Let Change Be Your Goal For 2012

The holidays aren’t over, and many folks haven’t even started with their shopping lists. But as retailers, wholesalers and other small business owners, our minds need to already be on 2012.

January will sneak up on us fast, and with a new year comes time to reflect the past and look forward to what’s ahead. This typically comes down to one thing… change.

What happened in 2011 that you absolutely do not want to change for your business?

What happened in 2011 that you absolutely do want to change for your business?

What changes do you know you need, yet have no idea how to accomplish?

What changes do you know you need, yet have yet to start planning for them to be done?

Whatever changes lie in front of you, it’s time to start executing them. Possibly this means clearing out inventory you plan to eliminate from your assortment. Maybe this means introducing a business partner to your team. Or possibly this means closing your doors… or maybe opening a second, third or even tenth location!

With January sneaking up on us, start to reflect on the changes you want and how you can meet them. This may bring you tears… or a rush of happiness… or a pit in your stomach… or excitement in your heart. Whether good or bad, change can be a good thing.

In addition to what you know you want to change, it never hurts to evaluate everything else on your “to-do” list. The start of a new year is a great time to reflect on store policies, management procedures, associate training techniques, inventory assortment, merchandising habits, customer interaction and more. Start 2012 off right by getting a jump start on your game plan now. After all, you aren’t busy enough already… right?

We’re diving into change too! Retail Minded Magazine debuts in 2012, offering expert advice, education, support and more for retailers & wholesalers! Want to learn more? Check us out at www.retailminded.com/magazine

Keeping Old Inventory Fresh: Merchandising Showroom Displays

Seasons come and go, but inventory often stays the same. Keeping your showroom displays fresh and inviting can be challenging, particularly with older product, but it’s vital that you maintain this as a priority in an effort to keep your customers’ attention. Whether you are working with year-round product or are trying to sell something that just hasn’t moved, your goal should be to entice your audience with new ways to look at old things.

Create Excitement Through New Displays

Have you ever been to a store that you know exactly where to find your item?  Grocery stores to apparel retailers to discount supercenters thrive in having certain products always in the same place. Their customers know exactly where to get what they need. For showrooms, however, this is not the case. When retailers are placing orders, often they have no idea what they need. It’s your job as a showroom to create an atmosphere that makes them want to learn more about all that you sell, not just some of what you sell or what they may have come specifically to your showroom for. Keeping your showroom fresh with interesting displays will encourage your customers to take the time to learn about all that you offer. A great display shouldn’t last forever, though. Prior to each new trade show or even more routinely, it should be on your to-do list to create new displays that will encourage new shopping direction. Often what wasn’t seen on a previous visit by a customer can be re-introduced through a new display on their next visit. Taking the time to re-invent your showroom floor with engaging displays will communicate to your customers that you have new things to offer, even if you know your “new” things are actually old things. Make sure to keep this up after each show or depending on your showroom traffic, more frequently. The idea is to constantly re-invent your space so that customers believe you are offering new things to them each time they visit. The savviest of customers may catch onto your merchandising strategy, but allowing them to see old product in a new light often is the push they need for you to make an additional sale.

Showcase Products In Unexpected Ways

It’s easy to merchandise product with what it is expected to be merchandised with, but taking the time to create displays with unexpected merchandising strategies often leads to new customer interest. Using products that aren’t for sale but help showcase what is for sale is a great way to highlight product that you want to move. In addition, displaying product in untraditional ways that scream for attention is an effective way of catching your customer’s eyes. Your goal should be to create conversation through your unique displays that will lead to the opportunity for sales. Getting your customers to talk about product they wouldn’t typically be drawn to is a great way to get orders written. Use the opportunity of surprise in your displays to help capture these conversations and ultimately, sales.

While displays may be great in opening up the opportunity for conversation, the product within that specific display may not always be what your customer will want. If this is the case, help direct your customer to what it is they are looking for by leaning on your display as your conversation opener. Sometimes getting your customers to talk can be a challenge in itself, so having something that captivates their attention and opens them up for conversation can serve as your chance to get inside their heads. With your guidance, let the conversation lead to what it is they are looking for or how it is you may be able to help them. Encourage them to view other products, tour your showroom and learn from you regarding what it is you have for sale. The display may not get that specific product within it sold to each new customer, but it can still serve as a selling tool to help with other sales.

