Lower Ground Floor
Business
Plan & SWOT Analysis
Joel
Armstrong
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
Business Plan
- Contents
Page
3. Business
Plan
Vision
Mission
Values
Market
Analysis
4. Current
Status
Staff
Placement
5. Promotion
Operation
Management
6. Staff
7. Visual
Merchandising
8. Products,
Price, Promotion
SWOT
Analysis
9. Money
/ Sales
SWOT
Analysis
10. Operations
SWOT
Analysis
11. Staff
SWOT
Analysis
12. Store / Visual
Merchandising / Products
13. Action
Plan
14. Interview
Questions
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
Business Plan
Vision:
To create an
environment where customers, staff, and products are all
connected effectively, efficiently, professionally and passionately,
to increase customer satisfaction and profitability.
Mission:
To connect
customers with our amazing product
Values:
Efficiency,
results, positive attitude and service – TCE, team work, self
sufficiency, mastery, and purpose
Market
Analysis:
One of the major
issues I see for retailers in my position is a lack of focus and
understanding in connecting customers with appropriate product. Many
Regent St businesses including Our business, rely on extensive
marketing to sell products, this seems to be acceptable, as the sales
people throughout Regent St can be very casual and unfocussed when I
have tried to make a connection with sales assistants and products.
The sales person can and should do much to enhance the customer's
experience and interaction with the product. In order to add value to
products, to extend sales, create a professional environment, and
give the customer a higher quality of service than any of our
neighboring businesses we must focus our attention on planning,
controlling, organising and leading key areas of retail sales and
sales people which will give us an edge on our competition.
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
Business Plan
– Current Status
Staff
- Four full time staff, one part time
- #1: MSW specialist, competent at controlling, organising, and planning, self directed and able with direction to direct others
- #2: Full time sales assistant with good knowledge of shoes, with direction he could financially control the Accessories and TH Collection, strong sales person
- #3: Full time sales assistant, excels at administration, replenishment. Needs direction with standards and sales
- #4: Part time sales assistant, will do a professional job with direction, will be leaving the position in three weeks
- Structure
- Very little structure or understanding of role within the Lower Ground Floor
- Few goals, or expectations from management, and mainly self management of operations, systems, KPIs
- Each employee has a strength and a weakness relating to the role they need to be doing
Placement
- Lower Ground Floor. Part of a new three story store.
- The Lower Ground Floor is an extension of Menswear on the Ground Floor with interchangeable product. MSW is the first product to be seen at the bottom of the stairs and neighbored, by floor space:
- Tailoring 35%
- Accessories 15%
- TH Collection 15%
- MSW 35%
- As Lower Ground Floor is an extension of Ground Floor menswear and denim, the Lower Ground Floor menswear is the focus by the majority of customers (as the first department at the bottom of the stairs).
- The MSW product is similar to that on the Ground Floor, however either side of Lower Ground Floor MSW are higher: price point, quality, customer specific, design and fashion focused products, eg., suiting, footwear, watches, wallets and runway collection 'one off pieces'
- Placement of TH Collection and Accessories is behind the staircase and therefor needs assisted direction from staff to be found by customers
Promotion
- Currently Lower Ground Floor MSW pulls customers downstairs as a continuation of Ground Floor MSW and Denim, were people are introduced to the 'Customer Experience'
- Downstairs, customers are introduced to a more luxurious atmosphere – softer lighting, more intimate scale and higher quality of fixtures, including lighting, change rooms, and glass cabinets
- Lower Ground Floor MSW, is neighbored by Tailoring, not a distinct difference visually from MSW, though it has more formally dressed manikins, more repetition of product, higher price points, and walls are covered in suiting fabric
- Manikins are styled throughout the Lower Ground Floor in area appropriate
- Promotion of products upstairs and in the window is done solely by the Visual Merchandiser
- Promotion of Tailoring, Accessories, and TH Collection pieces on the ground floor is done by a sign at the top of the stairs and merchandised on unlabeled garments on manikins and in the windows
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
Business Plan
– Operation Management
Staff
