Retailers watch As Seen On TV sales grow

Retailers remain bullish on the As Seen On TV category. “Almost every As Seen On TV product outperforms other product categories in drug stores,” said AJ Khubani, CEO of TeleBrands. “The products have sell-through rates that are at least 10% and can approach 30%.”

With a life cycle of 12 to 18 months, the category is dependent on a steady flow of new introductions, and manufacturers have plenty in the pipeline. The big winner this year for TeleBrands is OrGreenic cookware. “Frying pans are the most frequently used piece of equipment in the kitchen, so people replace them frequently,” Khubani said. “By 2015, the government will outlaw Teflon, so people are looking for an alternative. People are more tuned into health and are moving away from plastic to glass storage as well.”

Khubani said the drug channel has gotten behind the five-piece OrGreenic set, which retails for $99.99. Individual frying pans, which retail for $29.99, also are top sellers. Other hot household items are TeleBrands’ Lint Lizard and Sticky Buddy. New introductions for 2012 are the InstaBulb, a two-pack of peel-and-stick battery-powered lights that ships in July and will retail for $10.

Sticky Buddy will go head-to-head with Vince Offer’s Schticky. “Those two items will be duking it out at retail for the next few months,” said Jordan Pine, president of SciMark Corp. Pine said other hot new products are APG’s EZ Eyes keyboard, Allstar’s Trendy Top and Idea Village’s Music Bullet mini portable speaker.

In June, Idea Village is introducing the Boom Cube, a 1-in. cube-shaped, battery-operated speaker that fits on a key ring. The cube will come in a number of different fashion skins, from camouflage to cow-print, and will retail for $10.99.

Another new introduction in time for summer is Idea Village’s Shimmer Body Art, glitter tattoos that are rolling out in June and retail for $9.99.

Plush continues to be a hot category. As a follow-up to its wildly successful Pillow Pet franchise, Ontel recently launched Dream Lite, plush pets that include a magical night light. The new product retails for $39.95. Trend Marketing’s Happy Napper play pillow, which retails for $14.99, also is a popular addition to the category.

Retailers are dedicating more space to the category year-round and are carving out endcaps for specific product assortments at key times during the year. “CVS has committed space to the category, Walgreens fluctuates and Walmart is upsizing,” Pine said.