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Case Studies / Parisian
Parisian Store Opening
The Avenue Carriage Crossing
Collierville, TN
Goals and Objectives
Parisian chose Thompson & Berry Public Relations to obtain positive media coverage and strong local awareness of its new store in the Memphis suburb of Collierville. The store was unique because it was the first Parisian store to enter the Memphis market and the first "store of the future" concept for Parisian. "The store of the future" reflected a more modern architecture, a higher level of product specialization and more selection than any of the other 40 Parisian stores throughout the United States. The Collierville store was an anchor in a new open-air shopping center, The Avenue Carriage Crossing.
Thompson & Berry was charged with building awareness of the opening and of the Parisian brand in the public through media relations, programs and events. The target audience was the Memphis-area. Thompson & Berry was also given the task of molding the grand opening into something unique and meaningful to the Memphis market. This was achieved by tying events to local charities, women's organizations and entertainment.
Planning and Execution
To meet the client's objectives, Thompson & Berry developed an extensive public relations plan for the grand opening. The plan included all aspects of public relations surrounding the opening, including a complete list of Memphis charities that would fit well with Parisian's objectives, women's organizations that were dominant in the Memphis area and local events that would complement the community ties that Parisian wished to forge with Memphis.
Media relations were a driving force behind the plan. To acquaint local media representatives with Parisian and have them feel as if they were connected, Thompson & Berry took Parisian executives on a "meet & greet" tour of local reporters and editors at newspapers, magazines and television programs. This initiated a strong working relationship between Parisian and the media.
In the months prior to the opening, four press releases were sent to the local media. Each release focused on a different key message that Parisian wanted to express in this new market:
- Parisian Plans 'Store of the Future' at the Avenue Carriage Crossing in Collierville (August 2, 2005)
- Parisian Presents 'The Look' Fall 2005 (September 1, 2005)
- From Primping to Pampering, Parisian at The Avenue Carriage Crossing to Be One-Stop Shop for Beauty (September 15, 2005)
- Club Libby Lu Gives Tween Girls the Ultimate Place for Hands-on Fun (September 16, 2005)
To complement the press releases, Thompson & Berry handled media appearances for several of Parisian's special guests in local TV, radio and print venues. Special guests included Jane Seymour and Dr. Dennis Gross, both of whom have retail lines that are sold in Parisian. Thompson & Berry also negotiated a live segment from the new store on FOX 13's Good Morning Memphis.
To continue the strong sense of inclusion that began with the media "meet & greet" tour, Thompson & Berry hosted a Hard Hat Tour for local print, TV and radio representatives at the Parisian site when it was nearly completed.
Because of the high degree of importance placed on media relations for this effort, Thompson & Berry conducted media training for Parisian's new store manager. The day-long seminar covered topics such as interviewing, crisis management and general tips when dealing with media.
In addition to strong media relations, Thompson & Berry engaged the public through two pre-opening charity shopping events at the new Parisian store. Thompson & Berry handled the RSVPs for both events, the money for the benefiting charities and on-site execution at both parties.
- Taste of the Midsouth, a sneak preview day co-hosted by Parisian, Midsouth Magazine and area restaurants, supported four local charities. The public was encouraged to pay $30 to the charity of their choice to gain "pre-entrance" into the store before the public opening.
- Parisian's Grand Opening VIP Gala, a special in-store charity cocktail preview party, included a fashion show, a celebrity shoe exhibit, hors d'oeuvres and live music. Guests donated $100 to their choice of two Memphis charities to gain entrance to this nighttime event.
Finally, throughout Parisian's grand opening week, Thompson & Berry was at the site to help execute activities, greet guests and direct media.
The Results
Retail Success:
The Parisian at The Avenue Carriage Crossing was the number one store for sales in the Parisian chain before it even opened to the general public, due to the extremely high participation in the Taste of the Midsouth and the Grand Opening VIP Gala preview shopping days.
About 400 people attended the Taste of the MidSouth and more than 300 attended the Grand Opening VIP Gala. The events combined raised close to $30,000 for charity.
Public Relations Success:
The Parisian at the Avenue Carriage Crossing garnered remarkable local press. Between August and October of 2005, there were 22 print stories, 34 television stories and 2 radio clips about Parisian in the local press.