Combine The Old And The New

Don’t let old inventory get stale with the excitement of new inventory taking over your showroom. Intertwining the old and the new can be effective in selling both. Cross merchandising these products will definitely help with sales. Old pillows? New couch? Combine the two! Using your showroom space as a floor plan that blends both old product and new product rather than separating them will keep your customers engaged in all of your merchandise – not just what recently arrived into your showroom. While it may be enticing to have a sale area, avoid putting products into this space unless absolutely necessary – if at all. Instead, concentrate on combining your product so that it seamlessly blends together within your showroom. If you do this effectively, you may just fool yourself into seeing old product in a new light as well.

In addition to merchandising, offering an incentive for a combined purchase of the old and new can be very effective in moving older goods. For example, you can offer regular price on all the newest pieces for sale, but promote a discount for older product with the purchase of something “just arrived”. Make sure to keep the value – in price, quality and style – of each product just as exciting, though. You don’t want them to think just because something is old to you means it will be old to their customers, too. Use signage that compliments your merchandising strategies as a way to communicate this exciting offer. A clean, professional sign in a frame on an end table is a polished way of sharing this incentive. It also helps to directly communicate this valuable promotion to your clients as they are planning their store buys.

Keep Timeframes To Yourself

When you walk through your own home, you instinctively are aware of how your home came together over time with the addition of new furniture, photos, collectibles and more. Similar to your home, your showroom evolves at a pace only you and those working in the showroom often are truly aware of. Let the arrival times of your product be your secret and rather than announce what’s new or just arrived, let your product speak for itself. By combining some of the previously mentioned strategies and eliminating the need to communicate the age of your inventory, you don’t have to worry about your products being viewed as “stale” or even the need for them to be “on sale”. With your help, the product within your showroom should sell itself for what it is – not for how long you have had it. Lean on this as a selling tool and encourage your customers to think the same should timeframe come up in conversation. Looking at this from a new perspective allows both you and your customers to engage in new shopping and selling strategies that will hopefully help in your inventory sell through, as well.

Each showroom and each assortment of product will be different. Determining how to move all your inventory – old and new – within each individual showroom should be based on your individual goals, clients and more. Introducing a variety of strategies may be effective in supporting your business needs, however leaning on one versus another may work best, too. There is no sure proof way of how to get rid of excess, old inventory, but recognizing that it exists and needs to be moved in new ways is a great first step. Consider which strategies are best for your business and execute a plan to help get things moving rather than sitting still. If you find out that some product simply isn’t selling despite all merchandising and selling efforts, offer a warehouse sale to help push this product out of your showroom while also allowing for you to open up showroom space and spending dollars. This should be among your last efforts since your return on your investment will not be as profitable, but sitting on too much inventory isn’t profitable, either.

Finally, in an effort to keep old inventory moving, make sure to determine what old means to your business. Does one season or two seasons in stock equal old?  Maybe more, maybe less. Whatever old is to your showroom, keep up with your inventory so you can respond accordingly to necessary merchandising and selling strategies to get things moving and sold. After all, that’s the goal – right?

 

Inventory Management Tips for Independent Retailers

The importance of properly managing your retail store’s inventory cannot be overemphasized. You need to know what’s moving, what’s not moving and how much of everything that you have in order to maintain a healthy bottom line. Losing track of your inventory is a recipe for disaster. If a customer can’t find what they’re looking for because it is not in stock, you can’t expect them to sit around waiting for it. More than likely, they are going to look elsewhere. With that in mind, it is critical to put good inventory management tips to use each and every day. You can learn a few of the very best pointers below.

Set an Inventory Schedule and Stick to It

Without scheduling specific days and times to count your inventory, it is all too easy to keep putting it off. There is no such thing as counting your inventory too frequently; counting it too infrequently is where the trouble starts. The best way to ensure that your store’s inventory is counted regularly is by setting a schedule. Once you have created a schedule, share it with all of your employees so that everyone is on the same page. By having as many hands on deck during inventory as possible, you will be able to get through it quickly and painlessly. Compared with putting pen to paper – which used to be the only option – modern inventory counting is quite a lot easier. Which leads me too my next point…

Use Cutting-Edge Tools to Make Inventory Counting Easier

There are many amazing new tools that simplify the process of counting a store’s inventory. The best part is that many of them are basically free. If you have an iPhone or iPod touch at your disposal, for instance, you can download a free app that allows you to sync your store’s inventory with the information that’s in your POS system. The app is called Retail Inventory, an app developed by my company Cashier Live. We use the camera to scan barcodes, which then looks the item up in your inventory and tells you how many should be in stock. You can verify or change the quantity, price, and cost, all of which is stored on the app and can then be synced with your POS system. This is a simple, streamlined way to ensure that everything is adding up like it should be. Learn more about our iPhone inventory app on Cashier Live’s website.

