You’re a Profitable Planner!
With a solid foundation and tons of room for growth, your retail business is blooming under your management.
At this point you’ve got some experience running your store, so you’re well on your way to working less, profiting more, and growing!
You’ve done the hard work of building a following of loyal customers and you may have a decently-sized email list to show for it.
You’re generating sales, reinvesting into your business, and, most importantly, I hope you’re paying yourself – even if it’s a small percentage of monthly revenue to start.
You might not be hitting all of your income goals yet—and that’s ok!
You’ve got the foundation in place. You just need to keep building.
After hiring one or more part-time employees, you feel the relief of not handling every single task in your business. But you’re still learning how to manage them effectively—and how to delegate appropriately.
Having a retail business is starting to feel less lonely, but you still have so much you want to accomplish!
To take your business to the next level, you have to get even more off your plate and plan for MORE profit!
So what’s next for your store—and how can you keep building on the foundation you’ve established?
Continue to improve upon your financial savviness.
You’ve got data to work with, which means you’re in the perfect spot to truly understand your store’s financial and inventory reports.
You can run your profit and loss statements, interpret inventory turn, and calculate your sales per square foot to better understand what you can improve upon, as well as what expenses to cut.
Be sure to scroll down to the curate resources for some helpful guidance!
Implement systems and processes that allow you to take a step back.
You’re ready to implement systems to make things easier—and give you some of your time back. To help you brainstorm the systems you need, ask yourself this question: “if I didn’t know anything about this shop, what would be the first five things I would need to know and how are they done?”
Based on your answer, start compiling the processes, documenting them, and prioritizing them. Every time you do a process that’s natural and intuitive to you, write it down! Creating a systematic approach to repeat tasks will help you build a culture of predictable excellence and customer service.
Learn to delegate and hire effectively.
Delegating isn’t just assigning a task to someone else. It’s about entrusting the right tasks to the right person based on their unique strengths and abilities.
Take the time to write two lists: one with everything you’d like to delegate and one with all your employees and their strengths. Are there any clear matches that pop up?
If not, you might consider intentionally hiring virtual or in-person subcontractors who specialize in the tasks you’d like to take off your plate. Perhaps you need a virtual assistant who specializes in inventory data entry or a social media manager to take over the execution of your marketing strategy.
Let’s get real: managing a brick-and-mortar can be overwhelming and isolating. That’s why I’m here to empower you every step of the way.
Hi there! I’m Kathy Cruz.
Before my sister and I opened our retail store, the Salvaged Boutique, Google search after Google search quickly proved that there just weren’t enough resources out there for brick-and-mortar shopkeepers.
I kept finding myself in groups for digital entrepreneurs and reading stuffy articles meant for corporations, so I spent hours upon hours learning through trial and error.
I founded Savvy Shopkeeper with the idea that all Independent Retail Business Owners should have access to resources specifically created for their business. I’m proud to guide and support retailers with an insight-filled podcast and a powerful mastermind & group coaching program for brick and mortar store owners.
No matter where you are in your shopkeeper journey, my mission is to help you work less, profit more, and GROW your retail business.
Curated Resources for Profitable Planners
There are over 100 episodes of the Savvy Shopkeeper Retail Podcast to dig into. I’ve hand-picked these ones for profitable planners like you.
If you’re ready to work less and profit more, you have to take a hard look at your expenses. Figuring out what to cut can be a challenge, but you’re in luck! Click below to grab my list of 20 tips to help you reduce your expenses so you can increase your profit.
Hiring help for your retail business can be tricky, especially if you don’t have the right processes and systems in place. This simple hiring guide will help you prepare all the items you’ll need to hire your first employee or adapt your hiring process for the future.
Master Shopkeepers
Master Shopkeepers is the place to learn the retailer-specific skills you need!
With an active, kind, and encouraging community of indie retailers to support you, territory protection, and coaching from Kathy, Master Shopkeepers is where you learn to work less, profit more, and grow.
P.S. This is just the beginning.
I’m not going to just throw these resources your way and leave you to your own devices. I’m here to empower you throughout your brick-and-mortar journey!
Although I’ve identified five distinct stages to most shopkeepers’ journeys, please know that retail success is subjective.
Your journey is yours, and the Savvy Shopkeeper community is here to support you no matter where you are or where you aspire to be. If you’re curious about the other stages of the Savvy Shopkeeper Retail Journey, click here to read more.
Keep an eye on your inbox, as I’ll be popping in with more tips and resources soon!