Stock turn indicates how quickly a retailer’s stock is sold and then reordered. A simplistic calculation is: Stock turn = Number of items sold ÷ Average stock level. For example. A retailer sells 10,000 items in a year, and on average holds 2,500 items at one time. 10,000 ÷ 2,500 = 4. Therefore the stock turn rate is 4. This […]

The BERR’s "Productivity in the Retail Sector" Report describes how best practice in retail is about increasing productivity. Productivity is the measure of making more profit from the same resources. The bottom line is that improvements in productivity will improve your profitability. And there appears to be room for improvement as recent figures from the Institute for Fiscal Studies showing […]

Q. I am launching an e-commerce arm to my retail business. I am wondering about the software required to present the product shots on my store website. Is this part of the job of the company who provides the web-design? Read more…

So, how on earth do you find EPoS software that will suit your business and deliver true benefit? Here’s a guide to help. 1. Choose an EPoS partner not a supplier. Head and shoulders the number one priority is to find a partner you are comfortable with. This is not like buying a television from Comet. It will not be […]

Results of the consumer survey show increasing reliance on internet as part of a multichannel shopping experience. Also, those who shop mostly on the internet are the higher Christmas spenders. Read more…

Overall online spending in 2008 reached record levels for each individual month (IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index).  UK shoppers spent over £4.67 billion online in December. This represents an equivalent of £76 for every person in the UK, an increase of 14.2% on December 2007. This growth comes despite the peak internet shopping weekend being on 29th and 30th November. […]

There are more and more people getting fed up with the intensity of the negative press on retail. OK so it is certainly tough at the moment, but a lot of these retailers than have gone under have been stugggling for years.  Speaking to our own customers before and after Christmas, the vast majority have had as good as or […]

With little growth forecast for 2009 we can expect tougher times on the high street. So what is an independent retailer to do? One approach is to batten down the hatches and hope the cold winds of recession will pass over keeping fingers crossed for survival. An alternative, more proactive approach is to use this time to make the business […]

Up-selling and cross-selling are established methods of improving sales and increasing customer loyalty. Up-selling is the practice of offering customers a product in addition to the product they are currently purchasing. Cross-selling refers to selling items that are related or can be integrated with the item being sold. Both techniques can increase sales volume and provide a valuable service to […]

The advice for retailers wanting to improve their eCommerce performance in 2009 is to focus on the  long tail and measure visitors and conversions, not how high the rankings are for a few trophy phrases. Read more…