Wow Lighting At QVM

Wow! Fantastic! Awesome! ......just some of the responses to the new lights installed during the week in Rear K and Rear L sheds at QVM. Our photo was taken on a cloudy day in Rear K and has not been photo-shopped.

The new light fittings have only recently arrived from China as part of a significant upgrade to lighting facilities in the top end of QVM. Traders have noticed an immediate improvement in the presentation of their products. We understand that the older light fittings will now be distributed to other areas of the upper market that require additional lighting.

One of our traders jokingly complained that he could no longer hide stock seconds in the darkness at the back of his stall (at least we think he was joking).

Have YourSay - click here. 

COMMENTS:
11/10/2013 20:53:12 Lighting "Credit to Ivano and Greg for pushing this issue, you should be happy you hard work has paid off"
11/10/2013 20:55:00 Lighting "Greg can't take credit for this one but he can certainly applaud Ivano and Frank Di Vincenzo for pushing through a very worthwhile project." - Greg

12/10/2013 11:55:00,lighting,"Credit should be given the whom credit is due, and I happen to know a bit about how much work and how many hours were spent by our trader reps into getting better lighting, so I think we all need to give them a big slap on the back for all that hard work in getting these lights installed.
Then after that lets give some points to management that they were big enough to accept that the lighting was terrible and that they then followed through."

13/10/2013 10:14:32,Lighting,"Interesting that the new lighting, which actually produce light, and provide traders with a 21st century feeling of light, are all installed within the confines of the \"night market\" area. 

News the older light fittings will be used elsewhere within the top end of the market, is a little bit of shame. These light fittings did not provide any form of sufficient lighting in there previous location, how will they provide more lighting in a new location?

Surely the entire top end of the market deserves the new much brighter lighting, not just the areas where the night market operates. " 

We understand that the older fittings have already been installed in E shed to fill the gaps between existing lights. We would like some feedback from E shed traders on how effective that has been. But your point is valid. Lighting in RK/RL now sets the standard. - Ed.

13/10/2013 16:56:21 Lighting "My understanding was that the number of lights ordered would be rolled out in the J-L section of the market and the older light fitting that they replaced would have upgradede (stronger) light emitters /globes fitted and would then be rolled out to the other areas of the market. There were some uncertanties regarding the current electrical capacity to run everything. But that was going to be looked at. So it may be time to get some feedback on that. There was never any intention to limit upgrades to RK/RL. In fact the most light deficient aisle is in fact K Shed due to the least amount of natural light available to the area. Happy to see it finally underway though and looking forward to a more thorough upgrade. Well done QVM Pty Ltd and Frank for getting this under way!" Ivano

“Clicks n Mortar” Is The Future Says Paris Conference

Monash University’s Australian Centre For Retail Studies is presenting at the World Retail Conference in Paris this month and reports that 68 percent of retailers say stores remain the most important channel for shoppers and one in three plan to increase their store footprint

Reuters report from the conference - "I am totally convinced that click and mortar is the future," said Georges Plassat, the head of world number two retailer Carrefour. Top retailers were considering how best to integrate their physical stores with online. One of the earliest traditional store proponents of a strong online presence is UK’s John Lewis department store. A quarter of John Lewis’ sales are online and they plan a significant expansion of their traditional store network. However they claim that nearly two-thirds of their sales have an online component through the use of a whole range of technology including mobile phones.
Market traders have plenty of the “Mortar” component in their structure but not too much of the “Clicks”. The challenge for traders is letting customers communicate with them through technology. It is a whole new form of interaction.
Have Your Say – click here

Remote Control Tourist

 Check this out. An innovative tourist idea that is gaining quite some publicity in Melbourne.

http://remotecontroltourist.com/

From what we can see a guy with a video camera is guided around Melbourne’s streets by internet comments and he streams video to the internet as he goes. People go on line and suggest that the remote control tourist visit a particular coffee shop for instance. He waltzes into the shop and interacts with staff and customers, does requests for his online audience (maybe sings a song, or orders a particular coffee) and generally has a good time. On the screen you see vision from his camera (which seems to be on his head) and you see the comments from online participants.

