By The Numbers: Grim Figures No Reason to Despair

Published

12 years ago

February 1, 2009

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[h3]Grim Figures No Reason to Despair[/h3]

[dropcap cap=T]he November figures from our survey group certainly make grim reading. Still, they’re no reason to despair, although they suggest you’re going to have to get creative with your average retail value, achieved margin, purchases and expenses. If your sales are down by say 20 percent, then your average retail value needs to be increased by 20 percent — e.g. an $80 item needs to become a $96 item — to keep your numbers up. If you can manage only a 10 percent increase in your average retail value then you need to boost your margin to make up for the lost gross profit. You’ve got work to do![/dropcap]

David Brown is president of the Edge Retail Academy, an organization devoted to the ongoing measurement and growth of jewelry store performance and profitability. You can contact him at [email protected].

[span class=note]This story is from the February 2009 edition of INSTORE[/span]

If you’d like to contribute your own data and receive a personalized KPI report each month, call (877) 910-3343 or e-mail: [email protected].

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Wilkerson Testimonials

If It’s Time to Consolidate, It’s Time to Call Wilkerson

When Tom Moses decided to close one of the two Moses Jewelers stores in western Pennsylvania, it was time to call in the experts. After reviewing two candidates, Moses, a co-owner of the 72 year-old business, decided to go with Wilkerson. The sale went better than expected. Concerned about running it during the pandemic, Moses says it might have helped the sale. “People wanted to get out, so there was pent-up demand,” he says. “Folks were not traveling so there was disposable income, and we don’t recall a single client commenting to us, feeling uncomfortable. It was busy in here!” And perhaps most importantly, Wilkerson was easy to deal with, he says, and Susan, their personal Wilkerson consultant, was knowledgeable, organized and “really good.” Now, the company can focus on their remaining location — without the hassle of carrying over merchandise that either wouldn’t fit or hadn’t sold. “The decision to hire Wilkerson was a good one,” says Moses.