American Eagle: Nonprice Decisions

American Eagle is a well-known brand throughout the United States. When most frequent customers think of this brand they associate it with having the All Acess Pass. This pass allows the consumer to build up points according to what they purchase. Every piece of merchandise has a point value. As those points add up the customer will receive a coupon in the mail after about three months. Depending on many points the customer has over the period of time they could save up to 40% on their purchase up to $200. Another bonus to having this pass, the customer gets a birthday discount 7 days before of after anyones birthday in the family. If they have the AE store card, the discount is greater. This is one of the non-price decisions that AE offers to its customers. The regular customers who shop at this store know the benefits of this pass, so they are more willing to shop here than somewhere else.

American Eagle also has a pleasant atmosphere. The music stays at a decent level and the store lighting is bright enough so the customer can see the merchandise. This also draws customers into the store. The associates help the customers as soon as they enter the store with a perky “Hello” and “How may I help you?” The scent of the store is distinct enough to create brand recognition, but not strong enough to drive the customer out of the store. The marketing department always finds new ways to portray clearance sales and the merchandise that is new for that season. The store-layout is also very open and conducive to the steady flow of customers coming and going. This is a definite plus for many shoppers because unlike AE’s rival retailers (i.e. Hollister or Abercrombie) they don’t have to worry about being attacked by giant fake palm trees or tripping over their feet due to the lack of light.

Gen Z: Shopping Experience

Generation Z-ers are going to be tricky customers to target. Anyone born in or after the year 1995 is almost garunteed to have grown up with computers. Their parents probably bought them "Leap Frog", play computers as a child and they may already have their own cell phones. This generation uses high-speed internet connection, DVD's and Ipods as a normal part of everyday life. The current war going on in the middle east, brought on by the events that took place on September 11, 2001, undoubtedly have made some kind of impact on these children. Even though they are not yet old enough to understand what all is going on, it will drastically affect their futures.

So, much can be said about how all of this affects the retailing industry. First of all, marketers will have to realize the buying potential of these pre-teens. Many of the people born in this time period will be shopping their local mall in search of the newest and hottest trends they see the "older" kids wearing. The "tweens", especially, will be out shopping by themselves looking for more grown up looks. Many kids in this generation think they are growing up faster than they may be. These people are going to be looking for an individual look, something more unique from what others are wearing. Since these people are shopping at an earlier age, they are most likely to spend more money on clothes and items they "need." The stores targeted towards these so called "tweens" need to be colorful, energetic, and flashy to draw these kids into their store.