage purveyor in the world<br />
is <strong>Seymour</strong> <strong>Daiches</strong>.”<br />
As of March this year, Macy’s represented<br />
842 stores commanding 151.9<br />
million square feet of retail space.<br />
That’s one gigantic retail operation,<br />
with eight people responsible for merchandising,<br />
planning and buying luggage<br />
alone. Clearly, when it comes to<br />
luggage, <strong>Daiches</strong> is a man of influence.<br />
Getting to Macy’s<br />
<strong>Daiches</strong> joined the luggage industry<br />
in 1989, when he became the luggage<br />
buyer for Marshall Field’s in Chicago.<br />
“When I was at Marshall Field’s, at one<br />
point I managed the luggage department.<br />
I was buying in some other<br />
areas, and in 1989 an opening occurred<br />
and that’s how I slipped in there,” he<br />
recounts. “When that position opened I<br />
jumped at the opportunity.”<br />
The appeal for <strong>Daiches</strong> was the<br />
potential he saw in the luggage market.<br />
“It was quite different than it is now,<br />
but it was appealing because I thought<br />
it was an area that always had a lot of<br />
potential, a lot of newness. I was always<br />
the self-driver, trying to find new ways<br />
to grow the business.”<br />
From Marshall Field’s, <strong>Daiches</strong><br />
moved to Boston and became a buyer<br />
for Jordan Marsh, which merged with<br />
A&S in New York. And eventually, A&S<br />
merged with Macy’s, carrying <strong>Daiches</strong><br />
along with the merger.<br />
Although he’d been the luggage buyer<br />
since 1989, <strong>Daiches</strong> was also responsible<br />
for other departments. “Prior to the<br />
Macy’s merger, I bought other categories<br />
in addition to luggage, like stationery<br />
and greeting cards,” he remembers. But<br />
<strong>Seymour</strong> <strong>Daiches</strong> of Macy’s accepts the 2012 TGA Award, the industry’s ultimate recognition of<br />
personal and professional achievement, at The <strong>Travel</strong> <strong>Goods</strong> Show’s annual Awards Ceremony in<br />
Las Vegas.<br />
it was during his time at Macy’s that luggage<br />
became his sole responsibility.<br />
Big Ideas<br />
<strong>Daiches</strong> is very matter-of-fact when<br />
you speak with him, with very little<br />
pretense. He modestly credits the fact<br />
that he works for a terrific organization<br />
like Macy’s as the driver of his success.<br />
You have to press <strong>Seymour</strong> before he’ll<br />
recount individual accomplishments;<br />
however, it’s easy to get him to open<br />
up about Macy’s and their formula for<br />
success.<br />
“Macy’s is always looking for the<br />
next big idea,” he explains. “We’re<br />
always looking to be a leader, to be at<br />
the forefront of the business.”<br />
<strong>Daiches</strong> acknowledges that Macy’s<br />
is a very large retailer, but explains that<br />
they “always try to focus on the big<br />
ideas nationally. We look more globally,<br />
on a national level.” But, there’s flexibility,<br />
too. “We do customize regionally,”<br />
he says, explaining how Macy’s is able<br />
to be up front in the retail picture.<br />
And how does Macy’s stay up front?<br />
“We have strong relationships with our<br />
vendors, for one thing. But we also just<br />
drive the business, really growing it in<br />
all aspects.”<br />
One of the ways Macy’s drives its<br />
luggage growth is training staff in product<br />
knowledge. “A big piece of it, what<br />
drives our success, is something I’m<br />
doing this week. We’re running 17 luggage<br />
seminars across the nation, just<br />
on luggage — we definitely believe in<br />
product knowledge.” In fact, we caught<br />
up with <strong>Daiches</strong> by phone as he was on<br />
his way to the airport in Detroit, having<br />
just conducted a seminar for retail<br />
associates from Detroit, Minneapolis<br />
and Chicago.<br />
When <strong>Daiches</strong> says Macy’s believes<br />
in training, he really means it. He<br />
estimates Macy’s will train more than<br />
2,000 associates in the finer points of<br />
luggage, a process that starts at the end<br />
of March, and continues through mid-<br />
