The History of Retailing…Lesson #2 #Standards

In Lesson #1 I talked about “Tell the customer what you sell”.  For my second lesson, I would like to introduce a much more current example from a Marks & Spencer store opening I managed in November 2003.

“Store Standards” is a fundamental Retail lesson – Making your store look amazing with everything in it’s correct place and tidy.  In 1923, standards were so much higher – by this I mean standards of etiquette within everyday life.  This obviously filtered through to the way businesses, and especially shops, were run.

I attach a few pictures of the M&S store and you will see the perfect layout, facings, cleanliness and general feel…this was 5 minutes before the store opened and the most perfect any store will ever be!

Once you open the doors, the products are purchased, the displays are changed and life move on…..but every morning before you open an M&S store you check the shop floor standards and do a “floor walk”.  I used to love doing these and I always tried to look at the store as a customer.

Keeping standards high online is easier…..you don’t have customer physically touching and moving products…but the same rules apply, as over time you forget to update an image or change a description.

Keeping standards high is so important, and every retailer and etailer should attempt to keep the standards as they were on day one – be proud of your store every day 🙂