Spring Cleaning – 5 Tips For Retail Stores
Winter is finally over and the age old tradition of spring cleaning is upon us. Tapping into Mother Nature’s motivation is especially important for the retail environment. Clean and organized spaces are more inviting and make others feel comfortable. Let’s face it, if a customer feels comfortable in your store they will spend more time and money in your store.
Below are five tips to help retailer’s get started:
- Make a task list. Take time to walk through and really look at every square foot of your store, front and back (without “rose colored glasses”). You know what pesky tasks are at hand and now is the perfect time to make a plan. Write down everything that is out of order, no matter how big or how small; from the sticker on the tile floor to the busted shelving in the backroom.
- Rally your team and clean! Divide the store into sections, and clean the store from top to bottom. This means dust, mop, fold, polish, organize, and clean EVERYTHING! Remember, it is possible to make cleaning fun when it’s done after-hours. Some ideas to make cleaning not so dull: order food, have a pot luck, play music, wear comfy clothes, pair up and have a friendly competition, play short team building games during breaks, or have impromptu product knowledge quizzes.
- Mix things up and give your store a makeover! Moving store fixtures and making a few changes to your layout will breathe new life into your store. Be creative and don’t be afraid to try something new. If you are moving items to a new location make sure to monitor your customer reactions as well as your sales reports. The move should have a positive impact on your business. If you see a change is negatively impacting your bottom line, make adjustments or move the items to their previous position.
- Have a spring cleaning sale! You know what is on the shelves but sometimes it’s hard to tell whether or not your inventory is working for you. Pull reports from your point-of-sale system to see what your slow movers and NO movers are. Why are these products taking up your valuable retail space? Spring is a great time to have a sale and get rid of the items sitting stagnant and collecting dust on your shelves.
- Address personnel issues. Now that your store is top shape, you are free to focus on employee development. Do a real time assessment of all employees. Establish what their current strengths and weaknesses are and make sure to have an example supporting both. Pull a salesperson performance report to see exactly how each of your employees have impacted your bottom line for better or in some cases worse. Once you are armed with this information you will be prepared to initiate individual employee action plans to elevate the staff as a whole.
If you are a POSIM customer and have questions about the reports referenced in this article, contact POSIM for additional information call (800) 409-7678 or contact us by email support@posim.com.