He is only operating until the 13^th of October and if he hasn’t already been to our market we hope he comes. This is a great example of local interaction that also embraces an online audience. Thanks to QVM for putting the link on their facebook page. And, as an after thought, what if QVM had their own Remote Control Tourist wandering around the market and streaming video to the QVM website on a regular basis? We are probably big enough and have enough variety to sustain such an operation. Perhaps our tour guides could be the vehicle for onsite and online integration.

Have Your Say – click here

Tough Trader

No names, no pack drill, but this trader exemplifies the claim that we breed them tough at the Queen Victoria Market.

Apparently our trader had an accident at home which left him with a sore leg. He ignored the pain for about one week, continuing to perform his normal duties, before finally deciding to visit the doctor for x-rays.

The x-ray revealed a broken bone which required an operation including a steel plate and two screws. Two days later he was back behind the counter at QVM with a foot cast and a new appreciation for the merits of seeking an early medical diagnosis following injury.

Now that is Commitment with a capital "C".

The Lonely Tourist Bus

This photo was taken in Queen St. at 3:30 on Tuesday. Apparently the tourists on board were not impressed that they had arrived at the market in time to see rows of storage boxes and one half-packed souvenir stall but not much else.

This is not really a comment on our trading hours so much as criticism of a bus driver who hasn't done his homework.

COMMENTS:
13/10/2013 10:19:30 Lonely tourist bus "Is this not proof, that our hours are out of touch with the current shoppers?
You say it's the bus drivers fault for not being informed. We should be happy we have a bus driver bringing tourists here.
It is disappointing that the tourists experience was dampened by the fact we were closed, but in this the 21st century, is it not time we looked at adjusting our hours to suit our current environment. "

Garden Beds in String Bean Alley

While the dilemma of how to create a busy environment in String Bean Alley continues, we can see the merit of adding some garden beds to soften the harshness of storage boxes, motor vehicles and dirty old tarpaulins. Just don't tell anybody that at least one of the boxes contains fresh herbs - afternoon BBQ anyone?

Have Your Say - click here.

Sad Passing of Market Officer Peter Knobloch

Peter Knobloch will be fondly remembered by traders as a Market Officer from 1992 until his retirement in 2008. Peter passed away on 2nd October 2013 at the age of 69. 

His funeral will be on Friday 11th October, 10:00am, at White Lady Funerals, 25 Cooper St. Epping.

Please feel free to leave your thoughts on Pete by clicking on the Have Your Say tab at the top of this page.

COMMENTS:

08/10/2013 18:27:55,Peter Knobloch,"I remember Pete as a lovely man who respected traders. Farewell..",  Greg

09/10/2013 00:04:40,Peter,"Yes, Peter had truly a kind and gentle manner about him. So sad to hear of his passing.",Ivano

10/10/2013 16:18:27 Peter "Sad to hear, nice guy."  

13/10/2013 21:10:45 Peter Knobloch "Very sad to hear this! Peter was a true gentleman and had a kind heart." Ryland

Traders Comments On National Brand Pop-up Stalls.

04/10/2013 14:51:15 POP UP NATIONAL BRANDED STALLS "I would like to see from the people who read the information in the victraders site what people think about creating Pop up stalls at different corners of the market that represent national brands. What I believe needs to happen as part of a forward strategy is to revamp and relaunch the Queen Victoria Market as a shopping destination . We need to show the public a new and improved QVM . With competition fierce many national brands are very competitive .I believe we need to get one major brand from several categories and pop them up at differernt corners of the market. Look at the latest to come from Japan.A chain called Daiso (one price $2.80) for everything across the store. Some sort of incentive needs to be given e.g Cotton On (On top of A Shed)-great simple and inexpensive cloths targeting the young. Pumpkin patch (At the top of L Shed)...  Nike/Addidas/Puma at the bottom of A shed.....and so on..what do think.."

04/10/2013 15:27:03 POP UP NATIONAL BRANDED STALLS "Further on my discussion on Pop Up stalls I will give management another solution in trying to attract them.Obviously looking at storage for them is going to be a solution. How about utilizing the containers for this purpose. Trendy,portable fits in the theme of the market and it utilizes existing resources more efficiently which will return a higher rental dollar. If they spent supposedly $20,000 more or less on that ridiculous pallet tree I am sure they can afford to create some incentives for some national chains to help boost the offer of the market."