Make Effective Use of Reports

The data that is culled from your official inventories can be used to refresh and populate reports from your POS register. While you can run reports at any time, its important to do periodic inventory counts to make sure your data is accurate. Even the most careful employees in the world make mistakes from time to time, which is why it’s so crucial to count your inventory fairly regularly.

The reports that are generated can be used in a countless number of ways. You can analyze the data to determine which items are hot sellers – and which ones are collecting dust. You can get a feel for the typical turnaround rates for the items on your shelves, which will make it easier to stock up on them in an efficient way. Things change over time. What’s hot today might be a dud tomorrow. The only way to notice such changes quickly and strategically is by running reports as often as possible.

Receive New Inventory with Care

You should never blindly trust the packing list that comes along with an inventory shipment. Just because the sheet indicates that a certain number of items are there doesn’t mean that they actually are. The people who pack these orders are human; they often make mistakes. Or maybe your supplier ran out of a particular item and now it’s back-ordered. You’ll surely run into shorted items on occasion. In some cases, you might even receive extras. In either case, it is important to conduct a mini-inventory on every shipment that you receive. If you can’t get the numbers straight right off the bat, what hope is there of maintaining accurate information about what you have on hand?

The preceding advice merely touches on the tip of the iceberg when it comes to inventory management. It definitely pays to study up on the topic in order to keep things under control in your store. Items that sit on the shelves for too long are tying up precious space and money; those that can’t be kept on the shelves could prompt otherwise loyal customers to go elsewhere. With all of that in mind, make inventory management a top priority. Over time, it will pay off in the form of increased sales and a healthier bottom line.

Article contributed by Tom Greenhaw from Cashier Live. After working with a wide variety of independent retailers, Tom realized that their needs weren’t being met by traditional point-of-sale packages available. He conceived Cashier Live as the next step in retail software, and today thousands of retailers rely on it to manage their store’s. You can learn more about it at http://www.cashierlive.com or follow them @CashierLive.

Understanding The Retail 4-5-4 Calendar

Many retailers follow a calendar known as a 4-5-4 calendar. This calendar, originally introduced in the 1930′s and began to be used commonly in the 1940′s, is beneficial for many reasons. Among the most important is that it provides a more consistent month flow versus the standard calendar, where weekends and days of each month will vary each year. The 4-5-4 calendar, however, provides the same number of weekends for comparable months, therefore allowing a more accurate report of sales. Because weekends tend to be heavier in sales for retailers than weekdays, making sure there is some routine to the annual reporting of sales – including what day of the week the sale is made – is extremely important.

The calendar known as 4-5-4 divides the year into months of 4 weeks, then 5 weeks, then 4 weeks and so forth. Beginning on Sundays and ending on Saturdays, it also ensures holidays are lined up and like days, such as a particular Wednesday, are lined up so that sales reporting can be done accurately.

As effective and beneficial as this calendar is, there is one problem that it brings to the table. It only covers 364 days. The extra one day that isn’t covered on the calendar is easily managed, though, by proper bookkeeping completed by each unique retailer. During Leap Year, though, retailers may opt to add another week to the calendar – though some retailers ignore this altogether. When a 53rd week is added, you simply push your weeks back by one to compare to the previous year. Essentially this would mean you would ignore the first week of the year. It also gives retailers and vendors a great reason to get excited – more time to meet annual sales goals!

In addition to allowing sales to be reported more accurately, there are two more valuable reasons to use the 4-5-4 calendar. The first is payroll. This calendar can help guide you in your payroll decisions and help manage your accounting. The second additional reason is inventory control. With a balanced calendar, taking inventory and tracking inventory can be done more accurately when completed routinely.  

