Trophies Trophy News

Trophy business booming; store moves to new location

March 28, 2010 2:00 AM

For a trophy store, the doldrums are in January — midway in the academic year, between sports seasons, when corporate sales gods, basking in the Bahamas, are in no rush to receive their Lucite stars.

This January, Taylor Durmer of Crown Trophy took advantage of the downtime to move the franchise store to a new space on Mirona Road in Portsmouth.

“The new shop gives us three times the space to build and display trophies,” said Durmer, who joined Crown after graduating from the University of New Hampshire and who co-owns the store with Bob Montville.

With a territory that runs east from Raymond and includes all of Maine, and an esteem-centric society that seeks to leave no student or sports participant un-lauded, Durmer sees great potential for Crown in Portsmouth.

“Organizations today usually want to award as many trophies as they can,” Durmer said. “Many like to give medals or other awards to all participants.”

The franchise model is especially effective for meeting this growing demand, Durmer said.

“One of the benefits of being part of a franchise is they’re always coming out with new stuff,” he said. “People purchasing awards always want to know what’s new and Crown is always coming up with new and exclusive lines.”

The days of a trophy being a metal figure mounted on marble are long gone, Durmer said. Trophies today are usually plastic-based, but are often bolder, featuring more color, interactivity, and moving parts, such as acrylic stars or bobble-heads.

A basketball trophy, for example, might feature a plastic ball that spins in place.

“That’s awesome for kids, who like to play with their awards,” Durmer said.

Sports, with predictable seasons and high turnover (both participant and volunteer) are still the trophy business base.

Portsmouth Little League, for example, might award trophies to the first- and second-place teams in each age division; new organizations, such as the Oyster River Youth Association, might present awards to honor teams’ inaugural seasons; some martial arts tournaments draw more outsized trophies than competitors.

“Organizers like to be better safe than sorry,” Durmer said.

Beyond sports, Durmer stresses the Crown tag line: “Much more than a trophy store,” working with a wide range of organizations. In any one week, Durmer might be creating “No Smoking” signs for a nonprofit, tip cards for corporate training events, trophies for the Seacoast Art Association or the American Legion, or 3,000 custom ribbons for the USS New Hampshire. It even provides credit for used trophies.

Crown is also known for its custom work, which might include everything from personalizing plaques with corporate logos to converting beer cans into coveted softball league trophies.

The Crown catalogue has keepsakes for all occasions, even a trophy depicting a golfer on his knees trying to blow the ball into the hole — ideal for the duffer of any office tournament.

Despite ongoing demand for awards, Durmer says marketing, at a level sophisticated for the industry, is the key to growth.

The Portsmouth store has an extensive online database and automates processes such as catalogue distribution and communication, including reminder e-mails, with current and past customers.

The main work, building trophies, engraving plaques, or special ordering crystal or acrylic components, varies in intensity throughout the year, with frenzied weeks in late spring and early fall.

“In June, all area schools present academic awards but don’t know most of the recipients until the end,” Durmer said. “So we’ll make 1,000 awards over two weeks.”

The fall marks a new academic year and the start of many sports seasons. Consistent for Durmer, however, is how the nature of recognition makes for a pleasant job.

“I enjoying working here,” he said. “Everyone who walks in is in a good mood because they’re doing something nice — and are usually rewarding someone for doing something special.”

At a glance:

Crown Trophy

Owners: Taylor Durmer and Bob Montville

Address: 131 Mirona Road, Lafayette Crossing

Phone: 431-5552

E-mail: bobm@crowntrophy128.com

Web: www.crowntrophy.com