BrandsMart USA
Ownership:
Originally Published on: May 6, 2018
Interbond Corporation of America
Interbond Corporation of America dba BrandsMart, BrandsMart USA and BrandsMart Service Corp.
BrandsMart USA was started in 1977 and owned by matriarch, Robert “Bob” Perlman, Chairman, and his son, Michael Perlman, President. The corporate buying office is run by Randy Johnson, Chief Merchandising Officer and store operations by his son, Bobby Johnson, Chief Operating Officer.
BrandsMart USA was founded by Robert “Bob” Perlman with a single store in a warehouse strip of stores and then expanding throughout the entire building off the Palmetto Expressway in Miami, Florida.
Moving from the original BrandsMart USA location a few blocks east, to a larger purposely-built location, BrandsMart USA business has expanded to six additional Florida stores including an outlet store, with another under construction at Dania Pointe, stretching from South Miami to West Palm Beach and stores in Stockbridge and Doraville, Georgia.
The corporate office and warehouse facilities are located in Hollywood, Florida.[1]
As far as I’m aware, every long-term executive take prescriptions to deal with their stress, or resulting health issues from stress of working in the corporate office environment dealing with the Perlman’s.
From weight issues, alcohol and illegal drug dependence to legal prescription drug use, it is or at least was rampant and do not have any reason to think it has changed. Working in the corporate office of BrandsMart USA will effect your health.
“It doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and then tell them what to do; hire smart people so they can tell us what to do.”
Steve Jobs
The Perlmans’ just do not get that quote. Their work ethic of volatility within the executive staff is detrimental to the overall success of BrandsMart USA limiting the company to go to the next level.
Any new employee is the new expert in the company, no matter any previous accomplishments of an employee that has worked for them for years, unless being a family member or friend of the family.
BrandsMart USA is owned and managed by families putting their offspring in charge and employ inexperienced friends and family members, of those friend, with no managing or merchandising experience into Executive and Store Management, Merchant / Buyer and Sales Positions.
The company is full of nepotism and cronyism. Being privately held it is their prerogative to do so.
Very fortunate the matriarch has been hands-on manager and business person. As a result, he created a machine that leads the South Florida market share in many categories within the industry.
BrandsMart USA claims that all salaried employees must work a minimum of 45 hours per week, plus lunch, with no overtime compensation during the non-holiday work weeks of the year.
During the holiday work weeks the minimum is raised to 50 hours per week, plus lunch, with no overtime compensation and work six day weeks, Monday thru Saturday.
Although the Perlman’s will not say that every holiday the store is open, any salaried employee is required to work. Either Michael Perlman or Robert “Bob” Perlman will walk the corporate offices to see who is and who is not working the holiday and you will hear about it the next business day.
A few years ago during the Black Friday weekend, both Product Specialists and Salaried employees were working 18 hour days. During the last few years you can expect to work 12 hour days.
Depending on the department you work in, hours are different for salaried employees throughout the company. Accounting and MIS programming staff all have paid holidays off. If they did not offer these paid holidays they could not get anyone to fill the positions.
Merchant / Buyers are treated the worst. On top of the 45 hour non-holiday work week they are required to attend functions outside and after hours and required to work every other Saturday. Travel to functions that are all business 12 to 15 hour days, again with no additional compensation for overtime nor comp time.
The Kronos time clock all hourly and most salaried employees have to punch in and out with every work day automatically deducts a half-hour each day for lunch.
BrandsMart USA boasts a large number of brand names in electronics, entertainment, appliance, housewares and furniture products. It offers competitive priced Appliances, Computers, TVs, Car Stereos, Mobile Phones, Personal Care, Mattresses, Furniture and more.
BrandsMart USA also carries many in-house brands that they import directly from Chinese manufactures such as; Etec, Vidao and a number of others and buys products of companies going out of business or are out of business ie: LeEco.
[Shopping Hint] Return policies vary across the board. Just look at their “Return Policy” page on their website. The first line says: “If you’re not completely satisfied with your purchase, you can return most merchandise within the specified return period (usually 30 days) for an exchange or a full refund. (Restrictions apply. Click here for list of excluded items.)”
The “Click here” link opens their “Shopping Policies” page that does not list any “Excluded Items.” Reading the fine print on the receipt is highly recommended. Mattresses, furniture, camcorders and a number of categories have Zero, -0-, return days!
Each BrandsMart USA location stocks millions of dollars in merchandise. BrandsMart USA also sells products online, shipping orders placed throughout the United States. Good luck if there is an issue with your online order.
