You may have heard the term before, but not exactly sure what it means. Retail Merchandising is a process used to carry out sales in the retail industry.
Some people think that merchandising is just about products. It’s not. There are much deeper thinks to consider as part of the complete merchandising process.
Merchandising starts at the root of sourcing the products. This means that retailers need to be able to have close relationships with their suppliers in order to get the best deals, both in terms of products and service. At this stage negotiation skills are a big bonus, because if you can source your products for cheaper you can make a bigger margin on the resale – and no retailer is going to turn down the chance for extra profit.
Once the product selection and negotiation process is complete it’s back at the store. A large part of Retail Merchandising is the strategy that will be used to make the sale. The strategy usually includes the pricing and positioning of the product within the store. Is the product going to be better placed by the checkouts, or maybe nearer the front of the store? Also known as Display Merchandising it is important that the product is made easily available to the customers as they browse the store. If they can’t find it they definitely won’t be buying!
The presentation side of retail merchandising is very important. Are you using the right type of display for the products? What about colours, shapes and platforms? The visual element of product merchandising is very important. It needs the customer to feel not only attracted to, but engaged with the product on display. Some display units might let you touch, feel and use the product and these are proven to be very successful, especially in the electronics industry.
If done correctly Retail Merchandising as a process can bring great rewards to your business. The best starting point is the selection of quality products. With the correct pricing and display fittings the product then becomes appealing to the customer and you could start to see them flying off the shelves.
Tuesday, 12 October 2010
Why outsourcing your retail support services can actually save you money.
Running a retail outlet or store is no easy task. From making sure the store is stocked to dealing with customer complaints there is always something that needs doing. On top of this comes the added pressures of the company you work for wanting to make a profit, and maximizing the throughput of your store to make as much money as possible.
From the outside, looking in, its often very easy to dismiss just what goes into running the store. From staff briefings, to warehousing and storage, handling cash, stocking the floor and merchandising and stock takes – the list goes on.
Sometimes there just aren’t enough hours in the day to do everything that needs doing and that’s where a retail support service supplier can come in to help.
A retail support provider can evaluate the operation of your store and come up with ideas and plans on how to make it more profitable – all whilst you go about your day to day tasks running the store.
As the retail support company comes up with the plans to help make the store more efficient (through better racking and storage) and the revenue in the store increases through improved merchandising and customer flow you will start to see not only savings through efficiency but profits from customers!
In short, the retail support company can:
From the outside, looking in, its often very easy to dismiss just what goes into running the store. From staff briefings, to warehousing and storage, handling cash, stocking the floor and merchandising and stock takes – the list goes on.
Sometimes there just aren’t enough hours in the day to do everything that needs doing and that’s where a retail support service supplier can come in to help.
A retail support provider can evaluate the operation of your store and come up with ideas and plans on how to make it more profitable – all whilst you go about your day to day tasks running the store.
As the retail support company comes up with the plans to help make the store more efficient (through better racking and storage) and the revenue in the store increases through improved merchandising and customer flow you will start to see not only savings through efficiency but profits from customers!
In short, the retail support company can:
- Improve customer flow around the store
- Carry out a merchandising exercise
- Stock Take
- Make your racking and storage areas more efficient
- Provide health and Safety assessments
- Assist with loss prevention
5 Retail Support services you might consider outsourcing
Retail is a cut throat industry, and there are many very different tasks that are required to ensure that a store operates without fuss and with maximum efficiency.
Very often the stores themselves are busy concentrating on the day-to-day operations of opening, trading and closing. The tasks involved in just trading alone can take up time for the shop managers and assistants as they make sales, deal with refunds and take time with customers. Once all this is done it just doesn’t leave time to think about things such as Point of Sale Merchandising, Shelving and Racking, General Retail Merchandising, Warehousing and more!
This is where a retail support company can help to provide a service that allows the shop managers to get on with what they do best, which is managing the store, whilst having the peace of mind that the other operations in the store are being looked after by professionals.
Here are 5 services that you might consider outsourcing:
1. Merchandising. It’s important to understand that stores maximize their profits by planning the layout of the store, which helps create an efficient ‘flow’ for the customers. Are you looking for inspiration on how to merchandise your products? Speak to a consultant who will be able to help.
2. Shelving and Racking. Do you need to make your storage and/or display more efficient? By outsourcing your shelving and racking requirements you can let people with experience in the field deal with this.
3. Store Closures. Got a store that isn’t performing and it would be more cost efficient to close it down? Store Closures are a way of maximizing profits if a particular store is struggling. They can be very stressful and outsourcing to a company with experience in the field can be very useful!
4. Warehousing. If you have a small store with not much storage space you might want to consider outsourcing your warehousing services. By sharing warehouse space your costs will be lower and you will see less of an impact on your profits.
5. Store Openings. Are you opening a new retail outlet and need assistance. Store Openings can be stressful as you work towards your opening day deadline, and a missed deadline is a loss of profits!
These are just 5 areas of your retail operation that you could outsource, allowing you to concentrate on the day to day tasks of running your business.
Very often the stores themselves are busy concentrating on the day-to-day operations of opening, trading and closing. The tasks involved in just trading alone can take up time for the shop managers and assistants as they make sales, deal with refunds and take time with customers. Once all this is done it just doesn’t leave time to think about things such as Point of Sale Merchandising, Shelving and Racking, General Retail Merchandising, Warehousing and more!
This is where a retail support company can help to provide a service that allows the shop managers to get on with what they do best, which is managing the store, whilst having the peace of mind that the other operations in the store are being looked after by professionals.
Here are 5 services that you might consider outsourcing:
1. Merchandising. It’s important to understand that stores maximize their profits by planning the layout of the store, which helps create an efficient ‘flow’ for the customers. Are you looking for inspiration on how to merchandise your products? Speak to a consultant who will be able to help.
2. Shelving and Racking. Do you need to make your storage and/or display more efficient? By outsourcing your shelving and racking requirements you can let people with experience in the field deal with this.
3. Store Closures. Got a store that isn’t performing and it would be more cost efficient to close it down? Store Closures are a way of maximizing profits if a particular store is struggling. They can be very stressful and outsourcing to a company with experience in the field can be very useful!
4. Warehousing. If you have a small store with not much storage space you might want to consider outsourcing your warehousing services. By sharing warehouse space your costs will be lower and you will see less of an impact on your profits.
5. Store Openings. Are you opening a new retail outlet and need assistance. Store Openings can be stressful as you work towards your opening day deadline, and a missed deadline is a loss of profits!
These are just 5 areas of your retail operation that you could outsource, allowing you to concentrate on the day to day tasks of running your business.
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