Opening a shop can be a very exciting time, once you have found your premises, arranged your initial financing and of course decided on what kind of shop you will have, it is time to start building for success. Running a shop is by no means easy and you will need to ensure that you are fully prepared to work hard in order to find and maintain clients as well as making smart decisions on how best to make money. First thing’s first however and it will be important that you create a solid foundation for your shop’s success, here are some key areas of the business which you’ll need to prepare you for a profitable business.
Slick Payment System
When it comes to point of sale, customers need a slick and easy way of paying for their goods. More than 85% of high street sales are now made using card or digital payments and you should ensure that you have a payment system that is capable of receiving all of these types of payments. Payments these days range from credit and debit card, contactless and to things like digital payments such as Apple Pay and if you want to give customers the easiest checkout experience then make sure that your payment system is geared up for it.
Creative Branding
You want your shop to stand out in the street in order to attract customers and regardless of whether you are selling bread, clothing or antiques, you will need to be creative with your branding. Spend some time investigating colors and shapes and how they can work best with the mindset of your potential customers. Remember also that you want your customers coming back so it is important that you have a brand which will make an impression in their mind.
Clean Feel
There is nothing worse than a crowded shop and if you truly want to exhibit your products and make customers want to be there, then you will need to have a spacious minimalistic style within your walls. Think of somewhere like the Apple shops, they are clean, open and spacious and they perfectly display the products in a calm setting, work wisely with the space you have to create an environment where your customers can feel relaxed.
Outstanding Staff
It is the people who make the business what it is and if you want to stand out from the competition then it doesn’t matter how good your products are, if the service is poor then your customers simply won’t come back. Make sure that every member of staff understands what your business stands for and are all trained in exactly the same way. Your staff should believe in what the business is doing and be friendly and helpful so that customers know exactly what they are going to get when they enter your store. It will be your job to not only ensure that staff are trained to the same level but also that you address any member who is not up to standard, these people are the front line of your business and they need to be up to an outstanding standard.