Are you having to cut prices to stimulate sales?
What else are you doing to attract customers in this economy?
-- Gifts and Dec, 7/1/2009 12:00:00 AM
Debbie Dusenberry, Curious Sofa, Kansas City, KS
Because of our 20 percent drop in sales this year we are strategically watching our budget more than ever and could see we needed to raise prices to make expenses, not lower them. Economy aside, it was crucial to do this anyway to be smarter and stay in business. Keystoning product is not cutting it anymore, it's an archaic way to do retail these days.
I am definitely buying smarter to keep our profit margins there, but when I planned on buying cheaper and deeper at market, I just couldn't! I still believe in offering unique items because customers will still pay for something special. But yes, we have a good assortment of price points as not every customer is ready to buy a sofa.
Having a special event every month is crucial to our success right now. It is a lot of work to organize and advertise them, but the pay-offs are great. We have to be more creative than the usual sale by bringing in special artists for the weekend or taking our store on the road for a charity event.
Sue Sacks, Options Gallery, Inc., Healdsburg, CA
Instead of cutting prices, I've reduced large ticket items when a customer shows interest. Yes, it does cut into profit. Being that it's not across the board, I'd rather take a small hit than not sell it at all. Generally this is on high priced jewelry or art. I started looking for affordable products last year to anticipate the need for lower dollar points of products. It is always a struggle to find the right item at the right cost that will sell. I have helped form a group of not only retailers, but lodging, restaurants, spas, wineries, etc., that are all in the downtown business district. We have pooled ideas and monies and are jointly advertising to bring more people to town. We have several promotions that we are doing throughout the summer to increase traffic. Jointly, we can do more than each of us can do by ourselves. Plus it's nice to have the momentum moving forward.
Christi Tullis, Ambiance Interiors, Atlanta
Yes, of course we are cutting prices to stimulate sales. Better yet, we are playing the retail game before our new inventory hits our door. We're making our customers aware of the products we'll be introducing via our email campaign and in the store to create hype and awareness. We then cut prices on our aged inventory up to 70 percent to keep our guests returning. When buying we've always shopped vendor close-out rooms, specials, and often re-packaged existing inventory in a more attractive way, such as gift basket collections. Shopping close-outs allows us to mark items with a perceived value, then mark it down as necessary without taking a huge hit. Finding good deals doesn't come easily. They're certainly not going to slap you in the face; be ready to get down on the floor and get dirty. If you find good deals buy deep and don't lose sleep. They will sell if you market them. Last, but most importantly, we've changed our buying to suit our best selling categories. For instance, jewelry, tabletop, clothing and personal gifts are on the top of our sales reports, where two or three years ago, we couldn't keep enough accessories and art in-stock. Could it be that everyone has their house accessorized and now they're ready to entertain? Possibly, therefore we do the same with our free lunch at least once a month where we serve food prepared with our gourmet products.
We would love your feedback!
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