Have Your Say - click here

COMMENTS:
04/10/2013 16:31:13 Pop-up Stalls "I like this idea but I think traders are too scared of competition to embrace it. If we spent less time worrying about our own skins and more about what is needed to attract customers we would all be better off."  

 04/10/2013 19:58:37 Pop up stalls "The market should focus on things that your can't buy at shopping centres, not bringing major companies to the market, anyway those companies wouldn't want to be associated their brand with the market."

04/10/2013 20:34:20 Pop up stalls "With all due respect, I couldn't disagree more with the pop up stall idea, and regarding the reply on bringing in customers, stall holders should look at WHAT THEY SELL, THE WAY THEY DISPLAY THEIR PRODUCT, THE PRICE OF THEIR PRODUCT, and finally THE WAY THEY TREAT THEIR CUSTOMERS. 
Market management can be blamed for letting sub par stalls to trade in the market.
Stall holders and management should equally be blamed for stalls looking crap.
Price of product is probably the only box we can tick as a success. And the majority of stall holders do treat there customers well but there is still a minority that fail "  
- Love to hear why you disagree with pop-up stall idea - Ed.

05/10/2013 18:46:33 Pop ups "The Market can and could accommodate all sort of retail options, including pop up stalls that may offer known and popular brands. Obviously if this direction is pursued it would need to be done in a measured and carefully managed way so as to attract customers whilst not damaging the much smaller and fragile operations of current traders which form the core offer at the market. The market essentially should be more a haven for smaller emerging or start up businesses and brands / products and less a 'low cost' option for multi nationals large popular brands ( who have no need for the 'protection and assistance' and low entry cost a public retail market can offer ). So if that option was pursued it would need to be based around more about 'what can you do for us, rather than what we can do for you' premise. But if a carefully managed limited number of popular brands could be enticed into the market to attract the buying public, it may in my opinion well be a direction worth looking at and possibly pursuing." Your Rome Correspondent
- A well considered response. Thank you. - Ed  

 05/10/2013 20:33:36 Pop up stalls "In response to Ed, we rely on margin not so much turn over. A multi national brand could come in and be happy to make 50 cents from a $10 sale how could traders compete with that, they could use the market as a advertising ploy and even be happy to run it at a loss. There is still a bit of romance coming to a market, meeting a family run stall, the colour the atmosphere etc. the best thing about coming to the market is also getting something unique that you won't find in a shopping centre, also as the roman bloke said, there are great little businesses that need a place to start up, they may even decide to stay long term. If you are not doing well at the market lately, it's ok to want the management to help you/us out, but don't forget there are many things you could do to help you own business. If you have 15 year old table clothes and you are trading poorly, not only do I not feel sorry for you but you are bringing the whole place down, and make it harder for the people/stalls that do put an effort in."
- Thank you. Some great points in this debate. - Ed

14/10/2013 02:37:42,Pop up Stalls,"I totally agree with the trader’s submission of 4th October posted at 20:34hrs.  Having Pop up stalls owned and run by multinationals in prominent market locations simple ignores some of the short comings currently in the Market.  Both Management and traders need to focus (and enforce) some of the rules that are flouted.  

• Keep the lane ways clear – if you can’t park on your site put the car in the car park.

• Set up before trading hours 

• Do not take down (and move boxes around the Market) before close of business

• Improve lighting

• Provide power to sites

• Hand written signs 

• Dirty sheets covering tables

Presentation is a big part of marketing and simply heaping cheap imported products on a table will not help you and it brings down the tone of the Market.  

Back to the “Pop up Stall” idea….. The QVM should be a shopping experience and a place to find items not normally found in shopping precincts.  When people go on holiday, they like to see and buy something different.  Already multi nationals have destroyed several holiday shopping locations – visit Sorrento on the Mornington Peninsular and Airlie Beach in Queensland to see classic examples – no need to spend money in these locations as you can buy it at home and save the hassle of excess luggage.

