5 Retail New Year’s Resolutions

It doesn’t matter if you run a traditional bricks-and-mortar store, an on-line business, or a dental clinic: if you resolve to follow these five common sense resolutions, you will be more successful in 2017 and beyond.

1. Put People First in Everything You Do. 

Make this the filter through which all other decisions pass. Think about the saying, “People have to want to come to work in the morning.” What can you do each and every day to create a happy, productive environment?

Where work takes place and there is interaction with customers or clients, there is a community and a culture. You want to nurture that culture so it is positive and happy, which will therefore lead to it being more productive.

2. Remember that Turn Is Magic 

You must honestly evaluate your inventory turn. If customers didn’t like something this Christmas, they won’t like it any better for Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day. Plus whatever the product is will get shopworn and even more out-of-date. “Turn” it into cash, cash that you can reinvest in more current and more wanted products.

“The customer votes every day” is a common saying in retail because it is true. Evaluate the sales and stock with an impassioned and critical view. You will be rewarded in the long run.

3. Don’t Fool Yourself; It’s Always the Product

Retailers are an optimistic bunch. Plus there is a tendency to blame outside factors if something doesn’t sell. “It’s the weather,” “We don’t have enough signs,” “The moon is in Sagittarius, which is a bad sign for polyester.” Some or all of these may be part of the explanation for poor sales performance, but it is also true that if the product is right, it will sell. If is not right, it will not, and no amount of marketing, signs, or great weather will make it sell. When this happens, it’s time to see Resolution #2 above.

4. Always Remember that It’s the Retail Price, Not the Cost 

It doesn’t matter what you paid for it (the wholesale). What matters is what someone else is willing to pay you for it (the retail). Setting the retail price for products is one of the most important things a retailer does. It’s the “retail” part of retailing. Do not get hung up on the mark-up percentage. Remember, you do not make the mark-up percentage until the product is sold, and it will not sell at all if it’s not priced correctly.

5. Whatever You Do, Protect Your Downside. 

We are all optimistic. No one enters into a business or any kind of enterprise and expects to fail. Department store dress buyers don’t select dresses that they think are ugly. If you are signing a lease for a store, you probably believe it’s a good location. But what if it’s not? What if those books in the bookstore don’t sell?

Think about the possible negative outcomes, and have a plan in place beforehand. That way you can avoid the “Oh, s- – t” moment, because stuff does happen.

Learn more about these resolutions in greater detail and with real life examples in my soon-to-be-released book, The Five Laws of Retail From di Medicis to Macy’s. Visit my website at georgetroy.com, and sign up to follow my blogs and to be notified when the book is available.