Paco’s Tips: Know Your People

Published

9 years ago

March 13, 2015

INSTORE Staff

Consider your market’s potential demographics when deciding what sort of personality your store ought to have. Paco Underhill says it’s important to consider those potential customers and adapt your physical environment to fit their needs.

Here’s one example: If you own a jewelry store in southern Florida, Underhill says, 10 to 15 percent of people walking in the door are under age 12, because Latin families tend to shop in social clusters. The kids may not be your primary customer base, but the people walking in with them are, and so it would be in your best interest to entertain them. “So if I’m on 57th Street in New York, there are not a lot of kids who walk in,” Underhill says. “But if I’m at a jewelry store in Fort Lauderdale or Boca or Miami, having a children’s area might make a lot of sense.”

Others who feel disenfranchised by the process of shopping in a jewelry store are the under-30 crowd, Underhill says. “There are a generation of Americans, under 30, who are intimidated by the process. They think ‘I am getting ripped off so I’m going to buy my diamond online and take it to a store to have it set.”

Even so, all is not lost. Use that opportunity to build a relationship. “If I’m the brick-and-mortar store, I’ll set that ring for you because it gets me the chance to begin a relationship, to ask for your e-mail and ask, ‘Do you want me to remind you about Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and your wife’s birthday? Because I can probably help you.”

Get more actionable advice from the world’s leading retail environment expert at The SMART Show. Paco Underhill’s must-see keynote session takes place on Saturday, April 18, at 8:30 a.m., and is sponsored by Synchrony Financial.

When There’s No Succession Plan, Call Wilkerson

Bob Wesley, owner of Robert C. Wesley Jewelers in Scottsdale, Ariz., was a third-generation jeweler. When it was time to enjoy life on the other side of the counter, he weighed his options. His lease was nearing renewal time and with no succession plan, he decided it was time to call Wilkerson. There was plenty of inventory to sell and at first, says Wesley, he thought he might try to manage a sale himself. But he’s glad he didn’t. “There’s no way I could have done this as well as Wilkerson,” he says. Wilkerson took responsibility for the entire event, with every detail — from advertising to accounting — done, dusted and managed by the Wilkerson team. “It’s the complete package,” he says of the Wilkerson method of helping jewelers to easily go on to the next phase of their lives. “There’s no way any retailer can duplicate what they’ve done.”