Buy, Sell, or "Trade"
The A&D Contact wants a Finish Book but they won't schedule an in-person call or Virtual meeting, how do you handle it?
Without a meeting we can't send out finish books but we can encourage them to see the finished at their dealer of choice that sells Graff
The new Prospect Showroom tells you only display in Vignette applications at their showroom and non-branded. They also say that they will only let Graff have one or two 3-piece Vignettes to start and "see how it goes from there. What do you do in this case?
Assuming this is a standard potential new showroom (not the biggest player in the biggest market) you thank them for their time and walk away... No all business is good business. This person told you that their brand and their vision is the only thing they are concerned about. We always need to look for win/ win situation and small footprints and no branding are bad for business
The Showroom wants 2 of each finish clip to give Homeowners when they come in to make sure they get the right finishes speced. What do you say to them considering we do not send these out for Homeowners?
We politely explain that by sending out chips it doesn't show the brand correctly since these chips are designed for Finish boards/ Books. Also, these are made by hand as well so there is a cost to these and many Homeowners want a bunch of these without actually having one brand in mind. We push the homeowners to work with the showrooms to review these boards and make the final decisions
The Showroom asks "What is my Co-op funds available for 2024? What do you respond?
Graff doesn't have a set Co-op fund for each customer, we do a case-by-case review. We want to invest in the right opportunities like Events, Evening mixers, Grand openings and such but we do not give a blanket fund. All opportunities must be Graff & the Showroom centric; this makes it a win/ win for both of us!
What is your overall price increase in the new Price Book for 2024?
There is no blanket Answer as many things went up slightly and some collections/ finishes went down. Depending on the mix of sales there is no way to give an accurate % of increase
An A&D Customer that loves Graff wants to put Graff in their own home but wants to buy the personal use products directly as they don't want to buy through a dealer, what do you do?
We always ask who they like working with but in a personal use case we can (as a last resort) sell them directly as long as the order fits the guidelines of the Personal use policy and pricing - They would buy through a credit card and there would be a 4% upcharge
You are attempting to get 4-5 FEI Showroom in an area to bring on displays. The showrooms Managers say you need to get the Regionals Permission but after months of chasing him you are having no luck. How do you proceed?
Ask for Help - We have a big team in the USA and several of us have relationships with key FEI Leadership. If we leverage these we can push someone for the meeting and then we can sell our case. Team > Individual
Why don't we offer all products in all finishes, Cal Faucets does?
Trick Question: As of July 1st 2024 we do offer almost all products in all finishes, like Cal Faucets does!
Which Showroom partners do we want to do Co-op Investments with?
"A" volume, VIP, or SPC Showrooms are the top targets but if we have the right event and the right "B" volume location we will look at all opportunities
If our 2019 Price Book was child what grade would it be going into in the fall of 2024?
1st Grade
An A&D Prospect wants to "buy" regular products directly and not through a dealer, how do you handle this without turning off the potential A&D Client?
We politely explain to the A&D Customer that we do not sell directly because of our investments of these dealers as being true partners. With that said we ask who they currently buy through and ensure them that we will call these showrooms and work on getting the best pricing available for them through these dealers
The Showroom that we are trying to expand with (that is a heavy hitter) is open to it but they want a buy back on the Rohl products that Graff will be taking the space of. What do you do?
Be Creative - Can we work on a lower price to offset that spend in the past from Rohl? Can we put together a 50/50 deal to pay them for sales? Can we offset this cost with investing in an Event together so that we both benefit.
If PVD Finishes are the best finishes in the industry why do you offer finishes that are not PVD Finishes?
Although PVD is the most durable finish option in the industry not every finish can be made in PVD. Some finish options will not come out as clients would want (like Matte Black & true 24K Gold) so PVD is not an option currently. The second issue is PVD finishes are much more expensive to make and other finishes will hold up at a high level but have a much lower cost to the customer
No, because there is no investment by the dealer for these trips. A true Co-op is where the Dealer and Graff split the costs of the opportunity. That is not always a 50/50 split but at least we both have Skin in the game!
