At Home or Overseas, Stores Suffering through the Recession

The last 12 months have been a difficult time for all businesses, but Britain's high street (high end to those of us on this side of the pond) stores have had it worse than most. During 2011, job losses, pay cuts, and rising household expenses hit even the best-off families, and meant that the amount of disposable income flowing towards high street stores fell dramatically.

The retailers that were worst hit were the ones that sell high fashion goods, specialist products, and luxuries. The outdoor goods retailer, Blacks, saw shares fall by 90% after poor sales, and luxury chocolates retailer Thorntons issued a profit warning last month. People are still buying sporting goods and chocolates, but it seems that they are more price-conscious than normal, and are heading to supermarkets and catalogue stores rather than more expensive specialist retailers.

Now that supermarkets sell clothes, books, dvds, music, games, and decorating products as well as food, it's hard for many people to justify a trip to a crowded shopping mall where they may or may not find the products that they'll need. This is especially true when supermarkets now have enough purchasing power to provide prices that can often beat the specialist retailers.

Surviving the Recession

So, what can the average retailer do to entice people through their doors? Well, one thing that many smaller retailers overlook is accessibility. It may seem like a minor thing, but features such as automatic doors and handicap door openers can make a big difference. When a disabled person, or a rushed parent with a cumbersome buggy, passes by your store, they are more likely to consider a visit to your shop if it's easy to get in. It's much easier to stroll through automatic doors, or tap the button to activate the handicap door openers, than it is to have to wrestle with a heavy door.

Of course, you need to give people a reason to want to go in to your shop, rather than to keep going to the supermarket instead. This is an area where even the best retailers are struggling. If "Thorntons" is no longer the brand that most people think of when they want some nice chocolates to give as a gift, and "Blacks" isn't the first choice for hiking boots, then what hope does the average independent retailer have?

Branching Out

One thing that some companies are doing is expanding beyond just bricks and mortar service. Offering bespoke goods, mail order, and collect at store options is a low cost way to entice more people to buy from you. 

Some brands have gone a step further, and made partnerships with local restaurants and cafes. This can be an effective way of reducing rental costs, and also a good way to bring more customers into the store, but it doesn't always lead to more sales. As an advertising trick, however, it can work well.

Book and magazine stores have had the best luck with this idea so far - after all, coffee and books go well together. However, this partnership isn't always perfect.  Coffee-stained stock is not a good thing!

This article was written by James Harper on behalf of Automatic Access, suppliers of automatic doors and handicap door openers to retail businesses and other outlets.