Showcase (retailer)

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Showcase is a Canadian retail company specializing in “As Seen on TV” products typically sold on television infomercials. There are 74 locations in major malls across Canada as well as a e-commerce portal that sells to U.S. and Canadian consumers.^[1] According to their website, Showcase is the world’s largest as-seen-on-TV retailer.

History

The first Showcase store was opened in 1994 in the Meadowlark Centre in Edmonton, Alberta, originally under the name “As Seen on TV Showcase”. In 2000, the company aggressively expanded at an average of five openings per year.^[2] At this time, the company was primarily franchise-based, and modeled primarily as an “As Seen on TV” outlet store. The Edmonton Journal covered the grand openings of subsequent stores in the Edmonton area as the chain grew.^[3]

Starting in 2003, the company redesigned stores and began to launch proprietary product lines such as Dream Away, Quantum, and Kyoto and expanded beyond “As Seen on TV” boundaries, and officially changed its name to “Showcase”.^[4]

Media and reaction

Showcase has been covered in the media usually during the Christmas holiday season as a place to find unique gifts or to find out in person whether or not infomercial products “really work”. This interest has been generated because these products are not typically available for customers to try until they have been purchased, usually from the U.S., while in store customers are able to test the products for themselves or receive a demonstration. Showcase has been featured on:

- Breakfast Television on December 24, 2010 ^[5] - A-Channel Victoria on December 16, 2010 ^[6] - Global Television on Dec 2, 2008 ^[7] - Breakfast Television on Nov 25, 2008 ^[8] - CityNews on Dec 24, 2007 ^[9] - Breakfast Television on Dec 17, 2007 ^[10] - Global Morning Show on Dec 14, 2007 ^[11] - Global News on Dec 6, 2007 ^[12] - Toronto Star on Jan 7, 2006 ^[13]

Aside from demonstrations, Showcase also hosts in-store events at select locations from time to time. For example, in 2007 the company began to carry a line of pillows from the “Pillow Fight Federation” that were specifically designed to fight with, and then hosted pillow fighting in-store.^[14]

Criticism of As Seen on TV products

There is a considerable amount of interest in the market about how genuine the claims made by infomercial products are. There are numerous websites that review and rate “As Seen on TV” products that are carried in Showcase stores. Reviews are often mixed, sometimes because companies do not directly service or warranty their products, customers are not properly instructed on the correct use and expectations for the products, or customers experience poor service over the telephone.

Showcase products were recently tested by CTV News ^[15] The Perfect Paw rated average, the Save a Blade rated positive, and the Shamwow rated positive. As is typical in media testing of as-seen-on-TV products, the results showed both positive and negative aspects of each product.

Proprietary brands

Showcase owns various proprietary brands that sell in-store and online including Dream Away, Cloud9, Quantum, and Kyoto. Dream Away includes products made of memory foam such as pillows and mattress covers.,^[16] Cloud9 is super-soft comfort wear,^[17] Quantum deals with high tech health products,^[18] and Kyoto focuses on environmental or “green-friendly” products.^[19]

Canadian trademarks

Although the ubiquitous red “as seen on TV” logo can be used by anyone, the tradename Showcase, As Seen on TV Showcase, TV Showcase, “The Best of As Seen on TV and more!” and its variants are protected by Canadian trademark law. Showcase has applied for, and in most cases been granted, trademark registration for its various tradenames and proprietary brands with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office.^[20] These include:

Showcase The Best of As Seen on TV and more ^[21]

The best of as-seen-on-TV and more! ^[22]

TV Showcase Products and Demonstration Stores ^[23]

As Seen on TV Showcase ^[24]

The Best of As Seen on TV and more! ^[25]

As Seen on TV Showcase and Products and Demonstration Stores ^[26]

Cloud 9 by Dream Away (design) ^[27]

Cloud 9 by Dream Away (words) ^[28]

Kyoto Environmental ^[29]

Dream Away (design) ^[30]

Dream Away (words) ^[31]

Kyoto Environmental ^[32]

Why dream when you can Dream Away? ^[33]

You Saw It on TV ^[34]

Don’t Just Dream … Dream Away! ^[35]

Eco Savvy ^[36]

Quantum (design) ^[37]

Quantum (words) ^[38]

American trademarks

Showcase has also registered, or applied for, various trademarks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office,^[39] as follows:

Showcase ^[40]

Showcase The Best of As Seen on TV and more! ^[41]

The Best of As Seen on TV and more! ^[42]

Kyoto Environmental ^[43]

Cloud 9 by Dream Away ^[44]

Kyoto Environmental Eco Savvy ^[45]

Quantum ^[46]

External links

References

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