Retail Remedy

Driving Sustainable Profit Growth

January 26, 2011

Mary Queen of Shops

During the month of January, we have been reflecting the challenges that the last year has given to many of our customers and how we can help them ensure the best possible year ahead.

Undoubtedly the Economic Climate has been tough for all and yet the difference between those who have floundered and those who have flourished is about their operation, more than global financial meltdown. The Christmas reports are littered with CEO’s suggesting the weather has cost them dear and gearing up for that New Year profits warning. There are also traders who have done themselves proud and despite increasing online competition, customers who are controlling a budget and inclement weather they have delivered growth.

Our Retail Reviews are always an interesting time, where the real issues are often clouded by the Retailers long held beliefs’ and lack of customer engagement. This clouding can create a challenging time and we always come back to the customer as the main weapon in our armoury in convincing retailers of the need to change where required.

Our “Mary Queen of Shops” reviews can deliver really ground breaking changes in the way that the retailer engages with his customers and how they understand the direction they need to take. Some of the concepts are best exampled and role modelled in store whilst others need a Retail Workshop environment to get beneath the skin and make the changes needed.

We are really proud that following requests we have now just completed our Retail Workshop structure and placed our updated workshop brochure on the website. It contains all those lessons learnt over many years of Retailing and in the last year that we have applied to some of our smaller to medium sized customers. We strongly believe that planning the journey is the start and our Strategy and Planning workshops create challenge, stimulation and tools to build an effective strategy that delivers. It takes Leadership to execute strategy so that was our next logical step in workshop development; we take this seriously but having had our fill of corporate Leadership Training Courses, we cut to the chase.

Branding and Marketing is something we are often engaged to assist with and again we cut the BS out of the  Branding and Marketing workshop and tell it straight for all levels.

Good Retailing is nothing if Buying and Merchandising is not right and our workshop on this reflects the online position as well as the traditional retailing aspects, run by Retail Experts you will learn! The same Retail Experts who run our Buying course are also our best negotiators and having worked for some of the hardest negotiators in the business they will create that win / win on our Negotiation Workshop. Our Visual Merchandising Training Course reflects the experience we have within clothing, food and non-food. The most important workshop is last, where would we would be without customers? Our customer Service workshops are more than the traditional smile and say nice things stuff but a way to create true advocacy within your current and future customers, in short it is brilliant!

Mary Queen of Shops Blog

As 2010 is left behind and the first glimmer of 2011 is upon us, we were reflecting the challenges that the last year has given to many of our customers and how we can help them ensure the best possible year ahead. Undoubtedly the economic climate has been tough for all and yet the difference between those who have floundered and those who have flourished is about their operation, more than global financial meltdown. The Christmas reports are littered with CEO’s suggesting the weather has cost them dear and gearing up for that New Year profits warning. There are also traders who have done themselves proud and despite increasing online competition, customers who are controlling a budget and inclement weather they have delivered growth.

Our retail reviews are always an interesting time, where the real issues are often clouded by the retailers long held beliefs’ and lack of customer engagement. This clouding can create a challenging time and we always come back to the customer as the main weapon in our armoury in convincing retailers of the need to change where required. Our “Mary Queen of Shops” reviews can deliver really ground breaking changes in the way that the retailer engages with his customers and how they understand the direction they need to take. Some of the concepts are best exampled and role modelled in store whilst others need a workshop environment to get beneath the skin and make the changes needed.

We are really proud that following requests we have now just completed our workshop structure and placed our updated workshop brochure on the website. It contains all those lessons learnt over many years of retailing and in the last year that we have applied to some of our smaller to medium sized customers. We strongly believe that planning the journey is the start and our Strategy and Planning workshops create challenge, stimulation and tools to build an effective strategy that delivers. It takes Leadership to execute strategy so that was our next logical step in workshop development; we take this seriously but having had our fill of corporate leadership courses, we cut to the chase. Branding and Marketing is something we are often engaged to assist with and again we cut the BS out of the Branding and Marketing workshop and tell it straight for all levels. Good retailing is nothing if not good Buying and Merchandising and our worksh

Mary Queen of Shops Blog

As 2010 is left behind and the first glimmer of 2011 is upon us, we were reflecting the challenges that the last year has given to many of our customers and how we can help them ensure the best possible year ahead. Undoubtedly the economic climate has been tough for all and yet the difference between those who have floundered and those who have flourished is about their operation, more than global financial meltdown. The Christmas reports are littered with CEO’s suggesting the weather has cost them dear and gearing up for that New Year profits warning. There are also traders who have done themselves proud and despite increasing online competition, customers who are controlling a budget and inclement weather they have delivered growth.

