Retail Consultancy

 

 

Steve has worked in and around retail for his entire career having cut his teeth as a fresh faced store manager at the BT shop in Broadmead in Bristol, he was soon bitten by the bug.

 

BT opened their flagship store on Oxford Street, London in the mid nineties and Steve was appointed General Manager of the busiest store in the Group, dealing with over 1,000 customers a day and a multi million pound annual turnover.

 

When BT decided to merge its' high street portfolio with Dixons Stores Group, Steve played a key part in the creation of Dixons fourth retail chain which became known as The Link, later acquired by Carphone Warehouse.

 

Steve moved on to become the Account Manager for Dixons Stores Group and then subsequently the Account Director for Arcadia, selling the first EPOS network into the retail industry. During this time he was also appointed to the managing board of the blue ribband retail development programme known as the Oxford Summer School.

 

The school ran annually at Keble College, Oxford and Steve Chaired the school for four years from 2005 to 2008 before being appointed as the Programme Director for the Academy where he was responsible for creating the content for each School for the next decade.

 

Alongside this Steve had established inspire and worked directly with many retail clients on the delevelopment of their sales strategies and their people. His clients included Harvey Nichols, John Lewis, Crew Clothing, Aurora Fashions, Morleys Department Stores, Multiyork, The Co Op, IKEA and Dreams. 

 

In July 2015 Steve bought Cove Gallery in Weymouth and in July 2017 opened a second art gallery, Park Gallery, in his home town of Cheltenham.

 

Both galleries proved to be tremendous successes and Steve sold both galleries as going concerns in 2019 and 2021 respectively. Steve still provides support to the new owners as the businesses continue to thrive, grow and go from strength to strength.

 

So, who better to guide you through the challenges that face independent retailers than Steve, with almost three decades of retail experience with both retail giants and thriving independent retailers.

 

Steve works closely with the business owners in understanding the specific challenges that they are facing and creates a tailored programme of consultancy which typically covers the following elements;

 

Retail principles and disciplines

  • Planning and organisation

  • Time management

  • Activity prioritisation

  • Retail standards

  • Merchandising

 

Key financial levers

  • Profit

  • Margin mix

  • Cost control

  • Stockturn

  • Sales densities

  • Cash flow management

  • Budgeting

  • Target setting

 

Annual Trading Calendar

  • What needs doing and when

  • Seasonal campaigns

  • Promotions

  • Buying

  • Customer marketing

  • Social media

  • Mailchimp

  • Shopify

 

Staffing strategy

  • Your role vs team roles

  • Costs vs benefits

  • Hourly rates vs profit share

  • Key time staff vs full time staff

  • Store management