What are your top retail issues, questions and struggles?

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Adam Chatterley

On a mission . . .
Joined
Mar 18, 2014
Messages
54
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25
Location
Leeds
Hey Geeks . .

I am interviewing one of the top experts in our industry in the next few days and discussing everything we can about retailing.

To make sure I squeeze every bit of information I can out of him . . I wondered if you would post your top questions, issues and struggles to do with retailing, selling, sales, pricing etc.

The interview will be part of the launch week of a new podcast in January so you can hear all the questions and answers then!

Many Thanks

-Adam
 
Why can you buy everything I try and sell in TKMaxx!!?!
 
I stock goldwell so can sometimes be very drawn in by the whole helping stylist thing by this I mean they market very well to stylists but I struggle to then pass this passion on to my clients, i have stock sat on my shelves forever! Ideally I'd like a client who has come in for a bleach service to take home all 5 rich repair products to use at home, just like the goldwell marketing tells me to... However the reality is I spend the appointment trying to convince the client that the products are the best way to maintain their hair then they tell me they use tigi from b&m :mad: @£9.99 for a shampoo and conditioner for a brand I was originally going to retail myself, who am I to argue o_O it would seem I'm banging my head on the wall so to speak.

Olaplex has sold well to some of my clients due to the nature of what it does & the excitement of a new product & I'm equally excited about this product as I am the retail line I carry but people are just not interested in buying any of it, there's only so long I feel I can bang on about this product being perfect for x problem with the hair etc to no avail. It's not even my approach to the sale that's the problem as far as can see either, I listen to what their needs are and then suggest a cure from my retail line rather than the hard sell approach (I've tried that too mind) they just don't seem as interested in doing the best for their hair as I do!

I don't know if it's a financial thing or what with my lot but their just not buying!
 
Surf girl i understand your frustration ... thanks to walmart and other stores selling professional brands it has made it harder for you and I to move our retail
 
Surf girl i understand your frustration ... thanks to walmart and other stores selling professional brands it has made it harder for you and I to move our retail
Nice name :) lol
 
Online sites selling products heavily discounted!
 
When it comes to retail, its always having to differentiate the consumer product available on high street against the professional product. The are far to many ads that have the smallest survey number that seem to always compare against a "salon treatment" be that mascara, skincare, tanning, foot file, gel nail varnish, the box dyes, handheld laser machines... all these marketing ploys..

My frustrations are that its misleading, it also takes away from the hard hours that you have invested into buying in brands and it takes away from the training you have undertaken to gain that knowledge to have it instantly wiped out against that product on the shelf because it "must be the same". This needs to change. In my opinion if you are comparing a like to like product have a survey that represents that with an adequate number of participants. 66 out of 67 agree is not very fair. (just what where all the questions asked- these focus groups arent always reliable)

My main issue with online retailers is the wholesale price. we have to pay VAT on every item and yes they may afford to stock that brand in larger quantities to other retailers but when its sold for less than the wholesale/retail prices in some instances, it really grips me. Because i may have countered a loss, or that brand has decided to absorb £10 off every item. It's never passed on for you to have that sell.

I was at a training center where a lady had gotten her client to invest in some products and rather than her going back to the real source she decided to go online, that client went back to her and said it was cheaper and the real deal. this has been countered many times with our clients now saying oh i can buy my own spray tanning machine or i saw it in a reputable shop so its it must be ok. They dont mind because they also have the option of free delivery, whereas if you was to sell that online you would have to find a courier think about packaging, damaged goods or returns, refunds- its never ending cycle to compete.

Don't forget we have to pay out for displays, testers, disposables or absorb the cost for a tester, against your profit margins. I personally try to choose ethically sourced products that i know are not animal tested, peta certified and vegan because i know they have had rigorous testing and it minimizes potential reactions that i may have to encounter retailing it.

At the end of the day we only win our retail clients back when they want more out of their products, or had a disaster at home, then its easy to give out professional advice but it can be harder to retail against consumer products due to the marketing conglomerate big corporation money backing. please have a nice moan at this big wig with my pointers!:D:D xoxo
 
I don't know if any of this applies to you guys but my hairdresser has never ever even tried to sell me a product. I might actually buy them if he did but he doesn't. He also STILL doesn't have a card machine. It's nearly 2016 for goodness sake. Any salon of any size that doesn't have a card machine is missing out - and the 'cashpoint down the road' argument holds no water!

I hope that everyone who moans about retail at least has a card machine.

To the op. I retail a lot so no questions I can think of. Yes, a lot of products I retail are available cheaper online but we have very few who do this luckily.

I'm always interested in what 'top experts' have to say, but have to add that while retail can be taught, you have to find your own way of selling. What sits comfortably with you. I should watch a seminar from one of these salon specialists. Unfortunately I think I know it all and would probably break the computer lol.

Looking forward to the results @Adam Chatterley.

Vic x
 
When trade suppliers sell to the public with the same discount I get. I buy £1000's, they buy £20 worth.

When your trade supplier sells on eBay for cheaper than you can get it for.....and offers free shipping
 
When trade suppliers sell to the public with the same discount I get. I buy £1000's, they buy £20 worth.