If we agree that presentation of products is important, why not offer prime market locations to traders that currently make some effort in showcasing their products?",Terry Lawn,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

14/10/2013 16:10:34 Traders Need to Lift Their Game "The market is a low entry cost option for independent, family run operations it IS NOT a place for multinationally owned and run businesses. The suggestion of utilizing and creating a 'pop up' concept is about creating diversity and enhancing the product mix it is not and should not be used to facilitate a market 'take over' by large companies." 

16/10/2013 20:11:10 Stall presentation "Well said Terry." Tony                       

                      

Latest Retail News - 6/9/2013

Latest Retail News – 6/9/2013

1. Ikea plans to sell solar panels to UK customers.
2. Britain’s biggest retailer, Tesco, reports sales drop across all 10 international markets.
3. Apple and Google replace Coke as world’s best brand.
4. Woolworths upsets farmers with move to phase out caged bird eggs.
5. Liquor retailers, pubs, and sports betting operators expected to benefit from $595m expenditure on AFL and NRL grand finals.
6. New ScanZap app allows smaller retailers to offer fuel discounts in competition with Coles and Woolworths.
7. Reserve Bank leaves cash rate unchanged.
8. TAG Heuer opens flagship store in Brisbane.
9. Cotton On buys Sydney fast fashion retailer, Supre's, 150 stores across Australia/NZ.
10. Japanese fashion giant, Uniglo, confirms it will take space over 4 floors in new Melbourne Emporium centre.
11. IbisWorld says Australian womenswear sector down 2.5% annually since 2009.
12. Fashion designer Nicola Finetti jumps from Myer to David Jones.
13. Australian fashion group, Bettina Liano, rescued by Apparel Group 2 years ago, is back in administration.
14. NAB reports that online spending fell in August after rapid growth in previous months.
15. Australian noodle chain, Noodle Box, opens its second international store in Mauritius.
16. Toy and confectionary business, Funtastic, lifts annual profit by 34%.
17. Australian Bureau of Statistics reports Australian retail sales rose 2.3% in August (see previous note that online sales fell in August).
18. Australia a global leader in cashless payments with only 15%of consumer transactions done in cash (US 20%).
19. Uniglo opens its largest fashion store in Shanghai.

Retail News Briefs – 5/10/2013

Australian Consumers Spending – Enhanced Media Metrics Australia surveys 54,000 Australians and reports that grocery items are our most popular purchase, with an average of $141 spent in supermarkets per week. Over the past four weeks, Australians spent an average of $104 on clothing, $101 on furniture/homewares, $96 on electrical goods, $83 on hardware/gardening, and $77 on IT products.

Starbucks Succeed In The land of Tea – When coffee retailer, Starbucks, first entered China in 1999 the naysayers said they could not penetrate centuries of heritage and tradition in tea drinking. Starbucks now have over 800 stores in China and credit their success to an intimate understanding of the Chinese culture and a willingness to innovate.

IGA is Australia’s Largest Franchisor with 1393 stores followed by Subway with 1377 stores. McDonalds is 3^rd with around 600 stores but has risen from 6^th place in 2012.

The Hottest New Job in Retail is “Data Scientist”. Described as “professionals in big data collection and analysis” the huge influx of information from the internet, including online retailing and social media interaction, has created a need for specialist analysts. Walmart is reported to be seeking 40 or 50 data science PHD’s at the moment.

Dick Smith Launches New Fashion Technology Store

Move is a new store concept launched at Sydney's Westfield Bondi Junction. It is selling fashion inspired accessories, computers, and mobile devices.

The store will feature limited edition and celebrity ranges of accessories alongside mainstream computers, tablets, mobile phones, cameras and headphones. There is even a booth where you can design your own phone or tablet cover and have it mailed to you the next day.

The theme is "Connected To Style" and is seen as a new approach to technology. CEO of Dick Smith and Move, Nick Abboud, says the brand targets customers who are interested in wearable technology and follows a trend developing overseas.

Move is described as a more upmarket store with quality wooden shop fittings, it's own in store fragrance and multi-lingual shop assistants. If high end fashion technology is for you this may be just what you are looking for.

Walmart Moves Closer To Online Model

Walmart is the worlds largest retailer with $469 billion in revenue in 2012. It's online competitor, Amazon, generates only $61 billion but is growing at a faster rate.

