Sharper Image BEST BRICKS-AND-MORTAR BRAND ONLINE

In June 1995, San Francisco-based gizmo-retailer The Sharper Image made its debut on the Web with an e-commerce site. Yes, an e-commerce site. In an era when "selling online" meant listing a phone number on the site so people could phone-in orders, The Sharper Image site actually accepted credit cards.

If that strategy was intensely Web-friendly, these days, the site is winning kudos from IQ as the Best Bricks-and-Mortar Brand Online because it has managed to effectively bring the in-store shopping experience alive on the Web. Though its navigation has changed little since its inception, it has constantly tweaked its search functions, recently adding a drop-down navigation menu, among other things.

But its biggest "gee whiz" innovation, incorporated early this year, is a section that allows visitors to look at its technoforward products in scalable 3-D. Online users can finally get what mall rats can: A "real" feel for the gadgets.

"We really work hard to make sure that the consumer is offered the closest [to the] in-store shopping experience possible on the Web," says Meredith Medland, director of the company's Internet Division. "That's a huge motivation for us."

"The Sharper Image's use of 3-D imaging technology enables customers to get a rough sense for what the product looks like," says Evie Black Dykema of Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester Research. "And, perhaps even more importantly, it supports Sharper Image's leading-edge image."

Consumers--higher-income college students are a key target--can virtually "flip" open a CD radio alarm clock online, and actually see how the Ionic Breeze Silent Air Purifier would work if it were in an office. Meanwhile, a new online-only option has "really allowed us to reach the 'Sharper Image for everyone 'idea," says Medland. The site auctions off product that is worn from too much in-store handling, or undamaged product delivered in damaged boxes.

The Web site has also brought in a whole new group of customers; last holiday season, 70 percent of the company's online sales came from consumers who had never purchased in the store or via the catalog.

Medland credits The Sharper Image's online innovation to its CEO and founder, Richard Thalheimer. "When he first heard about the Internet, he knew that it was a really important place for The Sharper Image to be," she says.

But, even as The Sharper Image Web site has tried to keep pace with technological change, it continues to see employing advanced technology as a double-edged sword.

"We've made a commitment to be on the leading edge, not on the bleeding edge," says Greg Alexander, The Sharper Image's senior vice president of Management Information Systems. "We don't want to frustrate the consumer with technology that's not supported."

Cumbersome programs geared for a small percentage of broadband users that would crash less sophisticated systems just aren't acceptable.

"But at the same time," Alexander admits, "The Sharper Image has a reputation for innovative products. What goes along with that is an innovative Web site."

While Medland won't discuss future plans for the site, she says the company is always looking at new technology options. "The Sharper Image brand has always been associated with innovation," she says. "You can expect that in the future."

Last holiday season, 70 percent of The Sharper Image's online sales came from consumers who had never purchased in the store or via the catalog. TSI did $4.9 million in sales online in 1998 and $1.3 million from January to May 1999.

COPYRIGHT 1999 BPI Communications, Inc.
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