- The Lower Ground Floor needs a structured hierarchical team based on specific areas: Men's Sportswear, Tailoring, and accessories / TH Collection
- MSW – 1 full time specialist, 2 full time 'second in command' – '2IC'
- Tailoring – 1 full time specialist, 1 part time 2IC
- Accessories / TH Collection – 1 full time specialist
- All staff members must:
- Understand their job position and requirements via a job description which they are held accountable for
- Understand the discipline process
- Understand where they are expected to be with regards to – work output, systems and operations knowledge, product knowledge, individual and area KPIs, tailoring knowledge, product placement in store, how to sell vertically and horizontally
- Understand their responsibilities: Completing task sheets morning and night, making financial targets, to support and train one another in all areas and floors of the business
- Be able to train others in all of the above
- Staff must have full awareness and accountability for their individual and area targets and KPIs, this will be placed on a board in the stock room and updated daily (as part of task sheet)
- Area specialists are accountable for money mapping and pushing financial targets in assigned area
- Area specialists must communicate with Visual Merchandisers and staff about changes in their area
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
Business Plan
– Operation Management
Visual
Merchandising
- Floor Management and Specialists must be aware of Visual Merchandiser changes, when, where, why they are being changed, styling, themes, colours, – to then be communicated to the whole menswear team
- Greater movement of staff upstairs and downstairs to create awareness of products
- Changes in staff positions need to be recognised by Specialists and Managers, and training of where key pieces are merchandised and specific standards need to be done at the beginning of each day
- Better signage of Tailoring, Accessories and TH Collection on the ground floor, on the manikins, in the window
- Specialists and Managers must communicate with Visual Merchandisers with feedback about the previous week, what sold well, how it was sold, outfit creation within wall merchandising, how sales can be maximised
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
Business Plan
– Operation Management
Products /
Price / Promotion
- Area Specialists and Management will take a mentoring role with new staff to the Lower Ground Floor, 1 on 1 training through all areas in fits, colours, FAB, themes, prices, meaning, standards
- Top sellers are introduced and 'sold' in morning meetings
- Movement of products by Visual Merchandisers must be monitored by Specialists, Managers and staff to understand where top sellers and key 'add ons' are placed
- Communication with Buyer regarding future buys, replenishment, KIR, volume planning for seasons and sales. Response to the Buyer on customer response by the Regent St customer
- Communication with Marketing regarding the customers and their response to current external promotion, price and in store design
- More communication directly with head office, and management about planning of products, price points, and promotions
- Lower ground Floor Staff must wear formal attire, collared shirt and tie
- Alterations, suit bags and promotions and their availability are set in stone - what is free, how much must be spent to attain them – written down
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
SWOT Analysis
- Money / Sales
STRENGTHS
|
WEAKNESSES
|
OPPORTUNITIES
|
THREATS
|
Advantages
|
Disadvantages
|
Not
yet exploited
|
Walls
blocking goals
|
We are hitting
targets in the Low Ground Floor with minimal management
In the past we
have had good motivation from staff to make targets
The
salesperson takes the customer through the whole process, greeting
to till, they have full control of the sales process
Staff are
confident with money
Staff are
confident with sales
|
Management and
staff have no time to focus on targets
Not enough
staff, or not enough autonomy with staff currently to have one
person working in the office on targets
Sales are
missed because of a lack of focus on extending sales, missing
customers, using upstairs, knowledge of where products have been
moved
Staff have a
lack of understanding of their role – what is expected of them
Lack of
ability to extend sales
|
Sales people
extending sales vertically and horizontally
Better
understanding of where products are including upstairs product
Better
understanding of how walls are merchandised to expand sales, wall
themes, sizing issues
Controlling of
sales including: UPT APT targets, and continued regular monitoring
Better
understanding of priorities by staff – job descriptions
|
Non-compliance
by staff to focus on 'Money, Customer, Products'