Amazon's advantage is in warehousing with dedicated distribution sites that can send a parcel for around half what it costs Walmart. But Walmart are learning and the opening of two huge dedicated distribution centres in the US will make them more competitive.

On the other side of the equation, Amazon have invested in creating pick-up points or locker points for those customers who can't accept deliveries while Walmart have instant pick-up points in their 4,100 stores spread across the US. (A store within 5 miles of 50% of the population)

The comparison is an interesting one even if just to highlight that the mix of Bricks'n'Mortar and online still has a lot of sorting out to do before a stable model can be identified.

Latest Retail Technology is Pure Fantasy for Small Retailers

Information technology has long been the buzz for retail but the latest variation involves micro-location information that enables retailers to target specific customers and adjust their offer based on customer movement and even their past purchases.

A few weeks ago I googled POS software on my laptop and now I find that no matter what website I am visiting on my computer there are ads for POS software? It is no coincidence. Google ascertained that I was interested in POS software and now they put ads in front of me at every opportunity. That is not so difficult to do online. In physical stores it is a different story but technology is being developed to engage customers in a whole new way.

Largely this technology is based around mobile phones with retailers able to identify your proximity to their store and send you enticing offers direct to your phone. At present you need to opt-in for that sort of service but expect the future to involve a whole new way of engaging with customers. A recent ad campaign in Guatemala was aimed at customers of a shoe store chain. Whenever GPS coordinates showed that the customer was in a competitors store a special countdown was activated on their mobile giving a discount based on how quickly the customer could get back to the instigating shoe store. The campaign hijacked 600 customers in its first week.

There are privacy issues with this sort of customer engagement, but if the customer gets a better deal and location based services makes retailing more attractive, we can expect it to become commonplace.Just how small retailers like market traders become involved is not yet clear - watch this space.

Have Your Say - click here

Traders Comments on Smoking, Set-ups, and More

01/10/2013 22:51:18 smoking "I support the suggestion to ban smoking at QVM"

04/10/2013 13:56:26 Stall Holder Set-Up Times "I still cannot understand stallholders not being setup on time. You have many still setting up at 8, 9, and every sunday I see one guy at exactly the same time 10:00am rushing in. Seriously. It is management's fault for not creating uniformity. Stall holders compain about no customers in the morning, well they have fuelled their own fire. Customers come, don't see stallholders set-up, so word travels.. Irrelevant of any excuse you need to be setup at least by 8am especially on the week-ends. These people who are whingeing are the same people who I guess are struggling and call for the old days to come back. "

04/10/2013 14:34:52 Profitability/Sales reporting "Management should have been better monitoring and accessing their stall holder model over the years to make better informed decisions. Monthly sales need to be recorded.. I guess with their non-existent business model for judging potential new businesses it is not in their benefit to track sales. They have been strugggling to get new generel merchandise stall holders ao they do what they can to fill vacanicies.. I am a bit confused at how many people are struggling in the market yet the market is still pretty filled up. I wonder why management continually believe things are okay. It would be interesting to see how many people are actually turning profit.Are people subsidizing their existence at the market through other means. I think traders need to sit down and have a look at their situation. Are all traders at least making $500 in sales a day to cover their costs..wouldn't leave much for new stock purchases.. Are you at least trading at 40-50% G.P(mark-up divided by selling price *100)...e.g item costs $1 you sell for $2 your G.P is 50%... If they are not they really need to re-access their situation..If you are trading 5 days(avg rent roughly $300 plus a few other things like box hire,etc=total $400 plus lets say and average of $100 a day in wages, total $900) and you have lets say $2500 sales, your costs are roughly 36% of your sales..if you are not trading on a reasonable G.P no wonder you are struggling..you are better off at Woolworths earning $20 an hour with no headaches...not sure how most feel about the issue but i genuinely believe there are many that need to re-access their business.One reason they are struggling is not because the market have failed in their duties but themselves failing to improve and react to a changing retail market. Traders are complaining yet when the meetings were going on with Paul Guerra, it was interesting that not many turned up. THIS IS WHAT NEEDS TO CHANGE FIRST FOR THINGS TO IMPROVE, ''''THE ATTITUDE OF MANAGEMENT, WHICH WOULD CREATE SOME POSITIVITY FOR THE STALL HOLDERS'''...Stall holders need to look at the changes KMART did..they have turned around a sinking ship.Profitability up, etc. etc... They have reinvented themselves and told the consumer market we have the best variety all year around.."

