Stack ‘em high and watch ‘em fly. I remember hearing this term when I entered retailing in the 1970’s. I still hear retailers quote this mantra of retailing.

But, is this the way forward in the new decade? Would an absence of product increase sales? I’m often quoted for saying “You can’t sell air”, in other words empty shelves don’t make money. But, even that theory is up to be challenged. Perhaps a lack of products can increase sales.

Over the last few weeks I have come across a number of examples that “Deliberate Scarcity” should be a theory that retails should consider. (more…)

I recently visited a Charlotte Russe clothes store in California with Linda. I thought, in my innocence, we were checking out the retailing, big mistake. While I checked the retailing out, Linda was buying clothes big time.

This clothes company does some unique things which any retailer could pick up on.

• Their mascot is a Pug dog which features on some clothing and point of purchase material. A great way of daring to be different.
• The T.V. program “The Secret Life of the American Teenager” is an ABC sitcom that uses Charlotte Russe clothing. They promote this fact in store. You can dress like a T.V. star.
• They have segregated their store into zones: Burning Hot, Hot, Pretty Warm, and Cool. They advise their sales team what products to place in each zone and to change them every three days.
• They place matching clothes, handbags and shoes on the same merchandising display.

They provide the solution.

I’m impressed… so was Linda.

Your consumers feel they have had a rough year this year and are probably looking forward to a stress free Christmas and to enjoy their shopping experience. According to American researcher Emek Basker each consumer spends on average an extra $6.50 a day in the crucial 32 days before Christmas.

Your role is to get as much of that money as possible. By when you read this article the Christmas decorations should be out and you should be in the middle of a busy trading period.

Now is not the time to rethink through and make merchandise and display challenges ,but it is a time to check what is happening on the shop floor.

We all know retail is detail, but we often forget some of the basics during this busy period.

Let’s explore some of the “Rare Sense” retail tips we often forget as we cope with the shopping rush. (more…)

Linda and I have just returned from the U.S.A. where we were working. We had the opportunity to visit Whole Foods flagship store in Pasadena, California. For those of you who do not know this company, it is a large corporate company based out of Austin, Texas. They have stores across the U.S.A. and two years ago opened their first store in the U.K. in Kensington, London.

The mission of Whole Foods is very similar to any farmers market which is why we wanted to visit them.

They do not allow cameras to be used, so we had to make notes rapidly. What can the Farmers Market learn from Whole Foods? They are in our opinion the best merchandisers and displayers of produce in the world, but it is their signage where we can benefit most.

The following signage grabbed our attention. (more…)