Your Price Book was huge before, now it is over 1000 pages. How am I supposed to use this and not feel intimidated?
We made the book a beauty and Price book, this is essentially why it has expanded so many pages. With that said it is laid out with feedback from our customers on ease of use and if you take a specific collection to order it is only 25-35 pages of actual sku options per family & in order of how you would spec a bathroom
An A&D Customer that does Hospitality & Projects says they don't use Graff because we are too high priced for their projects, what do you say or do in this case?
Ask Questions: Who do they use now? What type of projects? How big are these projects? Depending on the answers Graff might have a solution that they are not even aware of, and in some cases less Net pricing then they are using now with other Manufactures
An existing showroom has been holding off on any new displays for 1-2 years and they have a poor Graff Display? After all options have been exhausted they use the "I got free displays from others line". What do you do with this location?
If you exhausted every option (except free displays) then it is OK to walk away from this customer. Closing the account ensures that the brand is shown properly and sold through the right, invested partners
Why is the Polished Nickel and Brushed Nickel finishes for Graff warrantied 5 years and the PVD versions of each warrantied with a limited Lifetime Warranty?
The PVD finishes are 15 times stronger than your traditional Chrome finish (which is also very durable) so these have a longer warranty because they will hold up at a higher level. The standard Nickel options will hold up well past the 5 years with quality care and maintenance. With great cost and durability comes a longer warranty
What is the customer asks to use their "2024 Co-op" toward display costs. Can we do that?
Although many will think the answer is no the real answer is Maybe. If the customer is a great customer (VIP or SPC) and we can look at a way to be creative to close deals, then this is something that is possible. We will discuss on a one-on-one basis so bring up all of these opportunities with your Regional Manager
How can you call yourself a "green, sustainable" organization when you are printing 1028-page price books?
* It is our first price book in 5+ years, that means we didn't print the last 5+ years - We are also not planning a reprint every year - Saving Paper
* We have a beautiful PDF version if the customer wants that instead of the hard copy book
* We have only printed enough to supply our showrooms in the field and with Limited distribution that is 1000's of copies less than others that sell 2-3 times as many showroom
You have a Designer that loves Gessi & Fantini and specifies them all the time because they are "Italian Designed products". They like Graff but are skeptical to spec it because they are unfamiliar. What is the #1 thing you tell them to get them to give us a chance?
From their comment "Italian Designed Products" they are telling you they believe the best designers are in Italy. We have several Italian Designers that we work with, and we should highlight each.
The Kitchen display has arrived at a showroom and 2 of the units are going on a working display. When the team puts them on and tries them out they comment that the flow is low compared to the competition (and they show you). What do you do?
Take Video's, take notes, and get it to Graff Leadership ASAP. Time and Action are a key in any objection and in this case it could slow a whole categories sales/ perception. Take all feedback seriously and get the details in so we can review/ address the issue without losing the support of the customer
Why are the finish boards taking so long to get for the field showrooms?
These boards require a ton of new Sample Chips to complete and the board itself is new because of the expanded offering. The boards are here but the chips are made like any product, so they are hand crafted too. In order to make 500+ boards with all the chips and still keep up with all of the other production needs from our sales growth they have to be made in increments
If a customer wants us to invest in Co-op funds do we have any limitations that we should be aware of that are "deal breakers"?
* Co-Op events with competing lines
* Co-Op events that are 100% funded by Graff
* Co-Op funds for Blanket Social Media Ads (not Graff specific)
* Co-Op funds for General Magazine Ads (Not Graff specific)
Why does Graff have so many collections, finishes, designs, options in their price book?
We want to be the go-to line for your luxury plumbing needs. Does the customer really need 5 brands on display to cover all of the finishes, price points, collections, and styles that there customers need? Or do they need one company that does all of this with Quality that is unmatched and more in-stock product than any other manufacturer in the industry?