04/10/2013 15:18:31 Spring-Carnival Promotion "How about the market looking at getting their finger out and coming up with some promotional campaign on T.V for the spring carnival. We have what 35 people in the market office shuffling paper.How about they actually go to the board and fight for the traders for once and get some additional money over the next 3 months to try and boost the fortunes of the traders..How about they stop all the supposed marketing they are doing and invest that money into something that could turn into $ for the traders. Not sure of the exact format but it could be for EG SATURDAY/SUNDAY FIRST 300 PEOPLE TO SPEND $100 AT THE QVM BEFORE 11AM GET A $30 FOOD voucher to spend in the market(receipts from stallholders to be redeemed at the office).That way the money could be spend across the board.. E.G SPEND $20 AT 5 DIFFERENT STALLHOLDERS GET A $30 VOUCHER...ETC Surely our marketing department can get a bit inventive..."

Have Your Say - click here

Latest Retail News – 27/9/2013

Latest Retail News – 27/9/2013

1. Donut King rebrands with new store look and new logo.
2. Goodyear to close several Australian tyre stores following poor sales.
3. Global online fashion retailer, Asos, reports 40% increase in sales for 2013.
4. Kathmandu lifts full year profit almost 27%.
5. Ibisworld predicts newspaper, magazine and book retailing will continue to shrink. 
6. Tech pioneer, Blackberry, expected to announce sale to private consortium.
7. US consumer confidence fell slightly in September as nervousness over economic outlook rises.
8. David Jones says it will concentrate on multi-channel retailing, more staff and store renewals.
9. Costco’s new store in Ringwood expected to open in November.
10. Jewellers, Angus & Coote, claim high shopping centre rents have pushed them to the limit.
11. Ripcurl opens flagship store in Jakarta.
12. US luxury department store, Saks Fifth Avenue, plans expansion into Asia.
13. Big W launches e-book website.
14. Pumpkin Patch returns to profit in 2013 posting A$4.56m.
15. Nike says first quarter net income rose 38%.

Who Is Pinching Our Retail Dollar?

Are you confused by reports that Australian’s are spending more than ever while retail sales in major Australian retailers are declining? Well you are not alone and an article in Smart Company has identified some of the culprits who are pinching the retail dollar.

Tech companies like Apple and Microsoft take a huge slice of the spending pie. Apple’s recently released new iPhone range has had the cash registers ringing across all Apple stores and the volumes are huge. And it is not just the phone hardware, but the spending on telco’s accounts like Telstra and Optus that takes money away from traditional retailing.

Gaming is a thriving form of entertainment and the release of the latest edition of popular gaming title, Grand Theft Auto, drew sales of $800m in one day across the US and Europe. That is $800m in ONE day. Add in some new gaming consoles and some more blockbuster game titles before Christmas and the impact on overall spending is very high.

Then of course we have mortgage repayments. Now we know that house prices have been on the rise and the amount of money that banks have been prepared to lend is huge. Add in a desire by Australians to reduce their debt and increase their savings, and we can see why other areas of spending have suffered.

And what about energy costs – electricity and petrol. They are going up by leaps and bounds and taking our spending ability with them. And the list goes on.

At the end of an article like this it is normal for the writer to identify ways of overcoming the problems raised...................

.............................................................................................................Hmm............................................Well..................................... Aaaaah...................... Nope! Nothing comes to mind, certainly no quick fixes. What do you think? How do we turn around retail spending?

HaveYour Say – click here.

Men Shoppers Breaking Stereotypes

US consumer data is showing that men are more likely to look for sales items and embrace the shopping experience than we might have thought.

Millennial and Gen X men have been brought up in a shopping centre culture and their social activities often centred around shopping centres. Global economic difficulties have made price consciousness an acceptable shopping ingredient even for men and they are adopting some of the more sophisticated shopping techniques previously associated with women.

