Get shoppers back by offering an invaluable gift—health!
Waco, TX – Capitalize on the forthcoming Grandparents Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays by selling the health benefits of handcrafted, made-in-the-USA walking sticks and canes. Recent statistics show that retail shoppers are still apprehensive to part with their disposable dollars. But will they part with their hard-earned cash when it comes to their basic needs like health and well-being?
According to the reputable Kaiser Family Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to producing and conveying current health information and statistics, health expenditures in the United States “surpassed $2.3 trillion in 2008, more than three times the $714 billion spent in 1990” (kaiseredu.org). Furthermore, all indications are that recent trends in upward spending on health care will continue on the same trajectory, opening an even broader market to consumers looking to purchase health care related products.
In contrast, overall retail sales continue to remain stagnant. The U.S. Census Bureau announced on August 13 that advance estimates of U.S. retail and food service sales for July, adjusted, were $363 billion, or $4.4 trillion annualized—an increase of only 0.4 percent from the previous month. For office supply, stationary, and gift stores, an estimated $67 billion was generated in the first seven months of 2010.
So why not seize the opportunity to link the overall retail market—stagnant though it may be—with the burgeoning and ever-expanding health care market? With specific, market-targeted gift products that enhance shoppers’ health and well-being, retail gift shops can effectively appeal to Baby Boomers and those who might be reluctant to part with their discretionary income.
In fact, a new report states:
Exercise capacity is inversely associated with all-cause mortality in older men. . . . The survival benefit was observed among individuals able to participate in moderate daily exercise, such as brisk walking, report investigators. “Most health benefits are evident at fitness levels of greater than 5 METs,” said lead investigator Dr Peter Kokkinos (Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, DC). [MET stands for “metabolic equivalent,” a concept that expresses the energy cost of physical activities.] “Now, those benefits are graded, so that the more exercise you do, the greater the survival benefit.”
To put it in plain English: Higher exercise capacity translates into improved survival in seniors.
Kokkinos said, given the aging of the US population, the results are of clinical importance; he stressed that fitness levels greater than five METs can be achieved with 20 to 40 minutes of brisk daily exercise. Kokkinos noted that he has one patient, a 90-year-old man, who has an exercise capacity of 12 METs, all garnered through daily walking.
Can simple walking be improved upon, in order to offer even greater health benefits? When you add that more whole body exercise is achieved when using walking sticks and canes, you have a winning combination. According to livestrong.com, the website of seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong:
Using a walking stick requires lifting the stick, placing it ahead of you and helping support your body’s weight with your arms as you move. Over the course of a long walk, this can be a good workout for your arms and shoulders, helping you burn more calories as you exercise.
Furthermore, consider that the low-impact sport of walking is quickly gaining popularity, as it avoids well-known injuries so closely associated with running and extreme sports. It’s also a family friendly, fun, social activity that all ages can actively get involved with. Just ask the American Volkssport Association (AVA), a serious walking organization with a “network of 305 Walking Clubs” that has organized “more than 3,000 walking events. . . .” The association promotes health and well-being by offering safe, stress-free exercise via volkswalking—non-competive group walks through often-scenic and historic parts of the country. (In fact, one of the AVA’s leaders recently told us he would be needing to place a walking stick order before Christmas!)
And have you heard of the American Heart Association’s signature Start! Heart Walk fund-raising events? According to heart.org, the association’s website:
As the signature fund-raising event for the American Heart Association since 1994, the Start! Heart Walk promotes physical activity and heart-healthy living in a fun family environment. Each year, more than 1,000,000 walkers participate in over 470 events across the country, raising funds to save lives from this country’s number one and number three killers, heart disease and stroke.
Brazos Walking Sticks heartily supports these laudatory efforts with the industry’s largest assortment of handcrafted walking sticks, canes, and accessories—all for your gift shop!
Health is one thing, but what about aesthetics? We’ve all seen the hideous metal canes associated with medical needs, but savvy, judicious shoppers’ will demand no less than handcrafted, American-made quality.
Brazos Walking Sticks is America’s premier manufacturer and distributor of made-in-the-USA, handcrafted walking sticks and canes. With more than 100 distinct styles, and dozens of wood choices ranging from durable oak to African exotics, Brazos Walking Sticks can meet all needs and budgets. We truly offer The Feel of Nature, and the Quality of American Craftsmanship.
With the ever-growing need for health and well-being products, an emerging wave of customers will undoubtedly eagerly obey a new “doctor’s order”: Buy for health by combining utility and aesthetic beauty with Brazos Walking Sticks.
Brazos Oaks, LLC began as a family owned and operated business in 1981. In 1996, Brazos Walking Sticks joined the enterprise. Located just north of Waco in the beautiful central Texas Brazos River Valley, Brazos Oaks and Brazos Walking Sticks offer quality craftsmanship and superior customer service. The Brazos Oaks family is part of a nearby community of craftsmen who endeavor to create and provide products that are both functional and beautiful.
Large retail assortment: www.brazossticks.com
Our exclusive wholesale deals & online eCatalogs are here: www.brazosdeals.com
Brazos Walking Sticks creates high-quality handcrafted walking sticks, staffs, and walking canes that are perfect for the celebration of a memorable event, or for buyers looking to expand to customers in the health and fitness arena. Visit our retail website at brazossticks.com.
Brazos Oaks and Brazos Walking Sticks are dedicated to Made in America, handcrafted items that are designed and created to be meaningful gifts that meet a demand for quality and value.
