Fed Ex Brightens With New Opportunities

Federal Express Corp. has discovered that opportunities abound with small businesses. The company has already made a name for itself and has become an industry standard with large corporations, and Fed Ex officials believe that the time is right for it to branch out. "Small businesses [are] where most of the growth in the economy is going to come from," says Carl R. Williams, managing director of retail marketing for Memphis, Tenn.-based Federal Express.As a result, Federal Express has combined forces with Kinko's, making all of its services available through Kinko's Copies retail locations. Those centers offer a variety of services, including typesetting, laminating, fax transmission/receiving, computers, copies and more. "We're joining our strong corporate image with strong industry leaders in small business," Williams explains, adding that the workplace is seeing growth in the development of home offices and small business. "The market-place is changing and we need to change with it," he adds. "The target is to be ubiquitous out there. The theme is 'You can do it all at Kinko's: copy it, bind it, create it, fax it and now ship it Federal Express.'"To announce the availability of Federal Express services in all Kinko's locations, lighted signs with a prominent Federal Express logo were produced. Measuring 2 feet wide by 1 foot high, the signs came into existence only after examining 12 prototypes from six vendors, Williams explains. The challenge was to create a lighted sign that had enough power to be seen through tinted store windows during daylight and evening hours, even when the store is closed.Yet another obstacle was encountered with local restrictions that sometimes ban retailers from placing signage in windows. In this case, Kinko's and Federal Express were required to put the sign at the back of the store, but they still wanted the sign to be brilliant enough to be seen by passers-by. "If we could solve that one, we had everything else licked," Williams says.American Sign and Marketing, based in Florence, Ky., met these requirements in a joint design effort. An aluminum-frame unit produces a brilliant, lighted logo for passers-by to see. The reverse side, which is visible to shoppers already inside the store, is not lighted, but displays a plastic insert carrying either a marketing/seasonal message or the Federal Express logo, he adds. The lighted sign is also available with four sets of hardware to meet a variety of hanging needs.The sign was tested in Memphis, Tenn., in July, and a national roll-out of 450 signs began in October. By the end of November, approximately 650 units were in place. And according to Williams, early results show the sign to be a success. "[Kinko's] stores [that have the new sign in place] gain volume faster than those without it. The sign is making a difference."

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