Page 259 - MM July2018

A prime product mix—home, gift and fun
The merchandise mix in the front part of the store is comprised of home goods, furniture, décor, lamps and wall art. Products are displayed on rustic wooden shelving or oversized tables, furniture is arranged in vignettes, and dining tables are tablescaped with dinnerware and serving pieces. In the center of the room, a cluster of oversized blue and white paper globes suspended from the
ceiling adds visual interest.
Rebecca says that roughly half the customers are locals or second homeowners, while the other half are vacationers. Her merchandise reflects
this balance: home goods, décor, and furniture for the locals; smaller items that tourists can take home as souvenirs such as candles, little soaps and jewelry. And, with the region’s sugary white beaches
just steps from the store, beach essentials including beach bags and cover-ups for all.
Heading toward the back of the store, you’ll encounter what the Crosses call their “party barn,” dubbed so because
of the rustic barn doors that open into the department. There’s a 12-foot balloon bar with more than 90 colors and styles of balloons displayed in hanging galvanized metal buckets. Another 12-foot stretch of wall features party supplies, a rainbow of all colors and patterns of disposable partyware.
Service with a smile—adding elements to help customers
In addition to the party products that Mingle has for sale, they have another resource for local party planners: balloon décor service.
“It wasn’t part of our original plan,
but once we opened we quickly realized
there wasn’t anyone within 50 miles of us that provided event services for balloons,” says Rebecca. “The people in this area have a lot of disposable income and they don’t really want to mess with balloons— it’s not fun to wrangle balloons into your car! We started promoting that we could come in and style your party, you don’t have to do a thing.”
Large-scale balloon décor and installations is a trend that’s proliferating in Australia and the United Kingdom, but Rebecca says it’s just now starting to take root in the United States. “At first I was working hard to convince people to get on board with this, but I’m getting there, people are starting to call me about it,” she says.
Celebrate the milestones—
look ahead to successes Currently, the Crosses are at work planning their one-year anniversary. With visual- oriented social media including Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest as big promoters of the business, it’s no surprise that Rebecca is hoping to incorporate these elements into the party. She’s working on using Pinterest’s new pin code technology for all the décor used in the party so that guests can scan the codes with their phones to pull up and pin various items throughout the store.
And going forward, the Crosses plan
to make use of their manufacturing background that started their journey to becoming storeowners: They’re in the beginning stages of conceptualizing a Mingle-braded product line. ■
For more information on Mingle, visit Mingle30a.com or
call 850.909.0164.
Images courtesy of Mingle
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