Lyndonville Video's Expectations for Holiday Sales

Lyndonville Video is owned and operated by Helen and Real Parent. They started their video business on December 15, 1984. Lyndonville Video is located on 29 Depot Street in Lyndonville, Vermont. Their video store offers movie rentals, and they also sell previewed movies, gift certificates and movie cards. For more information about their store, call Lyndonville Video at (802) 626-9242.

Are you hopeful for the upcoming holiday season?

Helen Parent: We are hopeful, but have realistic expectations. To help ensure a good holiday season we add more previewed movies to our sales table, and we also offer discounts on our movie cards, which are prepaid punch cards that offer a significant savings on movies.

Are holidays a good time for your business?

Helen Parent: Yes, holidays can be very good. We sell and rent holiday movies, which helps to increase our sales. We have also built a loyal customer base that continuously shops at our store during the holiday season. We also special order movies, and try to help locate movies that customers can't find elsewhere.

Do you extend your hours or hire extra help during the holiday season?

Helen Parent: No, it is just our immediate family that runs the business, and we are normally open seven days a week from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. Being able to run the business ourselves also helps keep cost down, and helps to ensure a more profitable holiday season.

What are your best selling items during the holiday season?

Helen Parent: Our best selling items are our previewed movies, gift certificates and movie cards. We offer an additional discount on our movie cards during the holiday season. Many of our customers wait to purchase their movie cards for themselves or as a gift when they go on sale during the holiday season.

How does holiday shopping affect your bottom line?

Helen Parent: During the holidays there is an increase in movie purchases, gift certificates, and other video-related items which increases are sales approximately 25% throughout the holiday season. Another factor is what day the holiday falls on. If a holiday falls on a weekend, the sales may be slightly lower, which will slightly decrease the percentage and our bottom line.

How does the economy affect your business?

Helen Parent: Actually, our business does better in a poor economy. More people stay home, and it is much cheaper to rent a movie than going to a movie theater. We also try to offer specials on our rentals that most can afford. A special on older movies that we offer the customer is our five movies, five days, for five dollars. This has increased our sales approximately 15%. As word continues to get out about this special, the popularity and sales grows.

Can you see a significant difference in holiday sales from when you first opened Lyndonville Video?

Helen Parent: Definitely, we refer to previous years as the "good old days." Sales will never be what they once were. Back in the day we did have extra help during the holiday season. This is no longer needed. Also, Netflix and other online movie chains have made our sales drop, but we try to hang on and hold our own.