A Dickens of a Theme

Scarsella's, of Laurel Hollow, New York, has a unique place in its community: It is the only business in a neighborhood of well-to-do homes on the North Shore of Long Island. "Plop in the middle" of an area best known as the glittering world of The Great Gatsby, says co-owner Randy Statham.

In 1989, he and Philip Claps took over the nursery and florist business, which has been operating on the two-and-a-half acre site since the 1930s. Nearly 70 percent of the store's 18,000 square feet is made up of greenhouses imported from neighboring properties.

The original Scarsella's featured everything from a formal English strolling garden to landscaped gardens, bonsai trees, orchids, and cut flowers. While maintaining its (literal) roots, Randy and Philip expanded the Scarsella's franchise to special events and party planning, and diversified its product mix to the extent that today some 45 percent of the $1.6 million in annual sales comes from gifts and decorative accessories. The selection ranges from pictures, lamps, decorative accessories, and garden ornaments to antique English mahogany furniture.

Last year, the two partners designed a Scarsella's signature holiday home textile collection. They even went so far as to design around templates made from their customers' specific dining tables, to ensure correct fits for tables seating four to 34 people. Then they hired a local manufacturer to produce the tablecloths, runners, and napkins, as well as tree skirts, mantel covers, stockings, and accent pillows to round out the collection.

To launch the new holiday collection, Scarsella's came up with a unique promotion that took its inspiration from Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Randy divided the collection into three main categories: "Honor the Past," "Celebrate the Present," and "Anticipate the Future." Then, he added a fourth category, "Always," to include Hanukkah.

The Past designs were the most traditional, featuring a red and green palette with a Victorian feel. The Present featured burgundy and "bronzy" gold, with trendy touches such as faux leopard trim. The Future presented an elegant crossover between "haute tradition" and contemporary. It was a look that said "holiday," but could carry through New Year's. Its color/textile scheme included dramatic black and gold, harlequin silk, and faux mink. And Always glittered with quilted silver lamé and crystal trim.

Randy and Philip then arranged the store so that as customers entered they progressed through the categories, from Past to Always. Each area was marked with a sign hung with draperies and accessorized with pieces from the home textiles collection, furnishings, Christmas trees, and floral and silk arrangements, in keeping with each theme.

To spread the word about their new offerings, Scarsella's sent out two mailings printed in a cheerful red-and-white winter look. One was "A Christmas Carol Menu" offering Appetizers (such as candles, scents, and ribbons), Entrees (including garlands, wreaths, table runners, and placemats), Specialties of the House, and Desserts. Prices were included alongside each item, as well as fabric swatches from the textiles collection.

Customers also received an invitation to an open house held in early December. At that event, Scarsella's invited other local businesses to participate. A wine merchant provided wine, while a baker brought breads, pasties, croissants, cider, and soup.

The response to the debut of the first home textiles collection was overwhelmingly positive: 35 percent more people came through the store's doors during the 2002 holiday season than in 2001. Some 67 customers bought items from the collection. Overall, Scarsella's showed a 22 percent increase in holiday sales.

So successful was the launch of the 2002 holiday home textiles collection that Scarsella's immediately set out to introduce its summer home textile line, inspired by someone who would have felt right at home in Long Island's North Shore society: Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy.