Early this year, Derek Ritzel assumed the position of CEO of Castelle. Patio & Hearth Products Report recently spent time with Ritzel to learn more about his new position, his goals for the company, and developments in the outdoor-furniture industry.

Based on your experience in the mattress, furniture, and specialty-retail industries, what new and innovative ideas will you bring to Castelle?

Ritzel:With today’s consumers trading up, premium products are outpacing all other segments within the marketplace. With this occurrence— and seeing little or no growth in the total number of new consumers entering the marketplace—a focus will be placed on helping our retail partners to increase spending per customer with product selections and marketing practices.

Will Castelle continue to offer a diverse selection of traditional, transitional, and contemporary/ modern outdoor-furniture collections?

Ritzel: Castelle is known for its broad product offering, and I do not see that changing. Considerable growth, however, is occurring with regard to our transitional and contemporary offerings, and attention will be given to building upon those design styles as new collections and products are introduced.

Will you continue to strengthen Castelle’s working relationship with specialty retailers/ dealers?Do you plan to introduce any retailer/dealer-support programs?

Ritzel: Specialty retailers will continue to be an important focus for us. As far as new support programs go, we are always exploring ideas and options (whether product wise or marketing wise) to create greater success at retail. Few things help a retailer more than exceptional products. We need to make sure we represent all the styles consumers want to buy and have exceptional offerings in those styles. By following consumer trends, we will be better positioned to help our specialty retailers reach profitable positions.

Do you plan to focus on any new or underserved areas of the market?

Ritzel: The designer channel is an area that continues to develop and drive tickets. As consumers personalize their outdoor spaces, having the ability to provide customers with something uniquely their own is a focus. We are addressing this with the addition of designer collaborations, as well as the introduction of styles that are popular with design customers. Our custom capabilities (with timely delivery) also are a way in which all retailers can provide a designer experience.

What are some of the biggest changes you have seen at the specialty-retail level over the past decade?

Ritzel: Specialty stores have a unique challenge. They need great real estate to serve their customers, and that puts real pressure on profits and losses. With ticket compression hitting hard, it is essential that stores have highquality, high-ticket goods to fulfill their missions. Specialty retailers are best positioned to take advantage of consumers who are waking up to the idea that their outdoor rooms need to be outfitted. Castelle has consistently worked to create products and services to meet these challenges and will continue to provide ways for our customers to expand average tickets.

What are the greatest opportunities for specialty retailers/dealers of outdoor-living products?

Ritzel:Opportunities for the specialty segment are much the same as in other categories and revolve around high-quality products, proven brands, and postsale follow-through—all of which are priorities of the entire Castelle organization. Growing ticket size is key. As the total number of customers continues to stall, it is essential that we trade up each of those existing customers and provide meaningful reasons to spend more per ticket.