Planning Your Store With an Eye to the Future.

Jeff’s Corner: I recently received a call from a franchisor who told me that sales were down in his franchised stores. He attributed much of this to the fact that the stores were beginning to show wear and they were not up to date or customer friendly. He said that the franchisees could not afford a major rehab but something had to be done.

He was right his stores did need a rehab, which could be affordably implemented using a modular plan over a period of time.  The point of this article however is that the franchisor did not do his homework before building the first store. If they had, the store build outs would have been constructed with an eye to the future.

The problem with some franchisors is that they are so anxious to sell franchises they bypass good business fundamentals that would guarantee their success. They may be excellent entrepreneurs, but they are at a disadvantage when it gets down to the “nitty gritty” of putting the whole package together.

This is where the professionals should come into the picture. A good store designer and manufacturer are essential. It may cost some money in the beginning but it will pay off in the long run by giving you a sustainable package to franchise.

When sitting down with a store designer or manufacturer there are some basic principles that should be used as guidelines in planning your store. 

1. 1. The design of the store and the placement of displays should facilitate traffic flow and sales objectives.
    
2. 2. The sales and customer service area should be separated so that they do not interfere with each other.
    
3. 3. The traffic flow should be designed to flow freely through the store in a manner to allow the customer to sample all of the merchandise.
    
4. 4. Merchandising displays need to be designed to fit multiple floor plans and yet maintain a visual continuity no matter what configuration is dictated.
    
5. 5. On site modifications to the various display units should be seriously avoided, due to cost ramifications.
    
6. 6.The entire store environment needs to convey your branded image. This is done, through repetitious use of color, shapes and logos. There is an old advertising axiom that remains as true today as when it was first stated.
   “Repetition gains share of mind. Share of mind means share of market. Share of market means share of sales.”
    
7. 7. The use of color should support the branded image as well as put the customer at ease and influence their buying habits.
    
8. 8. Think modular versus custom. By thinking modular the store is adaptable to any location size and shape. Modular means factory manufactured at less cost and quicker installation.
    
9. 9. The stores must be designed and engineered to be manageable for multi-state shipping and installation. This includes warehousing, packing, shipping and delivery to the installation site. The units should be sized to be transported with or without tailgates. They must also be size to go through corridors, narrow doors and fit in to low ceiling installations.

If you follow these guidelines you should have a well branded store that is; easy to install, easy to maintain, easy to update and most of all provide an easy shopping experience for your clientele.