A number of US retailers are upgrading their investment on men shoppers. They often need to adjust their strategies including making shopping as efficient as possible and removing aspects that might make the process tedious. For QVM, we may need to make our directory assistance at the market more sophisticated with electronic touch pads or the like, but it sounds like the rewards may be worth it at least for this shopper group.

Have Your Say – click here.

Who Is In Control of Retailing? -

The dynamics of retailing have changed significantly and traders who want to turn back the clock are just wasting their time. How often do you hear traders say “Just bring back the customers we used to have” as if we simply have to recreate the conditions of the past. It is true that we need to understand what drives our customers but meeting their needs is going to involve totally different ways of doing things and the customers we used to have no longer exist.

The answer to our question “Who is in control of retailing?” used to be wholesalers who searched the world looking for products and then made them available to retailers often with a high degree of exclusivity involved. Then retailers got wise and started doing the same thing. They would go direct to factories overseas, cut out the wholesaler and offer direct to their extremely grateful customers who liked the new transparency and the slightly cheaper prices that often went with it. But now, thanks to the world wide web, it is the customer who has direct access and their understanding of what a product is worth has changed significantly. Online retailing is quiet amazing. You can sit in the comfort of your home, examine catalogs at your leisure, make a choice, pay immediately, and then sit back and wait for the goods to arrive, usually delivered to your door. The convenience aspect is huge and there is little doubt that the customer is now in control.

Does that mean that retailers like us are superfluous? Well, no. Consumers still want to touch and feel products. They still want expert product advice. And they still enjoy the bricks’n’mortar shopping experience. But, to put it crudely, you cannot afford to piss them off because online is a very attractive second choice. Does that mean that retailers like us need to change how we operate? Well, yes. We need to get the convenience aspect really right. No broken promises, no nasty surprises, and no stock outs (unless you set up a raincheck). Keeping up with what's hot and being innovative is also very important. We need to provide great value at all times, not just in the product, but in the services that go with it. Even more, we need to show that we are prepared to go the extra mile to meet their needs. It is becoming increasingly apparent that price is not the be-all and end-all of good customer relations. Customers will be prepared to pay a little extra, maybe as much as 20% extra, if the service you provide is exceptional.

So, what do we do now? Pretty up  your stall (professionally merchandise it) so that customers know you take pride in what you are selling. Provide all the services that make it easy for your customers like a variety of payment methods, open return policies and a variety of delivery options. Be innovative and exciting and, above all, give your customers the respect they deserve. After all, they are now in control.

Have Your Say - click here.

Trader's Comment On Bus Parking

24/09/2013 10:11:24 BUS PARKING "I recently heard an idea proposing buses be allowed to park in A and B sheds. great idea however i think you would have trouble convincing stall holders in C shed for  it is a good idea.They would have to be facing all the crowds , the fumes the noise, traffic congestion,etc. Without waiting to wait until my kids have children, I believe a viable solution would be to utilise queen street, all the area opposite a, b, c d ,e sheds. Easily accessible, room for a number of buses and considering that area is used on Saturdays for car parking, WHY NOT. The council needs to start looking at the interests of the market rather than their revenue model. Might have a few expenses to cordon off, etc but seriously it is not ROCKET SCIENCE.It seems these solutions are 
not being proposed to allow various people to justify their jobs, The new CEO comes in and what will he/she do. Again , he/she will need 3 months to get up to speed, then another meeting to discuss the previous meetings, and then more meetings to discuss possible solutions and then I wake up to find out 10 years down the track the council and management are still brainstorming..I have given  a simple and practical, short term solution and it cost nothing"

Have Your Say - click here.

COMMENTS:
29/9/2013 10:05 Bus Parking "I'd like to see an alternative proposal for loading/unloading of fruit trucks and forklift movement before giving up Queen St. to buses. Buses would create quite a barrier between the top and bottom sections of the market. What about the current car park (without reducing the number of car parking spots)."

Dutch Retail Promotion Thrills Crowd

This video of a shopping centre event in Holland is promoted a museum and specifically one of its important paintings. It is a very creative way of involving retail in public promotion activities. Just check out the crowd reaction.




Thanks to Bob Andrewartha for the link.