Small Retailers...Make Your Move, Now Is The Time!

Now is the time.  The slow economy has lingered around long enough.  By now the suppliers who supply products to your marketplace are tired of feeling the pinch of less than robust activity.  They are done with it.  This feeling is also part of the sales meetings each of those suppliers routinely attend.  They want volume to occur, and soon.  They are doing whatever they can to make this recovery happen.  Some salespeople in certain territories have been let go due to poor sales results.  The pressure is on.  Famous brand name makers are hurting just as much as you are.  They need to improve their sales figures.  This is very good news for you, if you are a small retail business.  It is opportunity time.

If you are a small retailer who has always wanted to add a famous brand name product to your mix of offerings, but were too small to be considered, now may be your best time to give it a whirl.  You may be ripe for getting the approval from a brand name maker to carry their line in your store.  Brand names give your retail business credibility.  I am sorry the market behaves in this fashion.  Unfortunately, this part of marketing genius is true.  Brand names lift up your retail stores credibility.  Famous brand names have worked hard and have invested a ton of money trying to get the consumer to recognize who they are.  The famous brand names have also succeeded at that effort.  You need to stand next to these brand name products as a partner worthy of giving them a home where your customer can find them.  Your credibility as a worthwhile retailer is standing at the doorway of making that move happen.  I believe this to be the perfect time for you to make that move.  Famous brand name products worked their careers trying to successfully brand their name.  Branding their name recognition into the minds of the consumer was their ultimate goal.  Many of those efforts were very successful.  The consumer recognizes those name brands as credible sources to consider when they decide to buy a product they make.  Those brand name products have a high need right now to begin their economic recovery process.  They need new volume to make that happen.  You can be one of their options to increase that volume.  It is not that difficult to do and the timing is perfect.  Take a look.

Find A Way To Work With Them On The Rules Of Distribution

Many manufacturers have distribution restrictions in their market areas.  Some of the most famous brand names restrict who they allow to retail their products.  Those manufacturers use a variety of methods and some specific sets of criteria in their distribution rules to permit only a select few retailers to peddle their wares to the buying consumer.  For example, Pepsi and Coke lean on smaller retailers by making them select one or the other.  They will pull the line away from a smaller retailer if they see a competitor's soda machine parked next to their own.  That is one of the rules they play.  Most manufacturers rules and criteria of volume are designed to escape the laws governing restraint of trade protections.  We are not here to debate how they skirt around those laws.  We are here to help your store gain consumer credibility.  Making money with brand names is nothing you should avoid because the rules are stiff and unfair.  Get over it.  We are here to help your bank account grow and their rules have nothing to do with your righteousness beliefs.  Many small retailers get real funny about being left out because they are small.  Just deal with it.

These rules they employ are rules they will modify if you approach them properly.  They need volume.  They need volume right now.  You have finally become very able to sit in the drivers seat on the effort to secure a name brand product in your retail store.  You also have some playing to do before they let you touch the steering wheel.  Play their game.  They are fully aware of the idea that they are likely faced with modifying their rules to allow you to carry their line.  They will adjust their rules downward to permit you to add them to your store line-up.  They will place some criteria on you that will seem tough to meet.  So what.  Try to meet them.  If you fail, you enjoyed the time they were part of your program.  Your market credibility was satisfied for that particular time frame.  Good Job!  You did it.

Measure what you achieve by the small things you were able to do in your career.  Do not measure a permanent mark by how long you were able to sustain it.  Measure what you were able to do in the small time frame you were given to attempt it.  This kind of approach will help you to mentally deal with short term victories.  A string of short term victories is far greater than protecting one very long one.  The little victories will produce far more greater volume results than one really long big victory.  Treat this brand approach as one of the little victories that comes along.  Go get a brand name placed on your small retail floor.  It may be only temporary but during that time, you can "milk" your credibility to your buying consumers as much as you can.  Who knows, if their branding is as good as they have made it, your volume and activity may very well increase enough for you to meet their higher volume demands.  It sounds like a very good challenge to try and attempt.

Use Their Marketing Tools

With the addition of a name brand product on your retail floor new and impressive marketing tools become available to your advertising program.  You get access to professionally developed signage, banners, tagging, advertising copy professionally prepared and many more professionally designed marketing perks.  These are quality marketing tools you have likely been missing since you were never able to afford them in the first place.  When you land your branded line of choice, make sure you use every bit of the professional tools they have to offer.  Remember, they have successfully branded their name.  You have not.  This is what we call a clue.  Use their tools.

Independent small time retailers have some very interesting quirks.  When you make these types of business moves, overcome your desire to protect these interesting quirks.  These quirks have been part of the reason your business does not grow in a healthy fashion.  Deal with what has been wrong by doing what is right.  It will appear well on your deposit slip when you go to the bank.

It is a perfect time for a small retailer to add a famous brand name to their retail floor.  The timing is perfect.  The increased credibility to the consumer and the ending increases in volume results for the small retailer will be tremendous.  What a perfect time to add value to your small retail business.  Just when you thought it could get no worse...a benefit comes your way.  Good luck on the effort.

Small time retailing is not very easy to do.  Adding a brand name to your line-up will help you to increase your market credibility.  You will not be sorry you made this move.  Although, making this move will test your skills and "protected" management style, let it be.

Until next time...