While it’s common for large, corporate stores to use this calendar, not all independent retailers have introduced this to their stores. Most retail software systems have this calendar integrated into their systems, however some small business owners still track sales the old fashioned way (pen and paper or their own excel spreadsheet). Certainly there is not a right way to do this – only you can determine that for your store – but there are easier ways to manage your business. This calendar is definitely one of them. A great tool for retailers, if you aren’t following the 4-5-4 calendar already, you should consider how it may be helpful for you.

Introducing New Products To Your Assortment

There are so many perks to being an independent retailer, including that you can pick and choose the products for your store. Adding on to this already great perk is the opportunity for you to introduce new products without a big boss telling you “no”. Whether it’s a handbag line from a no-name designer with a funky edge or a popular brand that is sold in a million other retailers, if it’s new to your store then it is new to your customers from your perspective. That’s the catch, though – the pitch of the product must be originally delivered to your consumers so that they are as excited as you about the product you are introducing to your store.

When introducing a new product or collection, take the time to think about how you can let your customers know about this. It’s one thing if you have a new shipment of sweaters, but it’s another thing if you have a new shipment of sweaters from a line you have never carried before. Send out an email to your subscriber list with an incentive attached for your customers to want to come in and check the new products out. Possibly you offer a percentage off all purchases of the new product or throw in a gift with each purchase made. If this special something you are introducing is really a big deal, let your customers know this with a more grand celebration. Host a party, have a fashion show – make it fun and make it worth your customer’s time. Let the local press know what you are up to, as well, with a press release announcing your newest  additions and reminding the media of your great store at the same time. But don’t wait till the product arrives to get the buzz going. Tell your customers what they have to look forward to while they are checking out at the cash wrap. Include a flyer or postcard at check-out or through good old fashioned snail mail about these upcoming additions. Add signage to your store highlighting these exciting new additions and if possible, create even more of a buzz by creating a “wait list” if the product is worthy of one. Your excitement leading up to the arrival of the product plays a big part in the excitement your customers will have, too – so make it worth your time and theirs!

Finally, be realistic. If the buzz is only in your eyes and no one else seems to be responding to it, take it as a hint. Let the sales or lack of them be your final judge but don’t beat yourself up over introducing something new that may not work. It’s all part of the retail model and over time, you will know your customers well enough to know what they want and what you should buy for them. Even seasoned retailers with dedicated customers have misses in their purchasing decisions – not just you. But the best part of the retail business is that you get to do it again and again and again each buy season – so enjoy and remember to keep the buzz alive to help get the products moving!

Should You Eliminate A Product Category?

So many stores, so much stuff. In light of our recession, retailers are trying to find ways to survive the reality of their retail sales – or lack of them. Inventory is being analyzed, sales and promotions are running wild and orders are being slashed for new goods. Finding balance in it all can be overwhelming – but important. One thought to consider is if you can simply begin to fade out and then ultimately eliminate one product category in your store.

If you are a shoe store selling handbags and jewelry to help enhance your shoe sales, maybe eliminating handbags is something to consider. This should, of course, be considered only after determining handbag sales are down. The goal should be to eliminate one or maybe a few categories that are not performing as well that in return will allow you to focus all your energy and financial availability towards the categories that are selling better. Dollars will open up and customer focus will be strengthened. In addition, the products that are moving will be highlighted more since there will be less product assortment for customers to consider. Take the opportunity to really analyze your current assortment of inventory and decide what is selling best and what isn’t selling at all. And ask yourself – are customers coming to your store for “this particular item / category” or do you have it in your store to help enhance other products? If customers aren’t coming to your store for it and it isn’t selling, maybe it’s time to reconsider why you have it in your product assortment at all.

Another thought is to eliminate a few brands without taking away total categories. This should be considered if you believe the category you are offering is vital to your overall store success.

Finally, be realistic with yourself. As boutique owners and small business buyers, we often tend to let our personal emotions get in the way of our professional decisions. Try and be netrual here to make the best decision right for your business.

Drop Shipping – Is It Right For You?

As small business retailers and wholesalers, you know just how valuable every dollar is to your business. Because of this, as well as our struggling economy, I encourage you to consider dropshipping if you have not already.