Lack of
motivation
|
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
SWOT Analysis
- Operations
STRENGTHS
|
WEAKNESSES
|
OPPORTUNITIES
|
THREATS
|
Advantages
|
Disadvantages
|
Not
yet exploited
|
Walls
blocking goals
|
Good
understanding by staff of current operations and processes
Staff enjoy
autonomy and initial direction and will follow task sheets
Most of the
operations can be controlled using task sheets
|
Not enough
staff to complete operations
Not enough
operations are detailed or understood so often are forgotten about
Communication
about discrepancies are not clear from management
|
Follow up /
Monitor operations not done properly
Structure of
the day and a better knowledge of what is expected can be created
by task sheets
Organisation
and leadership of operations can be taken over by staff when
controlled by the task sheets
|
Lack of
cooperation or leadership/follow up from staff and management
|
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
SWOT Analysis
- Staff
STRENGTHS
|
WEAKNESSES
|
OPPORTUNITIES
|
THREATS
|
Advantages
|
Disadvantages
|
Not
yet exploited
|
Walls
blocking goals
|
Good staff
dynamic, positive vibe
Good knowledge
of products and how to sell them
Potential
leadership ability
Good focus,
time management, operational and organisational skills
Good service
of customers when an interaction takes place
|
Lack of staff
No time for
training, controlling leading, organising, planning
Unmanaged,
unfocussed, staff
Ground floor
staff are very casual and unfocused when they are in the basement
|
Leadership
within the staff, through task sheets
Job
descriptions monitored and controlled
Money,
Customer, Product focused through targets
Accountability
created through task assigned sheets
|
Staff not
wanting to become autonomous
Staff not
being interested in mastering key operations or attaining goals
Staff wanting
to do as they have always done
|
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
SWOT Analysis
- Store / Visual Merchandising / Products
STRENGTHS
|
WEAKNESSES
|
OPPORTUNITIES
|
THREATS
|
Advantages
|
Disadvantages
|
Not
yet exploited
|
Walls
blocking goals
|
Strong brand,
marketing, advertising and public perception of the store and
product
Strong links
to American culture, leisure, casual lifestyle, pop culture,
casual businessman chic
The 'Preppy'
look lends itself to tailored wear
Strong
presence on Regent St
Well received
and perceived brand, store and product
Popular with
Holiday Makers and locals, because of the fun, holiday,
youthfulness of the brand
Strong visual
'story' created by Visual Merchandisers
|
We are seen as
a casualwear store, opposed to a suiting or formalwear store
The position
in the basement gains us less foot traffic, Tailoring could use
more promotion
Promotion in
the windows is predominantly casual
Little
communication between Specialists, Staff and Visual Merchandisers
about planning or current layout of store
Lack of
knowledge of products: Where they are, how to extend a sale / UPT,
why they are merchandised as they are
Lack of
knowledge of fits and sizing
|
Tailoring
could have a greater presence upstairs
Communicate
with visual merchandiser about future plans for the Lower Ground
Floor and Tailoring
VM's vision
for future movement of stock
Outfit
creation and explanation of how to create higher UPT
More education
on each individual wall for increased sales
U/stairs and
D/stairs knowledge for all MSW staff
Knowledge of
standards throughout the store - training
|
Competition
from neighboring businesses
Little focus
on tailoring in our windows and marketing
The size of
the Regent St store and the constant movement of stock can disable
multiple sales
VMs and staff
not having time to communicate about what is (not) working and
what is being done
|
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
Action Plan
1. Current
status
2. Ideal
Status
3. Operation
Management
Staff
Visual
Merchandising
Products,
Price, Promotion
4. Training
and Maintenance System
5. Questions
Menswear - Lower Ground Floor
Interview
Questions
“How is
change going to be brought about?”
“How is the
training process going to work?”
“What are
the main priorities of your management?”
“How is new
information going to be delivered to (new) staff?”
“How are
the systems / operations going to be maintained?”
Time
Line
Introduce
Task
sheet (and understanding of accountability)
Discipline
process
Targets
(post sale)
Focus
– Money, Customers, Products
Job
Descriptions
For
responsibility and accountability, all staff need to be autonomous
and understand the vision for the Lower Ground Floor
Assign
positions
Specialists
MSW,
Tailoring, Accessories & TH Collection
Specialist's
responsibilities, expectations,
Communication
channels and Hierarchy – with VM's, management, training (new)
staff