July. “It’s an all-day seminar for associates,<br />
from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. We cover all<br />
the travel lines.” Prior to the merger<br />
with Macy’s, the company hadn’t held<br />
any luggage seminars in 15 years, but<br />
<strong>Daiches</strong> brought seminars back, and<br />
they have undoubtedly contributed to<br />
Macy’s success in the luggage business.<br />
Commitment = Success<br />
<strong>Daiches</strong> is grateful for the professional<br />
opportunities he’s received from<br />
working in the travel goods industry.<br />
Continued on next page<br />
<strong>Travel</strong> <strong>Goods</strong> SHOWCASE Summer 2012<br />
53
The Industry Awards<br />
Continued from previous page<br />
“Going from a start of buying for 20<br />
stores to 650 stores, I would say I’ve<br />
grown professionally from that. It’s a<br />
wonderful industry, that’s the thing I<br />
would stress. It’s a very friendly industry<br />
— all the vendors get along with<br />
each other. I don’t think there’s another<br />
industry where people get along so well<br />
and collaborate.”<br />
As we talked about how Macy’s does<br />
business, once of the things <strong>Daiches</strong><br />
keeps coming back to are the big ideas.<br />
And by “big ideas,” he’s referring to<br />
product ideas as well as commitment<br />
and execution. “When we sniff something<br />
good, we go after it. We believe<br />
in it, and we really try to be leaders in<br />
that category.”<br />
As an example, <strong>Daiches</strong> recounts<br />
Macy’s experience with 4-wheel spinners.<br />
“I would say we really jumped on<br />
the curve when spinners were just coming<br />
out. We made it bigger and better<br />
than anybody else.”<br />
“Spinners really came to the forefront<br />
about six years ago,” he recounts.<br />
“Samsonite was the leader in getting that<br />
out, and when we took it on we took a lot<br />
of risk. At that time, spinners were a new<br />
thing, and when vendors first brought<br />
them out they tended to make the same<br />
product in two-wheel and spinners, with<br />
the expectation that retailers would carry<br />
both.” But <strong>Daiches</strong> says that approach<br />
would mean fewer unique items on the<br />
shop floor. And they could see the obvious<br />
benefits of the four-wheel configuration.<br />
“We took the approach that<br />
spinners were a big idea. And the way<br />
to make it a big idea was to carry only<br />
spinners in that collection.” It was a bold<br />
move — spinners were a very new thing,<br />
and quite different from the standard<br />
two-wheel case. “We made a decision to<br />
commit to spinners, and it paid off.”<br />
Of course, betting big doesn’t always<br />
pay off. When asked about whether<br />
they’d ever had any duds, <strong>Daiches</strong><br />
isn’t shy about saying yes. He recounts<br />
an example where Macy’s made a big<br />
commitment to a luggage locator, an<br />
all-new item that was actually awardwinning.<br />
“We went after it big time,<br />
and it was a horrible-selling product.”<br />
So why didn’t it succeed? “I would say,<br />
part of it was because of security issues<br />
— people were afraid of it, they weren’t<br />
comfortable with the idea of attaching<br />
something like this to their luggage. It<br />
made beeping noises. It was innovative,<br />
we believed in it, but it didn’t pan out.”<br />
So what did Macy’s learn from that<br />
experience? “We learned what we’re<br />
good at. We’re great at luggage, but<br />
maybe we’re not so great with items<br />
that wind up sitting on a table and what<br />
have you. Things that come out of the<br />
box we don’t do as well with.”<br />
Career-Spanning Changes<br />
So what’s changed about the travel<br />
goods industry in his nearly 25 years<br />
of involvement? “When I started it was<br />
all horizontal. It’s changed drastically,<br />
obviously, with lots of innovation<br />
going to uprights. At first, the systems<br />
were not very good — they had center<br />
wheels, not corner wheels, and the<br />
handles were completely external. The<br />
innovative interior handles and spinners<br />