Dropshipping can be defined and understood in a variety of ways depending on who you are talking to. But for boutique store owners and small business wholesalers, dropshipping generally refers to when orders are shipped only once placed by a customer at a retail store and can be sent as single unit or more depending on the customer’s order. For example – if you are a children’s store owner and sell crib mattresses, you would only order a mattress from your wholesaler once a customer has ordered one from you. The customer would be informed about the delivery time schedule and typically would pay upfront or at least 50% when the order is placed. This gives you, as the retailer, the opportunity to then place the order with funds to cover your purchase while also giving the wholesaler the opportunity to make a new sale.

As a wholesaler, we understand that you may prefer to write larger orders at once, such as selling six mattresses instead of one at a time, but to consider dropshipping may add benefits to your business that you would not have otherwise.

Advantages For Wholesalers Who Dropship

Dropshipping introduces a whole new business to wholesalers once they establish it and get it in place. A few advantages include:

1. New retailers are more likely agree to your dropshipping terms and then sell your prodcut as a result of dropshipping. Particuarly in this economy, retailers are cutting back on larger orders and looking for products that bring value to their store but that they can also afford. This allows for you to get in to retailers you may not otherwise.

2. Higher priced and larger scaled items are great products to consider for dropshipping. Retailers have to consider not only in dollars, but their space. When you give them a reason to bring your product  into their assortment without an initial, big investment, it’s a win-win (assuming your product sells, of course). In addition, if you offer a larger product, such as a headboard, it allows your retailers to still carry you without holding onto large inventory in their often small spaces.

3. You can typically charge more for shipping and other expenses with dropship items. Because you aren’t processing a larger order at once, need to mail each individual item seperately and have to deal with all the other logistics of an order for one single purchase, your processing and shipping fee can be a bit higher. Don’t be too extreme here, though. Cover your actual costs and maybe cushion yourself a little for your extra time.

4. Retailers may buy your product in larger quanities over time if they see the value it brings to their store. Start with dropshipping and give them an incentive if they purchase more than one product at once. 10% of second item, 15% off all others. Or possibly six or more items include free shipping. Your call. Or just dropship and call it a day. Whatever makes you happy. But as a general rule, dropshipping costs more on average than if bought in larger orders. AKA – you make more!

5. Customized items are great for dropshipping since you can only get one at once. This just makes sense – period.

Setting Up Your Dropship Terms

Make sure that when you set up a dropshipping program with your business, you have very clear, detailed terms written out that any retailer you sell to understands and signs an agreement to. Terms should include the following:

1. Retailer pays for their own in store sample unless you feel otherwise. This is a fair scenario since they will likely use or sell their store sample at one point anyway. If you have marketing collateral to support your product, you should provide this without any charge. For example, if you offer customized products, include a little Look Book with choices for customers to review.

2. Retailer provides credit card number for all orders to be processed through upon placement. This should be in your files and approved for credit prior to retail agreement.

3. Retailer pays for shipping per order unless determined otherwise. Typically, the retailer will bill this to their customer anyway. Another idea is to have the product shipped directly to the customer.

4. Deilvery timeline is discussed and understood prior to retail agreement being signed. This gives you security in delivering your products according to your production timeline. Be realistic here – 6 weeks is a long time for most items, but practical for some. Determine what is best for you.

5. Make sure all these details are written out in an agreement that is signed by your retailer. Give them a copy with your contact information and necessary order form details as well as retain a copy for yourself. Note – having an organized ordering system in place with your agreement will make the entire transaction easier to manage. Include details on tax, shipping, cancelled orders, returned products, right to modify agreement and more.

A List Of Some Dropship Wholesalers

Retailers, this is for you! Below are some wholesalers who offer dropshipping. Wholesalers who still aren’t on board yet with the idea? Check out your competition (in no particular order)!

Victoria P. Zurcher Designs - Stationery and Gifts – www.victoriapzurcher.com

Just Be Products – T-Shirts and More - www.jb-justbe.com

Artist Jeff Cane - Angel Artifacts in Prints, Candles, Charger Plates and More – www.AnEnglighManInLA.com

Coco Company – High End Baskets and Decorative Accessories – www.coco-company.com

Vintage Body Spa – Bath and Body Products – www.vintagebodyspa.com

PurBliss Candles – Soy Candles and Wedding Favors - www.Purbliss.com

Kt Steppers – Customized Step Stools – www.ktsteppers.com

Vogue Fabrics – Fabric Home, Crafts and More – www.VogueFabricsStore.com

Yeni Bath Arpons – Bath Aprons For Babies And Dogs – www.yenithing.com

Barcelona Bath and Body – Bath and Body Products – www.barcelonabathandbody.com

Three Peas - Children’s Fashion Apparel and Accessories – www.threepeasco.com

BowWowzerZ – Dog Collars, Leashes, Cat Accessories and More – http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5297476

Re-Inventing Old Inventory

If  you are like most retailers, you are probably sitting on some inventory that has been around longer than you would like. You know this too well and most likely, your customers know this too. So how can you bring old merchandise new life? Here are a few tips to help you re-invent some products so that it has a new meaning to your overall product assortment.

