Your Environment

Do you ever get a feeling from a store the moment you walked through the door? Like a sort spell that’s cast over you that makes you feel either relaxed and welcome? or stressed and unwelcomed? I have, and I’m sure you have too. It’s an energy that the store seems to exude all on its own. After all, when you haven’t even walked through the front door, you already feel this unseen force…either gently guiding you in or emphatically pushing you out. Now, before you stop reading this and thinking it’s a story about some haunted store, hold on…because this is about your store, my store, and every store everywhere!

All brick and mortar stores worldwide share one very important thing–MOOD. Whether purposefully crafted or totally unconscious, all retail environments have a collective mood that is either good, bad or even worse blah! Furthermore, if you aren’t already specifically crafting a mood for your store you’re missing the most important sales tool you’ve got.

Ever see a couple walk two feet in, turn around and leave. They haven’t even been able to see any of the product, but just don’t feel welcome. That’s a store with a bad mood. Some stores pride themselves on the cold shoulder approach, too chic to interact with a customer unless they’re dressed a certain way or carry a designer handbag. Many a time have my shipping guys loaded very expensive furniture or accessories for a client that looked like they had just woken up. Then they run back into the store telling everyone “that guy with the flipflops was driving a Ferrari!”.

More than ever we store owners must present an inviting, but not overbearingly gooey environment. Here are some of my top suggestions for getting your store in a good mood. First , your store’s collective mood starts from the top and filters all the way down to the company dog. You, as the owner must be setting, and following yourself, very specific guidelines regarding everything from selling style to how to answer the phone. The attitude of the staff is paramount. At the higher end, my clients don’t like being followed around making comments on anything they even glance at - sets a very bad mood; however, they will happily start up a conversation when you comment on their jewelry, shoes, that shocking upset on American Idol, anything as long as it’s genuine. Offer them some Perrier or Diet Coke, and now you’ve created a very nice mood.

Some food set out improves the mood even more and it doesn’t have to be expensive. Mortise and Tenon of Los Angeles had clients that owned a bakery down their street, and they would order a sheet of fresh brownies for Saturdays (expensive) then recently her manager purchased a Costco plastic barrel of red Twizzlers licorice (cheap). Mai Te Garcia, co-owner of Mortise and Tenon, said “Twizzlers!” and gasped, “that’s really cheesy for our store”. In one voice, her staff said all the customers loved them, and would remark when we were out of them. She lost that one.

Speaking of dogs from earlier, we’ve always had dogs in the store and find it to create a very positive mood. We even went as so far to feature our dog, Yuppie, in our catalogues and ads. (We found it added some life to the furniture and put a smile on faces) Soon Yuppie became known as the Mig and Tig Chicago dog. Our dog would have their own clients that would stop in just to play with them and even bring treats. Our friends who own Mortise and Tenon in Los Angeles would have a few instances where their Doberman would flip up a mini skirt from behind…

Other mood lifters: good music playing, a clean bathroom with nice soap, lotion, and a fragrant candle (which you happen to sell), tags tied with ribbon instead of the plastic stringy things, and some colored tissue that can be tucked at the top of a shopping bag to make it “wrapped”.

All these are fairly cheap ways to brighten your store, and set yourself apart which is crucial in these challenging times, and will relax your staff as well as yourself. Sit down with your dog in your lap (it’s your store), put your feet up, close your eyes, sip some Diet Coke and remember how fortunate we all are.

www.migandtig.com, www.yourfurniturelink.com, www.mortisetenon.com