have added a lot to the business by<br />
adding functionality.”<br />
<strong>Daiches</strong> notes that shades have<br />
changed, too. “When I started, color<br />
was almost entirely black. Now color<br />
is very important; a lot has changed<br />
in that time, much more than I probably<br />
expected when I first got into the<br />
industry.”<br />
<strong>Daiches</strong> remarks that hardside<br />
pieces are well-represented at The Show.<br />
“Everybody is into it. It’s something<br />
that’s fresh, something that shows color<br />
well. And that’s changing it up, making<br />
the industry look fresh, new and different.<br />
And again, it’s a market that’s had<br />
a lot of newness already. I’m not sure<br />
how far hardsides will go, but it creates<br />
a stir for us, it’s something new within<br />
the department.”<br />
<strong>Daiches</strong> feels the biggest challenge<br />
for luggage retailers today remains the<br />
same: “The customer becomes a challenge.<br />
But we believe in the category.<br />
It takes lots of product knowledge, a<br />
requirement in selling luggage product.<br />
For instance, the whole lightweight<br />
issue. Basically, lightweight doesn’t necessarily<br />
mean it’s better. But how do you<br />
keep growing your business with the<br />
whole lightweight conversation? We do<br />
it with product knowledge, seminars,<br />
reps servicing stores, advertising. Again,<br />
education is key.”<br />
<strong>Daiches</strong> also enjoyed The 2012<br />
<strong>Travel</strong> <strong>Goods</strong> Show. “It was a fun show.<br />
I would like to say to everyone that we<br />
really believe in the entire industry —<br />
we’re always well-represented at The<br />
Show, and would never think for a<br />
second about not attending. We feel it’s<br />
very important to convey that message<br />
to our vendors as well; that’s why certain<br />
vendors have come back over time<br />
with us holding conversations about<br />
how important it is.”<br />
And with that, <strong>Daiches</strong> said he’d just<br />
arrived at the airport, and had to signoff.<br />
He was on-the-go, with another two<br />
days of seminars to present. More hard<br />
work keeping Macy’s where they want<br />
to be — up front and thinking big.<br />
Product<br />
Innovation<br />
Awards<br />
First place in this year’s Product<br />
Innovation Awards went to<br />
collapsible Road Warrior<br />
M Series from TRUNK &<br />
TROLLEY. Its innovative<br />
design saves space at home<br />
and on the road. The series includes two<br />
bags, a wheeled upright and wheeled<br />
duffel. And while they load and carry<br />
in conventional fashion, they’re rather<br />
unconventional once the journey’s over<br />
— pulling the ripcords inside activate<br />
the Micro Pop mechanism, which collapses<br />
the sides and allows the bag to<br />
fold down to an impressively small size,<br />
reducing volume by 60% to save on storage<br />
space for consumers, and potentially<br />
reduces freight costs for retailers. The<br />
bags’ MSRP range from $200 to $600,<br />
depending on the specific model.<br />
Edward L. Gerch of Kingport Trading presents<br />
the first place Product Innovation Award to<br />
Sammy Sitt of Trunk & Trolley for the Road<br />
Warrior M Series’ Micro Pop mechanism, which<br />
allows the bag to reduce in volume by 60%.<br />
Second place was a dead heat —<br />
two different interpretations of a similar<br />
concept from Briggs & Riley and<br />
Samsonite.<br />
Continued on page 56<br />
54 Summer 2012 <strong>Travel</strong> <strong>Goods</strong> SHOWCASE
The Industry Awards<br />
Frank Fine of Lieber’s Luggage presents the<br />
second place Product Innovation Award to<br />
Richard Krulik of Briggs & Riley for the Domestic<br />
Carry-On Expandable Upright. The bag’s ratchet<br />
system adjusts to keep contents compressed and<br />
the bag neatly packed into overhead bins.<br />
Robert Dodson of Ricardo Beverly Hills presents<br />
the second place Product Innovation Award<br />
to Lloyd Rabinowitz of Samsonite for their<br />
Compressor. Their compressible collection expands<br />
for packing, and contracts to fit contents<br />
