Gowning businesses create many challenges for their owners and managers.
One of the biggest challenges for those with a dollar store business is developing business practices to support the massive quantity of freight associated with growing and maintaining ever-greater sales levels.
A fast-track store can become derailed when there is not a well-thought-out and well-executed plan of action to deal with purchasing, receiving and stocking merchandise.
In this article I will review 3 powerful tips for merchandise handling to support growing sales in your dollar store business.
1.
Document all activities associate with freight handling.
Having a well-documented and communicated set of guidelines regarding freight receiving and merchandise handling is important.
Your guidelines need to cover every aspect of the flow, from the time a truck arrives at the door through the sale of items from your store.
Who handles freight? What are your receiving guidelines - including time limits, documentation, item pricing, and handling problems such as missing or damaged merchandise? Don't forget to set guidelines for staging received merchandise to go to the sales floor.
Specific guidelines need to be developed for the entire merchandise flow.
Develop your guidelines before you open your dollar store business.
Modify and communicate changes as the need arises.
2.
Set time limits for freight being held in off-sales floor areas.
The simple fact is that every item not placed on display on the sales floor does not contribute to sales.
While all of the activities associated with receiving are important, time is of the essence when it comes to getting merchandise to the sales floor.
This may seem very simple and possibly even ineffective.
Yet establishing timeframes for various tasks adds a sense of urgency to the process.
Creating and communicating these timeframe expectations can quickly generate additional sales for your store.
Fast-selling items that have sold-out can more quickly be replenished.
New in-demand items will start to sell more quickly when they hit the floor sooner as well.
3.
Create excess merchandise storage spaces on the sales floor itself.
Why store excess merchandise in a backroom? Why not create storage space on the sales floor? Creating sales space can be as easy as running shelving at the very top of your fixtures.
If your fixtures are 6-feet tall or taller, this space is frequently unused, yet available to be used as back-stock area.
Replenishing merchandise then becomes as easy as pulling merchandise down from a 6-foot tall shelf directly above the display being re-stocked.
Other often overlooked 'on-floor storage' areas in your dollar store business include window-areas, entry and lobby areas, centers of wide-aisles and other un-merchandised areas of your store.
Some thought needs to go into using these back-up areas.
From a logistics perspective, be sure you are not blocking aisles and emergency exits.
Don't make it cramped and uncomfortable for your customers to shop in your store.
From a merchandise handling perspective, don't place thousands of tiny items clear across the store from their ultimate home display location.
To your dollar store business success!
One of the biggest challenges for those with a dollar store business is developing business practices to support the massive quantity of freight associated with growing and maintaining ever-greater sales levels.
A fast-track store can become derailed when there is not a well-thought-out and well-executed plan of action to deal with purchasing, receiving and stocking merchandise.
In this article I will review 3 powerful tips for merchandise handling to support growing sales in your dollar store business.
1.
Document all activities associate with freight handling.
Having a well-documented and communicated set of guidelines regarding freight receiving and merchandise handling is important.
Your guidelines need to cover every aspect of the flow, from the time a truck arrives at the door through the sale of items from your store.
Who handles freight? What are your receiving guidelines - including time limits, documentation, item pricing, and handling problems such as missing or damaged merchandise? Don't forget to set guidelines for staging received merchandise to go to the sales floor.
Specific guidelines need to be developed for the entire merchandise flow.
Develop your guidelines before you open your dollar store business.
Modify and communicate changes as the need arises.
2.
Set time limits for freight being held in off-sales floor areas.
The simple fact is that every item not placed on display on the sales floor does not contribute to sales.
While all of the activities associated with receiving are important, time is of the essence when it comes to getting merchandise to the sales floor.
This may seem very simple and possibly even ineffective.
Yet establishing timeframes for various tasks adds a sense of urgency to the process.
Creating and communicating these timeframe expectations can quickly generate additional sales for your store.
Fast-selling items that have sold-out can more quickly be replenished.
New in-demand items will start to sell more quickly when they hit the floor sooner as well.
3.
Create excess merchandise storage spaces on the sales floor itself.
Why store excess merchandise in a backroom? Why not create storage space on the sales floor? Creating sales space can be as easy as running shelving at the very top of your fixtures.
If your fixtures are 6-feet tall or taller, this space is frequently unused, yet available to be used as back-stock area.
Replenishing merchandise then becomes as easy as pulling merchandise down from a 6-foot tall shelf directly above the display being re-stocked.
Other often overlooked 'on-floor storage' areas in your dollar store business include window-areas, entry and lobby areas, centers of wide-aisles and other un-merchandised areas of your store.
Some thought needs to go into using these back-up areas.
From a logistics perspective, be sure you are not blocking aisles and emergency exits.
Don't make it cramped and uncomfortable for your customers to shop in your store.
From a merchandise handling perspective, don't place thousands of tiny items clear across the store from their ultimate home display location.
To your dollar store business success!
SHARE
