Private label charge card helps sales of high-ticket items at Merrick Group
With many of its bedding products retailing on its web sites for $2,000-$3,000 each, The Merrick Group has responded to customer demands for new payment options with a private label charge card with no-interest terms. “The program has more than paid for itself,” president Philip Krim tells InternetRetailer.com.
The Merrick Group, No. 396 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide to Retail Web Sites, operates several retail web sites that focus on different niches of the bedding market. At its two high-end mattress sites, SleepBetterStore.com and AngelBeds.com, customers had been asking customer service reps for alternative payment plans to avoid paying credit card interest on products that cost thousands of dollars, Krim says.
Last fall, Merrick began offering the customers on those two sites a private label charge card issued by Shoppers Charge Accounts, a division of Hudson United Bank/TD Banknorth Inc., Portland, ME. The card lets Merrick’s customers pay without financing charges over 90 days for products priced up to $1,500 and over 12 months for products priced over $1,500.
The private label card accounts for about 20% of sales on AngelBeds.com and SleepBetterStore.com, and now Merrick is planning to offer the card through its other sites as well, Krim says. Other Merrick sites include TranquilityMattress.com and DreamySleep.com.
The card was particularly popular during last year’s holiday shopping season, when shoppers were more likely to buy multiple items, and it has helped Merrick compete against larger retailers when they offer special financing promotions, Krim says.
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