The Homa Files

Excerpted from the New York Times, “Sharper Image Stores Are Dead, but the Brand Goes On”, by Eric Taub, January 18, 2009

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The Sharper Image, which filed for bankruptcy protection last February and closed all its stores, was purchased by private investors for $49 million in May. Since then, the company has reconstituted itself (minus the stores) to become a “global lifestyle brand licensor.”

Rather than operate its own Web site, catalog and shops, the company will license products and sell them through third-party retailers. It has struck deals with HoMedics, a manufacturer of health and grooming products, luggage maker EnE and others to produce new products.

The company is also trying a new approach for these difficult times: affordability.

The problem for the original company was that its stores had plenty of lookers but, because of its high prices, not enough buyers.

“Sharper Image was an aspirational brand. While people wanted the products, not enough could afford them. Now we can be in Best Buy, Bed Bath & Beyond and midtiered department stores,” an executive noted.

The new company, which has fewer than 10 employees, kept five of its original product licensees. It currently has the Sharper Image name on 40 furniture and accessory products sold in OfficeMax stores. Its big push will come at the end of this year, when it releases “hundreds” of new, less-expensive products in partnership with 12 unnamed partners.

Edit by DAF

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Full article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/19/technology/companies/19sharper.html?ref=technology&pagewanted=print

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