When your trade supplier sells on eBay for cheaper than you can get it for.....and offers free shipping
I agree!
We have a very large wholesaler within walking distance to us, that stock all opi products including the gel color system, for wholesale prices! Which makes it extremely hard for us to even sell any nail polish! We use opi on clients, but couldn't then sell another product??
 
Hi Everyone,

Thanks for all your comments and questions . . I really appreciate it. But I should probably clarify!

The person I am interviewing is Pete Scott who is one of the leading sales trainers in the industry, so he is helping salons and therapists to sell more. I should have been more clear on this in the first place.

Pete is actually trying to help people just like you and your business's sell more products in a more ethical and more successful way. So the type of questions I was after were related to this.

Some of the questions you have sent me do apply . . but if you have any more please send them my way!

Many thanks!

-Adam
 
Haha great so now they'll edit their sales pitch accordingly so it looks like they have all our worries under control....
 
When trade suppliers sell to the public with the same discount I get. I buy £1000's, they buy £20 worth.

When your trade supplier sells on eBay for cheaper than you can get it for.....and offers free shipping

Hi Beckybee . . .

Do suppliers actually do this? I am aware that some wholesalers might buy product in bulk and then sell on sites like eBay at a price closer to the wholesale price, but are you saying that your supplier sells on eBay for the same price they offer you?

If this is the case would you be prepared to let me know who this is so I can verify?

Many Thanks

-Adam
 
Hi Adam
Sorry, I'm not going to say who, because I still use them ATM.....I'm lucky I don't rely on selling products. My salon is lifestyle/enjoyment.

But it goes on believe me. Just pick a product/brand and google the heck out of it, sooner or later a product will show up on eBay. Then compare the trade price. Many suppliers treat eBay as a trade customer.

ebay is a trade price selling place. Purely because of all the compition. Very rarely do I find an item cheaper in the shops. I hardly sell any products because my customers get it on line cheaper than I can sell it for or cheaper that I can buy it.

The suppliers are not daft, the sell under a different name. But You only have to find the directors and compair the findings to the other company. Or check the address,

I've believe I have spotted two suppliers who do this with supplies.

Not forgetting companies that rebrand the same product in different packaging. One for trade the other for retail, 2 bites of the cherry.....

Sorry rant over lol
 
In my opinion, it's not worth trying to retail anymore.
I have shelves FULL OF GOODIES........yet NO ONE buys!!!!!!!!:(
I've tried 'bundles', giving a % OFF, FREE conditioning treatment when purchasing the
'Take home' range, BOGOF...........IMPOSSIBLE.
I've got L'Oreal, Cloud Nine, CND......good quality products, NO INTEREST....:confused:
The problem is, the client ALWAYS believes they can get it cheaper online, and I'm a robbing bast**d! :p
Only today, a client told me she had bought herself a new 'professional' hairdryer online....£145.00.!!!!!!
Why did she not come to me?...... I could of advised her on a better alternative to what she had purchased,and possibly saved her some money!
My 'Cloud nine' at 15% off, is sadly sitting there, with all my other Christmas goodies,collecting dust! :oops:
 
My local warehouse sells to me at trade price + vat and is rediculously strict on insurance & qualification proof to be able to buy anything but they have an eBay account that sells everything that they have in the store at the same price as I can buy it in store, and you don't need any info to buy just an eBay account!
 
I find it frustrating when a product company wants you to stock their items in salon but also retails their products on a website too. It especially annoys me when they do promotions that that we can't match too. Clients will now, for the majority of the time research to see if they can find the product that you have recommended cheaper online or the assume that you do sell it for more. I sometimes feel like I am a showroom/product counter for the on-line venders. I can't be the only one that thinks that too?

For skincare in particular, clients often forget that as a beauty therapist you recommend a product based on skin analysis and also your training and experience of treating certain skin conditions. I just don't think the best results can be achieved without a proper understanding of what you are trying to treat and the properties of the ingredients in the products.

Manufacturers I am sure know this as that is why they insist on having product knowledge training prior to being able stock the range. However they are letting clients with no knowledge of the range self select and purchase direct from them.
 
Hi Everyone,

Thanks for all your questions and feedback . . . it was all really useful and a more than a bit eye opening!

The interview is now done and will be available next week following the official launch of the The Beauty Business Podcast! It's worth listening to in order to hear what is said about your comments above . . . it might be a little bit controversial?!? Plus there is also a world exclusive announcement which I am sure you will want to know more about!

If you have no idea what a podcast is or why you would want to know . . . I have put together a handy little page explaining what a podcast is and why I have launched one, you can find it here: http://salonbusinesssecrets.com/what-is-a-podcast/

If you would simply like to register your interest to be informed about the podcast when it is available you can go to www.beautybusinesspodcast.com and register your interest there!

Sneak Peak: Shhhh . . . . there is already an introductory episode available on iTunes which you can listen to if you go here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-beauty-business-podcast/id1071862298

I would love to hear what you think?

-Adam
 
*whispers* it's independent, not independant ;)
 

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