5 Tips To A Successful Retail Launch

Retail depends on YOU and your brand positioning. The Retail industry is evolving, and we saw an acceleration and transition into the digital era such as online e-commerce which grew tremendously. Building a business is not easy and it is probably one of the hardest things you will ever do in your life. However, many of the greatest companies were founded during a time of crisis, hence with every crisis there an opportunity to grow and make an impact. 

 I would suggest the below 5 elements for a successful retail launch:

1.   A Well Defined Target Customers!

Once you define your brand identity & vision statement, the below questions would help you to identify your target audience: 

a)What is the age segment, b)Where do they live, c)What brands those other person shops, d)What is their annual income, e) What percentage of income they do spend with you?, f)What makes them shop at your place?

You can conduct a survey or a focus group session to identify and get those questions. The bigger the number of surveyors the better the feedback would be to identify your customer needs.

2. Having a Financial plan

It is the foundation and starting point of any business. It will tell you how much funding you need to start to run and grow your business. The basic three things you must know to create a financial plan are:

a) Expenses (fixed versus variable), b) Revenue (volume of sales), c) Cost of goods sold (i.e. your inventory level you need)

By having the above things, you would be able to create a Cash Flow, Profit & Loss, and Balance Sheet Statement.

3. Having Unique Merchandize and Selling Point

Buying is an art and science!!

Why Art? Simply because you need to spot the trends and consumer’s spending behaviors

Why Science? Because you need to make sure what your buying will cover your expenses and make a profit. Buying will be determined by:

• a) Season

• b) What is trending

• c) Price range

• d) Where do you buy unique merchandise

4. Having Industry Knowledge

Retail is constantly evolving, and it is important to understand the industry trend. 

It is very important to study the market players and make an industry analysis with the five forces of Porter 

5. Having a Strategic Plan

This is where your operation together hit your goals. You must create a business plan:

• a) Business concept (Name, identity),

• b) Business operation (How you will run your day to day operation),

• c) Business management (Who will run it?),

• d) Financial analysis and forecast,

• e) Executive summary