1. Create gift baskets. Of course, this will only make sense if your store would be able to sell gift baskets. Consider grouping some products together and selling them in a package for one price. Retailers that are best suited for this type of selling include baby stores, gift shops, bath and body shops, accessory stores and general merchandise stores.

2. Re-arrange your floor plan to give the appearance of new products. Sometimes all it takes is moving your floor fixtures around and merchandising your products differently for your customers to think there are some great new products in your store. Time and time again I hear clients tell me they have customers buying things that have been on their shelves for months but because they re-arranged their store, the customer is now seeing this product for the first time. See how this may work for you.

3. Make a trade with another retailer. Have some retailer friends in another city? Reach out to see if other retailers would be interested in trading what isn’t working for you but may work for them for something that they would like to see go from their store, as well. Be creative with how you make this happen. Many retailers find great partners in retail friends through doing this, but it is usually best suited for retailers outside of your own community. If you don’t have retail friends like this, try and make some at your next trade show. They are great for a variety of reasons! And stay tuned – Retail Minded will be introducing a way for retailers to connect very soon!

4. Make your products an incentive with other purchase. In other words, have a table/rounder/bin of products you are looking to finally get out the door that are available at a discount with any purchase. Make the discount worth their wild, though. 50%, 60%, 75% off…. price to sell here! Sure, you may come out even or at a small loss – but the alternative is excess inventory sitting in your store and making no money at all on it… plus suggesting to customers that your product isn’t selling. No one likes to shop at stores that has a slow turnover of inventory (with some exceptions).

5. Merchandise your products in a new light with other products. Have a shirt that just isn’t selling? Layer it under this season’s hottest vests and see what it does for it. Think of new ways to sell old product through merchandising them with other products rather than highlighting them on their own.

6. When all else fails, ebay it. Craigslist, ebay and other online sites can give relief to retailers. Consider how this avenue may be right for you.

At the end of the day, the goal is to get your inventory out your door. If you are holding onto Fall 08′s products or older, you really need to figure out a way to sell them now. Start talking with retailers about a trade that will be ready and done for Fall 09. Re-invent your floor space through merchandising. Create package deals to sell old goods. Whatever you do, make it happen. Yes, easier said than done – but not impossible. Have ideas yourself? Let us know!

Retail Real Estate – Do You Know What Yours Is?

Have you ever wondered what the specific value of space is in your store? A good way to equate value to your retail floor space is to access the best parts of your retail floor plan and determine the worst spots, as well. In doing this, you will be able to understand your retail real estate.

What Make a Hot Spot in Retail Real Estate

Is there a spot on your floor that everyone seems to notice first, no matter what is being merchandised? Traditionally, this spot usually includes store front window displays, aisle displays, and the merchandising space by the check out counter. In addition, wall space can often provide valuable retail real estate since it lifts the eyes of the consumer and draws attention if merchandised well. Locate the best real estate spots in your store and begin to take inventory of the product featured in these spots and their sell-thru. Then, as time progresses, start to utilize these spots to turn inventory over through the use of retail real estate. Are you looking to highlight new product? Use your real estate hot spots to do this. Need to get rid of some access inventory? Again, use your real estate hot spots to help you move your product. Make sure you acknowledge the change in your retail real estate as your product and season changes, therefore adjusting your floor plan, as well. When you move fixtures, your retail real estate may adjust, also.

What Makes a Weak Spot in Retail Real Estate

Have you ever noticed a spot in your store that no matter what you merchandise there, it just doesn’t seem to sell or even get noticed? This is a retail real estate weak spot. Nearly every store has them and yet many stores don’t know how to use them. The reality is that you probably need this space for your products, so good or bad, you have to use it. A few ideas to help make the best use of this real estate is to showcase product here that are double exposed somewhere else, which is a common practice for retailers to do (show your product in more than one spot to ensure visibility). Another idea is to put something here that customers know they want, such as stocked items including t-shirts or socks. In other words, offer something in this weak spot that customers come to your store for and will find no matter where it is placed. Finally, you could always use this space to feature your sale items. Everyone likes a sale nowadays, so put your weak real estate to good use by showcasing your great markdowns and must haves at discounted prices!

