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The retail market in the UK is worth more than £400 billion annually and employs over 3 million workers, while in the US 29 million people create over USD $4 trillion of revenue through the industry. Despite the challenge to establish stores and big-box retailers, there's a rapid increase in the number of retail start-ups and consistent growth in the independent sector. From beard shops and barbers, through cafes and coffee shops, to 'retailment' concept stores and boutique consumer-focused experiences, the specialist retail sector is booming.
The Retail Start-Up Book provides clear guidance and advice on how to develop a winning retail strategy that seamlessly merges online and offline tactics. Introducing the science of shopping and how to understand customer behaviours and needs, it explores the essential steps of developing a business plan, marketing and promoting a business and advising on buying and visual merchandising. Building on years of retail experience nationally and internationally, in large groups and with independent retailers, The Retail Start-Up Book meticulously provide invaluable practical insights to help new retailers hit the floor running, or more established organizations grow their business and nurture their profits.
List of contents
Chapter - 00: Introduction; Section - ONE: Getting to grips with retail; Chapter - 01: The issues facing the UK retail trade today; Section - TWO: Creating your retail marketing plan; Chapter - 02: Analysing and positioning your retail business in the existing market; Chapter - 03: Generating a powerful SWOT analysis for your retail business; Chapter - 04: Planning your retail marketing strategy; Chapter - 05: Building your retail marketing mix; Chapter - 06: Winning in retail - know your market, know your customer; Chapter - 07: Understanding the basic principles of shopping; Chapter - 08: Attracting and retaining customers online, using on-brand content and social media; Section - THREE: Effective finance planning and control; Chapter - 09: How to kickstart your retail business; Chapter - 10: Generating a results-driven business plan; Chapter - 11: A straightforward guide to sales, stock and profit; Chapter - 12: Selection and management of retail systems and controls; Section - FOUR: Buying and visual merchandising; Chapter - 13: Step one to procurement and merchandising - Understand your business and the marketplace you will be entering; Chapter - 14: Efficient buying techniques to make money; Chapter - 15: Controlling and measuring product performance and establishing KPIs; Chapter - 16: Building and maintaining relationships in retail for long-term returns; Chapter - 17: Understanding customers' behaviour and information overload - The need to make the product focused, visually clear and correctly price-positioned; Section - 18: Maximizing customer feedback and the visual experience; Chapter - 19: Visual merchandising - Managing space performance, layout and add-on selling to encourage purchase; Chapter - 20: Creating your global signpost through online merchandising; Section - FIVE: Challenges for bricks-and-mortar retailers; Chapter - 21: Understanding your lease - and how local authorities can benefit you; Section - SIX: How good should become sensational; Chapter - 22: Why good today is not good enough in the current retail trade; Chapter - 23: Conclusion - Your journey
About the author
Rowland Gee is the co-founder of Grey4Gold Ltd a offering mentoring and support to SME retailers. He has over 30 years broad-based experience in the retail sector, running publicly listed companies. He was appointed Chief Executive of Moss Bros Group plc in 1989 and a period of financial success and building significant market share in men's clothing. Under his leadership, Moss Bros entered a strategic and extremely valuable business relationship with Hugo Boss, resulting in 17 high profile Hugo Boss stores being established in the UK.Danny Sloan is co-founder of Grey4Gold Ltd. He had a 25 year career at BAA and was BAA Director of Planning 2012 to ensure BAA airports delivered the First and Lasting Impression for UK plc across its airports during the London Olympics. He is a Fellow of The Chartered Institute of Marketing.Graham Symes is an experienced finance director working across the retail and wholesale fashion sectors. His clients have included Harrods, Harvey Nichols and Selfridges, as well as Christian Lacroix and their parent company LVMH.
Summary
Build a successful and profitable retail strategy by focusing on the key areas every retailer must get right: developing a strategic marketing plan, financial management and buying and visual merchandising.
Foreword
Online resources: Templates and spreadsheets for cash flow, stock turn, gross profit margin calculations and asset depreciation
