At the new year many managers recommitted to wringing out additional profits from their retail operations. You know how resolutions are…easier to make than they are to keep. This year, however, a focus on retail store improvement could pay huge dividends if you’ll remember to concentrate on two areas of operations.
In a presentations that I’ve had the honor of presenting to several groups, I’ve used the visual of a playground teeter-totter. Imagine the image of one now, with two equal weight children on opposite ends and how that would 
achieve a nice balance landing the beam in a level position. Now picture one child heavier than the other and you’ll see how that end of the play set comes crashing down.
I believe that is a good visual for focusing on the balance that must occur between the financial aspects and the customer interface issues regarding retail store improvement. I’m not saying that it’s bad to consider the financial ramifications of your decisions…not at all. You have to. But do bear in mind that in the highly competitive environment in which you operate customer experience must be a primary focus too.
Therefore, I suggest that you concentrate on retail store improvement ideas that can have positive impact on the bottom line as well. For example, a new floor plan which creates a more friendly atmosphere, encourages browsing and increases shop time will almost certainly increase sales. A less obvious benefit is the bump in margin many stores realized from a redesign which seems to expose shoppers to more higher margin items.
The point is that if a manager looked upon this type of move as simply expense, he, or she, might well postpone the entire thing. Looking at both sides of that teeter-totter, however would give a better understanding of how the customer experience benefit might outweigh, at least balance, the negative of the expense outlay.
Don’t know where to start? Check out our company’s website and we’ll be glad to visit with you about how a redesign might benefit your store.
