The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.
(Questions from industry analysts are provided in full, but answers are omitted - download the transcript to see the full question-and-answer session)
Question: Jason Daniel Haas - BofA Merrill Lynch, Research Division - Analyst
: Can you talk more about the changes you're making in your digital marketing strategy? I know that your prices are, on average, much lower than
your competition, but it seems like promotions have increasingly been an issue, specifically around the holidays. So I wonder maybe you're not
getting credit for the value that you're offering consumers and if the genesis of changing the digital marketing strategy you're pushing more into
digital is to improve that.
Question: Jason Daniel Haas - BofA Merrill Lynch, Research Division - Analyst
: Yes. I guess I'm just trying to kind of match up 2 different things. One is that, in the past, I think we've heard less about promotions. I know like in
4Q last year, it was an issue with the toys. And now again, we're hearing about promotions from competitors being a potential issue. So -- and then
you're also changing up your marketing strategy. So I'm curious if -- and I know that your prices are lower than your competitors because we've
done the pricing checks. So I'm curious if it's maybe a messaging thing that -- yes, that you're just not getting the message out there that your deals
are lower and if there -- maybe it needs to be more digital rather than just the flyers, but I'm curious of your thoughts around that.
Question: Brian Christopher McNamara - Joh. Berenberg, Gossler & Co. KG, Research Division - Analyst
: First off, I was just -- I was really impressed with you guys with your Q2 results kind of saying you expected a slowdown in the back half. I'm curious
where that slowdown landed relative to your expectations. It seemed like September and August were very good and even October was pretty
good, even though you had some self-inflicted issues there. And then obviously, you had a big slowdown in November. But even the November
is kind of where you guys have been historically. So I'm just curious relative to your internal expectations, kind of how the year has shaped up, at
least since your last report.
Question: Brian Christopher McNamara - Joh. Berenberg, Gossler & Co. KG, Research Division - Analyst
: I just had a quick follow-up. This was kind of asked before, but I want to dig a little deeper on it. In terms of the kind of building out the merchant
team, it seems like your merchant team is kind of second to none, in my opinion, in the space. And -- but it seems like it's kind of small relative --
at least the senior merchants. And you had mentioned kind of maybe hiring the minor leaguers to put them up into the big leagues. I'm just curious,
how much thought has been put towards kind of really growing that senior merchant team just as you build the business for the long term.
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