Our retail reviews are always an interesting time, where the real issues are often clouded by the retailers long held beliefs’ and lack of customer engagement. This clouding can create a challenging time and we always come back to the customer as the main weapon in our armoury in convincing retailers of the need to change where required. Our “Mary Queen of Shops” reviews can deliver really ground breaking changes in the way that the retailer engages with his customers and how they understand the direction they need to take. Some of the concepts are best exampled and role modelled in store whilst others need a workshop environment to get beneath the skin and make the changes needed.

We are really proud that following requests we have now just completed our workshop structure and placed our updated workshop brochure on the website. It contains all those lessons learnt over many years of retailing and in the last year that we have applied to some of our smaller to medium sized customers. We strongly believe that planning the journey is the start and our Strategy and Planning workshops create challenge, stimulation and tools to build an effective strategy that delivers. It takes Leadership to execute strategy so that was our next logical step in workshop development; we take this seriously but having had our fill of corporate leadership courses, we cut to the chase. Branding and Marketing is something we are often engaged to assist with and again we cut the BS out of the  Branding and Marketing workshop and tell it straight for all levels. Good retailing is nothing if not good Buying and Merchandising and our workshop on this reflects the online position as well as the traditional retailing aspects, run by experts you will learn! The same experts who run our Buying course are also our best negotiators and having worked for some of the hardest negotiators in the business they will create that win / win on our Negotiation workshop. Our Visual Merchandising course reflects the experience we have within clothing, food and non-food. The most important workshop is last, where would we would be without customers? Our customer Service workshops are more than the traditional smile and say nice things stuff but a way to create true advocacy within your current and future customers, in short it is brilliant!

op on this reflects the online position as well as the traditional retailing aspects, run by experts you will learn! The same experts who run our Buying course are also our best negotiators and having worked for some of the hardest negotiators in the business they will create that win / win on our Negotiation workshop. Our Visual Merchandising course reflects the experience we have within clothing, food and non-food. The most important workshop is last, where would we would be without customers? Our customer Service workshops are more than the traditional smile and say nice things stuff but a way to create true advocacy within your current and future customers, in short it is brilliant!

January 11, 2011

Objective Strategy

Of all the overused and misunderstood terms there is little doubt that Strategy is the most often quoted. Retail-Remedy has worked with some large retailers who surprisingly would not be able to articulate their Strategy but have merely fallen into the business path on which they tread. Red faces have followed questions about the direction and they only get redder when asked about the customer imperatives that have guided that direction. Yet in truth Strategy should be one of the easiest things to do in business, small businesses started usually in a response to a perceived need, understanding the continuance and evolution of that need is fundamentally what Retail Strategy is.

In a recent magazine article for Furniture News (Retail Strategy) we articulated the need to have Strategy agreed, with the key stakeholders taking responsibility to ensure that the picture painted of the goal is exactly the same for all concerned. Too often the goal is one persons dream and another person’s half dream or nightmare. For small businesses, without Non-Executive Directorship, this requires an objectivity that comes from a business consultant or trusted advisor. We suggest that this is an important choice as the person selected must be able to be objective, challenging and fearless. If they feel that gainsaying the perceived wisdom in the room will jeopardise their position, key arguments will be lost and the Strategy will evolve weaker.

When the Strategy word is used and you see your colleagues eyes roll to the back of their head and a flop sweat develop on the business leader, then look around the room and determine who will be the brave person who says the emperor has no clothes. If you cannot see that person and are willing to challenge why he is not there, then look no further he has been found, it is you !

Entering the Dragons’ Den

At Retail-Remedy we are often asked if we can support people making presentations to retailers in order to get their product listed. Our experience with buying teams and new product development means we are well placed to offer the guidance that sees people make a success of their product. It is however not always straight forward and each product or concept needs to be viewed in-line with the retailer’s total range. That said good lines will always find a way if presented well.
We are very proud of the work we have done with Kirsty Henshaw, owner of Worthenshaws-freedom http://www.worthenshaws-freedom.co.uk/. Kirsty had a great product that she had worked hard to develop and simply needed to understand how best to approach larger retailers. Kirsty’s appearance on Dragons’ Den was a seminal moment for Worthenshaw’s and all the tough questions we had asked Kirsty meant she was well prepared for any interrogation from the Dragons.

Dragons’ Den makes compelling TV as you see people’s hopes and dreams put up against the stark light of commercial feasibility. Often these hopes and dreams are washed away because entrepreneurs fail to seek an objective viewpoint of their product, its market and how to launch it.
Having recently engaged with another Dragons’ Den survivor we recognise the publicity that appearance on the programme can give, unfortunately the programme editor can make this either very good or very bad publicity. Making sure that you have already been exposed to the rigours of a broad spectrum of detailed questioning will ensure that even if the money is not offered ,the entrepreneur comes away with their head held high and a boatload of potential investors having seen a great performance.

We believe that we provide perfect armour from any Dragon, whether they are on the telly or in a retailers buying office, possibly as we have worked in times past with so many Dragons ourselves!