with the push of a button to reduce volume.<br />
Peter Cobb of eBags presents the third place<br />
Product Innovation Award to Rob Rankin of<br />
<strong>Travel</strong>pro International for the Crew 9<br />
21” Expandable Spinner with the PowerScope<br />
Extension Handle.<br />
Continued from page 54<br />
BRIGGS & RILEY’s Domestic<br />
Carry-On Expandable Upright functions<br />
like a standard expandable upright,<br />
only in reverse. The upright expands<br />
24% for packing, and once the contents<br />
are loaded and the bag is zipped,<br />
users press down on the front panel<br />
to compress the contents. A ratchet<br />
mechanism automatically adjusts to<br />
keep the bag in its compressed state,<br />
which helps it fit neatly into overhead<br />
bins or underneath airline seats. It’s a<br />
slick way to avoid checking your bag,<br />
and retails for $449.<br />
SAMSONITE’s Compressor is<br />
another take on the same concept —<br />
you expand the case, pack it, then push<br />
the front panel in to compress it and<br />
reduce the bag’s volume. Compressing<br />
the contents also helps prevent shifting,<br />
so they’re more likely to stay in place<br />
(a fact that’s also true for the Briggs &<br />
Riley design). The Compressor’s MSRP<br />
is $299.<br />
The third place Product Innovation<br />
Award went to TRAVELPRO’s Crew<br />
9 21” Expandable Spinner, which was<br />
notable for two different patent-pending<br />
innovations. The first and most<br />
noticeable is the PowerScope Extension<br />
Handle. The handle cleverly reduces the<br />
amount of play and wobble when the<br />
handle is fully extended — it’s a small<br />
thing, but makes a big difference when<br />
wheeling the case. The second innovative<br />
feature is the Contour Grip, a handle<br />
designed specifically for the way people<br />
maneuver 4-wheelers. Typically pushed,<br />
4-wheelers are meant to be pulled. The<br />
Contour Grip is designed to be a lot<br />
kinder to travelers when pushed, and is<br />
still very comfortable when being towed.<br />
It’s a lot of clever design for $199 MSRP.<br />
Community<br />
Service Award<br />
The Community Service<br />
Award is an acknowledgement<br />
of top-tier corporate<br />
citizenship within the<br />
travel goods industry. This<br />
year’s winner was MOBILE<br />
EDGE, which has partnered with the<br />
Susan G. Komen Foundation in the<br />
fight against breast cancer since 2004<br />
and raised more than $300,000 for<br />
breast cancer awareness and research.<br />
Mobile Edge created the pinkthemed<br />
Caring Case Collection, which<br />
features the signature pink ribbon symbolizing<br />
the fight against breast cancer.<br />
Ten percent of all retail proceeds from<br />
the collection are donated to the Susan<br />
David Bieber of Delsey Luggage presents the<br />
Community Service Award to Chuck Gangi of<br />
Mobile Edge, a major supporter of the Susan<br />
G. Komen Foundation.<br />
G. Komen Foundation.<br />
Anaheim, CA-based Mobile Edge<br />
also donates 2,000 bags to cancer survivors<br />
each year at the local Susan<br />
G. Komen Race for the Cure event in<br />
Newport Beach, California.<br />
The Buzz Award<br />
The Buzz Award is The Show’s<br />
popularity contest — the<br />
winning product is voted on<br />
by retailers and media from<br />
the items displayed in the<br />
New Products Pavilion. This<br />
year’s winning product was Psi Bands<br />
(pronounced sigh-bands), wrist bands<br />
that use acupressure to suppress nausea<br />
caused by a variety of sources including<br />
morning sickness, chemotherapy and<br />
motion sickness. The bands offer a<br />
reusable, drug-free solution for nausea,<br />
and they’re fashionably-designed, comfortable,<br />
and affordable — the MSRP of<br />
each band is only $15.<br />
b<br />
Michele Marini Pittenger, president of the<br />
<strong>Travel</strong> <strong>Goods</strong> <strong>Association</strong>, presents the Buzz<br />
Award to Romy Taormina and Amy Herzog of<br />
Psi Bands. The award-winning Psi Bands relieve<br />
nausea with acupressure around the wrist.<br />
56 Summer 2012 <strong>Travel</strong> <strong>Goods</strong> SHOWCASE