Business Success 2: Strengthens Struggling Retail Stores

I hope you find these stories of success inspiring you to improve your own business

Ralph worked as the marketing and sales VP for a national specialty retail chain. He worked hard to help his chain move forward in a very competitive market. He created excellent marketing strategies, campaigns, and materials. The stores that followed his lead progressed and increased sales. Unfortunately, too many franchise owners continued with old school marketing. They did not progress as well. In fact, many of them lost ground and market niche. So, Ralph took a bold move. He bought a losing franchise in Las Vegas just after the bottom dropped out of the market.

Implement Good Management & Marketing

Ralph bought a store that sold very high end housing accessories two years after the housing boom dropped. Las Vegas received the brunt on the recession. Housing costs plummeted leaving so many home owners upside down. In addition, high salaries dropped and unemployment rose.

It seemed a crazy time to buy an expensive household items franchise. Yet, Ralph had faith in his marketing plans and strategies. He knew that if he implemented them his store would succeed. So, he followed his own advice, he:

• Advertised in the best home and society magazines
• Targeted mailers to selected zip codes with appropriate income levels
• Used mystery shoppers to test and improve client service
• Let potential clients take product home to test for several days
• Encouraged customers to spend time in the store trying out chairs and mattresses

Results of the Changes

Within six months of taking over a declining store,

• Ralph turned it into one of the top stores in a 116 franchise chain
• Increased sales revenues 10 times over previous sales
• Decreased overhead by 20%
• Improved walk-in traffic by 75%

What You Can Learn

• Reject the perceived negativism of scarcity or loss
• Accept the ability to learn new skills and improve your performance
• Learn from others who know more than you
• Implement the best practices you can find
• Do what works for you

Saturday we will share another success story of a scalable startup doing well