5 Things I Learned Running a Retail Food Business

Business books abound trumpeting effective ways to build a retail business. Many are full of useful tips and strategies for growing a business efficiently. I have read and put into practice much of the advice espoused in these books. My college Retail Management course of years ago was fine preparation for the vagaries of the retail world.

However, you just have to get to it and "do" the business of retailing. Hands-on work in the trenches of the retail battleground is worth an array of tomes written on the subject.

The following are 5 things I learned running a retail food business.

1. Your Employees Attitudes Will Make or Break Your Business

This may seem like an overstatement to some. But it’s true. You can have the best products and services. You can have the most modern store concept and layout among your competitors. You may have the business acumen to implement the initiatives you know will build your business.

Nonetheless, disinterested, inattentive, and even snarky employees will lead your business to its ultimate demise. It my not happen all at once, but it will happen. You must take action to change wrong employee attitudes, or turf said employees, replacing them with those who revel in giving their best to your customers.

2. Cash Flow Is King in Retail

It’s important to understand cash inflow and outflow as regards your retail shop. You want to have liquidity (cash or assets easily converted into cash) to meet expenses that are always forthcoming.

Moreover, you want cash available after meeting these expenses. You want cash that you can re-invest into your store. This may be in the form of new and trendy inventory. It may be cash to implement an aggressive marketing program. It may be cash used for expanding your business—a new store, or renovations to your existing location.

You can only understand the details of cash flow by the daily running of your business—that above-mentioned hands-on approach, and watching how you spend and earn cash. Books theorize about cash flow; hands-on experience studying your daily cash flow solidifies the concept in your mind and leads you to take appropriate action to build your cash reserves.

3. Inventory Must Move

This relates to cash flow. Your stock is cash in the form of hard assets. Inventory sitting in your backroom for inordinate periods of time costs you. It prevents you from purchasing new and trendy inventory your customers’ desire. It ties up cash that can be used for advertising and promotional activities.

It means paying rent for storage space that’s not needed when the stock can be active on the sales floor. Inventory must turn, move, dance, walk, hop, or whatever you want to call it, out the door frequently, so you get quality ROI (Return on Assets).

4. Focus on a Moving Customer

Customers demand your attention. It doesn’t mean pouncing on them with high-pressure sales tactics. It does mean paying attention to them and understanding why they’ve entered your store in the first place. A moving customer is one navigating your store and then possibly heading to the entrance to leave.

Interact with them before they head back out into the mall or onto the street. Focusing on a moving customer means stopping them and listening to what they want from your store.

5. Today Builds Onto Tomorrow

This may sound ethereal and trite, but it’s really all about patience. In today’s instant gratification society, patience is not always seen as a virtue. It will take time to build your retail business. Today’s initiatives and strategies, if they are solid ones, will pay-off if you consistently work them daily.

My college Retail Management Program Co-ordinator always instilled in us one major "proverb." “Plan your work, and work your Plan”—daily. Be patient and watch today build onto tomorrow, and then to the next day and onwards. Monitor and measure the positive results produced from this action.

Consider the above 5 points when it comes to building your retail business. Success is in the "doing"—with any retail theory you have as the foundation for the actual doing.