This past Thursday I completed my 12th year with my company. That’s a long time. I started at the store level, worked all three shifts, was the stockperson, did accounts payable, was the manager of our Austin stores, and finally moved laterally to product buyer (who also does web, social media, marketing, and merchandising). I’ve learned a lot in that time, so I figured I’d share some of the things I’ve learned in the last 12 years. (in no particular order)
1. Buying really comes down to 3 principles (which I learned from the owner Doug R.)
- Bring in new product
- Re-order what sells
- markdown/blowout what isn’t selling to pay for and make room for new product
It kind of is that simple and it’s easy to forget that. There is more to the job, but those are the basics.
2. That saying “If you build it, they will come”, is true.
We knew what customers we needed and we knew our stores weren’t set up for them. So we repainted inside and out, purchased new fixtures, and merchandised for aesthetics as much as function. Our stores became more inviting and those customers we were missing out on, began to start shopping at our store.
3. Merchandising is as important as what you sell.
If you want to sell high-end merchandise, make it look worth the price.
4. Empowered employees are harder working employees.
The more decisions you allow your staff to make, they more decisions they’ll actually make. They’ll feel ownership of their jobs and will surprise you with innovative ideas.
5. You need a staff that is knowledgeable and passionate about your products.
After we redid our stores, we began to get more applications from people who loved our stores and the product we sold. Who better to sell your product than your customers. We also make it a priority to have product trainings and customer service training.
6. Embrace “both/and”.
This is a concept I got from Jim Collins don’t be either/or be both/and. We are a mix of conservative and risk taking. I love change, our company is slow to change. This follows another concept from Jim Collins: Fire bullets, then cannonballs. We do small changes then, as they prove themselves, we go big. We still innovate, just at a slower pace.
7. A roadblock simply means you need to find another way.
Some people have a roadblock set in front of them, and they just turn around. I look for side streets, or can I continue on foot? I don’t accept no for an answer. If I think an idea is a good one, I’ll work till I get it implemented. You will always encounter setbacks. What matters is what you do afterwards.
8. Trust your reports.
Sales reports are your best friend. Also, learn to love Excel.
9. Find a good partner.
My buying partner Andrea is probably the single best reason we’ve achieved success in the last 6 years as buyers. She makes up for my faults and together we make a great team. If you’re trying to do things alone, you won’t be as successful as you will with help. As Aaron Sorkin once wrote, “if you’re dumb, surround yourself with smart people. And if you’re smart, surround yourself with smart people who disagree with you.” I’m awfully smart, and Andrea only agrees with about half of my suggestions. 6+ years of increased sales can’t be wrong.
10. Cut expenses during good times; spend during bad.
This is some of the best advice I’ve ever gotten. When my department’s sales were hitting their first records (I say first, because we keep finding new highs to hit) I decided to cut expenses. I ran sales reports and determined what the minimum amount of product we needed to have in stock was and we sold down to that amount. While my department hasn’t had bad times, our store has seen some decreases. That was when our owner encouraged us to invest in new fixtures and displays and even expand our product lines. Which led to the next set of record sales.
11. Don’t stop learning.
And don’t assume you can only learn from certain areas. I read a ton of books, I listen to management podcasts, and I secret shop our competition. But I get new display ideas from shoe stores and Pinterest. I read tech blogs to find out what innovations we could adapt from the software world. I assume everything could teach me something about retail, it’s just my job to figure out exactly what that is.
12. Set big, long-term goals. and when you achieve them set new bigger goals.
There’s a saying that you don’t know what you can achieve till you try. SO, TRY! Set a goal and do everything in your power to achieve it and once achieved: aim higher. 3 years ago we set a sales goal and I had no idea how we were going to meet it. Suffice to say, we met that goal. So, I set an even more ambitious goal. We’re now close to meeting that goal as well.
It’s been a great 12 years and I look forward to what the future holds and the new things I’ll learn next year.
Joe Robles 