By understanding how your retail floor space works for you, you can then use this to your advantage when merchandising your store. Make sure you know your retail real estate to make sure that it is working for you!

Buying When You Already Have Too Much Inventory

Many small business owners are inspired to own their business because they want to surround themselves with their passion, hobby, or interests. While this can prove successful for some, it can also prove challenging for others when it comes to retail. For most people, buying for your store is not as easy or as fun as shopping for yourself.  In fact, it can be down right difficult, frustrating, and scary. Suddenly, a big “for sale” sign isn’t as exciting as it use to be for you since the possibility of what you buy for your store may end up on a sale rack if it does not sell well.  Because it’s your sale and your money, this can bring added stress to the already endless list of stress that the world of retail has.  However, that said, sales are part of the package when you sign up to work in retail, however there are ways to help limit how much of your inventory ends up on the sales racks.

To help control inventory, particularly in an economy when shoppers aren’t separating themselves from their wallets as easily as before, retailers should take a complete analysis of the current inventory assortment based on the points below. Consider how these points will help you with your current inventory sell through so that when you make future buy decisions, you will find your inventory balanced more evenly and your register filling up more quickly.

Product Sell-through vs. Square Footage of Product Allocation

How much space does the product you sell take up in your store? Is the product in your store that is not selling taking up more space? The goal is to maximize your store with products that are moving. You should markdown the product that is not selling to help increase the chances of it selling sooner, eventually opening up your store space for more products that have proven successful. It also allows your open to buy dollars to become more available, allowing you to potentially introduce new product. Make sure that you do not let slow moving product sit on your floor too long without marking it down, then make sure to continue to mark it down until it sells. It is wasted space if it is just sitting there. The first 30 days of any new product on your floor should allow you to understand if customers want this or if you will need to mark it down eventually. The goal is to have the products that sell faster, or even at all, take up the majority of your floor space. We all make poor buy decisions, so deal with these mistakes if necessary to get to where you want to be next time in your buying decisions.

Product Hot Spots and Weak Spots

By now, as a retailer, I am sure you have discovered the power of merchandising. Whether you have or have not paid much attention to this, make sure that you take the time to determine the retail real estate in your store that helps move products while on the contrary, determine your store space that doesn’t seem to help increase product sell through. By understanding this, you can maximize your sales. There is always going to be “dead space” on your floor and like it or not, you may need to use this space to merchandise some of your product. Make sure you merchandise and re-merchandise your product routinely so that you offer customers a refreshed shopping experience, but also the opportunity to move products from the hot spots to the weak spots and vice a versa as needed.

A merchandising note – If you have product that customers come to your store for, this is the product to put in a weak spot versus a hot spot since they already know they want it. Use your hot spots for products that you need to sell, not only the ones you know will sell. Mix it up!

Excess Inventory Control

Unless you are one of the few retail buyers who is always on target with what their customers want and you know will absolutely sell, it’s possible you have extra inventory sitting around. The goal for you is to move it. And move it now! Don’t wait for the possibility that it may come back in style or that the economy will get better. Mark it down and get it sold. Hold a special sale. Or sales. Offer discounts for special customers. Whatever your plan is, the plan should be to not let this product take up space on your retail floor or in your back room – even if you hate the thought of selling it for less than you planned to.

Controlling Your Buys

It’s so tempting to bring in a ton of great new things to your store and just start over, so to speak, when you have a lot of things that you know are not working for you. BUT – hold back. Find control and find balance to bring these new items in without cornering yourself in a position where your current inventory will financially put you in a hole. Unless you have the resources to be flexible and to buy without concern, then make sure you strategically plan to get your currently inventory out of your store before bringing in a ton of new things. I don’t believe that you can hold off on buying anything new, however. Customers want to be surprised and tempted and enticed to buy, so you need to give them that with what is in style, with what they want, and with what you know they need. That said, find balance and control with what you already have and what you want so that you can better manage your inventory needs.

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