Retailers – time to dig out the Santa hats…. By Steve Marsten.

Well the Christmas month has arrived – the decorations and tinsel is dusted off and hung, the carols start playing over and over again and get in your head and drive you crazy. People wear colourful clothes and funny hats! Yep - I’m lovin it!!

Christmas is also a time of spending for many and so its time to consider how to make the most of your business shopfront. If you are in retail and you are not seeing increased sales at this time of the year, then its time for a rethink.

Start with staff – it’s never more important then to remind staff to smile especially in front of customers. If they’re struggling with that concept then perhaps early Christmas holidays maybe necessary.

Dress up your store. It doesn’t have to be with too much. It doesn’t have to be with Christmas trees and lights. Think about what decorations go with your style of shop. Decorations need to reflect your brand and personality. Sometimes a little is enough.

What are your Christmas deals? As part of the festive spirit offer a special discount. Perhaps only on certain stock items and rotate them through the month. Perhaps 12% off everything for the last 12 days of Christmas. Be innovative. Talk and plan with your staff on how they will operate. This is the busy time so it needs to be “all hands on deck”.

Consider a promo stand in your store to feature a particular stock item or service. Often this attracts people in just to check things out. That can lead to staff engagement and a sale. Consider a “boxing day sale” before Boxing Day! A Super Santa Sale on the Saturday before Christmas or some freebies with every purchase over $50 or $100.

Consider a gift wrapping service – free or otherwise. This can be a drawcard in itself. I have seen it do remarkable things in some businesses. For example a business owner told me that the Gift Wrapping service encourages people to buy more gifts in the one spot. Of course – that’s why Myer and DJ’s do it.

So get the decorations out and up, pump up those Xmas carols, allow the staff to dig out their Christmas T-Shirts and Elf hats and shine up those smiles. Happy staff attract sales! And enjoy the Christmas cheer. At Sothertons it’s one of the busier months however it’s also an enjoyable time of the year. For more information on improving your sales – call us on 4972 1300.