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Direct link to this story here: http://tinyurl.com/papamediainterview Papa Media is an online retailer of new and used items. Their proprietary technology and global network of suppliers and distribution channels enable them to provide their customers with a selection of over 1.5 million "in stock" titles at the lowest possible cost.
GEMMZINE: Hi Gary, for the many Gemm buyers around the world, what is "Papa Media"?
Papa Media: Hello to all of Gemm's customers and visitors. Papa Media is a seller on Gemm's online marketplace. Gemm connects buyers to sellers such as us on their online platform. We are an online retailer of products in several segments including books, music, movies, games, and software. Through our network of global fulfillment centers, we specialize in bringing both bestsellers and previously hard-to-find items right to your doorstep.
GEMMZINE: To Papa Media's credit, the company was selected by the U.S. Commerce Association (USCA) as the winner of the 2009 New York Award in the Mail Order Book Club category. What is this and how did it come about?
Papa Media: We are honored to have received this recognition from the USCA. To explain the award in their own words: "Each year, the US Commerce Association (USCA) identifies companies that we believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and community."
GEMMZINE: Papa Media is an online retailer of products, both new and used in:
• Books • Music • Movies • Games & Software • Computers & Electronics • Toys, Sports, & Hobbies • Office Supplies How did the company decide to move in this direction?
Papa Media: We started out in 2002 as an online retailer of bestselling books. As we improved our fulfillment operations to the degree that it pretty much ran on auto-pilot, we moved into offering media products as well, including music, movies, games, and software. At the same time, our purchasing strategy also entered a new realm of locating and re-selling hard-to-find items. We have fulfillment operations in several countries, bringing products from one country to customers in other countries where the same product is incredibly hard to find in the local market. Global retail is at the core of our retailing strategy today, with more than half our volumes moving from one country to another. As we have managed to set this second phase of our fulfillment operations also on auto-pilot, we are only now starting to move in to non-media products such as computers, electronics, toys, sports, hobbies, and office supplies.
GEMMZINE: It is a staggering amount of items, even with computers do you need a large staff to keep track of everything?
Papa Media: Automating and streamlining our operations is the only way we are able to manage such a large inventory and extensive distribution system. For example, when an item sells, quantities are automatically and instantly adjusted in every location - our central database, our fulfillment center's database, and all our sales partners' retailing platforms. When a bestselling item runs below a pre-defined minimum stock level, automatic alerts are sent to our purchasing department to replenish supplies. Besides automation, we have learned that a distributed approach works very well to manage large inventory and fulfillment operations, so we use multiple fulfillment centers to process our orders. GEMMZINE: How does your BESTSELLERS LIST work? Is it overall sales or sales specific to the main PapaMedia site?
Papa Media: Bestseller rankings on our website are based on overall sales from all our sales channels put together. However, a great percentage of our sales comes from single hard-to-find items that we only carry a single copy of. While the 80:20 principle works for most retailers (80% of sales from 20% of products), our sales tend to be more mixed because of the great number of single hard-to-find items that we sell.
GEMMZINE: When did you hook up with GEMM.com?
Papa Media: We joined the Gemm Marketplace around 2006, soon after moving in to media retail. In fact, strong sales and happy customers through the Gemm platform gave us the confidence in our initial efforts moving in to this media segment. GEMMZINE: What do you like best about selling your music through GEMM?
Papa Media: Being able to fulfill an order that our customer thought was impossible to obtain in their previous searches of the past several months or years, until they found our listing on Gemm. Being able to reach customer from Finland to Russia to Australia, all on a single platform.
GEMMZINE: Do you get actively involved with artists you are selling? A spinoff label or working with other independent labels? or is Papa Media focused on the retail aspect of the business?
Papa Media: Papa Media is one of the e-commerce brands under its parent company, Kanal, Inc. Another brand owned by our parent company is Gthang (still in beta), which will be specialized in music-related services for the Web. Its users would be able to compose music using artificial intelligence technology through a program called Musicbox, jam and collaborate online with other users in a globally distributed band via a system called Jockey, and promote their own music electronically through the Gthang website. While Papa Media is focused on online product retail, we plan to work more closely with independent artists and record labels through Gthang. Check out Papa Media on Gemm.com:
Direct link to this story here: http://tinyurl.com/papamediainterview
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