BrandsMart USA was one of the nation’s largest volume-per-store retailers.
With help from its competitive low-price strategy, BrandsMart USA has performed relatively well in the consumer electronics industry, which once included bankrupt rivals such as Circuit City, Tweeter, CompUSA, and others.
Major retailer hhgregg came into the region in 2011. hhgregg could not gain any market share nationally, in 2017 closed 88 stores[2], 11 of them in the BrandsMart USA competitive South Florida market.
A distinctive circular showroom design allows customers to view every item on display creating a stadium feeling. The lower level houses thousands of Small Appliances, Housewares and Vacuum Cleaners.
An enormous selection of electronics are found on the main level including a huge display of Televisions, Furniture and Mattresses.
The mezzanine level has displays Major Appliances. Washers, Dryers, Refrigerators, Ranges and more sectioned by category.
BrandsMart USA stores known for their brightly lit interiors and neon price tags, as well as noisy, busy atmospheres.
Using the warehouse docks as a pickup point for major purchases, creating a feeding frenzy as an attraction to passing traffic.
The presentation helps to keep price tags low and to move crowds of customers.
The retailer faces brick and mortar competition from Best Buy and Walmart.
The no-frills strategy[3] supposedly helps keep costs low. Strict return policies with the amount of time to return varies depending on product category. [Shopping Hint] A great number of categories have Zero, -0-, return days that is conveyed in the small print of massive declarations on every BrandsMart USA receipt.
[Shopping Hint] Feature Price Tags in the stores are designed to deceive. When an item has an associated manufacturer rebate the largest number on the Feature Price Tags is the after rebate price not the price you will pay when you go to the cashier.
However, it flies in the face of more conventional retail wisdom, as retailers like Target and Best Buy fine tune displays to entice consumers to spend more and are thriving in today’s competitive market.
The meltdown brought BrandsMart USA to its knees. Needing to scramble for financing with many banks and manufacturers cutting or revoking finance terms.
To allow the company to survive, an avenue that most companies use to liquidate their inventory when going out of business, utilizing an equity firm[4] that brought many constraints onto the company.
With the equity firm financing, constraints were put on Michael Perlman on his spending for his hobbies.
The Analog to Digital transition and the transition from Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) Televisions to Flat Panel Televisions also made significant impacts on BrandsMart USA.
Economically, resulting short term windfall in profits from the new technology, which with all electronics, eventually dropped due to improved manufacturing and scale of production. The need for large floor space, demonstrating large CRT Televisions and Rear Screen Televisions, needed to be reevaluated. As a result Mattresses and Furniture were two new categories brought in.
Up until 2013[5], now retired, Dick Wallace was the Chief Marketing Officer for BrandsMart USA and the driving force of the merchandise on the sales floor.
Resulting in BrandsMart USA’s success as a major retailer of electronics and appliances. Its growth from three-location $360M volume, to the billion dollar company, with eleven locations at its height, can be attributed to him.
Since then, the company floats on its laurels by copying others instead of leading. Have a suggestion, how does Best Buy do it?
Corporate Address:
3200 SW 42nd Street
Hollywood, FL 33312
Corporate Phone Number:
954-797-4000
Toll Free:
800-432-8579
[1] Sun-Sentinel – Firestorm Short-circuits Brandsmart’s Incentives – August 30, 1998[2] Sun-Sentinel – Electronics Retailer hhgregg to Shutter All 11 South Florida Stores – March 3, 2017[3] The Atlanta Journal-Constitution – BrandsMart Finds Success with No-Frills Strategy – Aug 24, 2009[4] Gordon Bothers Credit Partners Agents $30 Million Senior Secured Term Loan to BrandsMart U.S.A.[5] Twice – Wallace Leaving BrandsMart – March 13, 2013
Once, if a business, business owner did something an employee or member of the public didn’t like or disagreed with, they had little recourse besides protesting in person or to their local Better Business Bureau. Now, with the avenue of the Internet, the average person can easily voice their concerns and open a dialog to come to a compromise and/or lead to a resolution. If that opportunity by the business or business owner neglects to respond, it is up to any of those individuals to voice their response.
The most basic component of freedom of expression is the right of freedom of speech. The Supreme Court requires substantial justification for the interference with the right of free speech where it attempts to regulate the content of the speech. Generally, a person cannot be held liable, either criminally or civilly for anything written or spoken about a person or topic, so long as it is truthful or based on an honest opinion, and such statements.
