Retail Flux supercharges the way you do business with your customers

As a retailer, you need to know every angle to make sure you get the most from your operation. Analysing aspects such as the best products to stock, correct staffing levels and promotions are all part and parcel of a successful retailer. And most successful retailers have these elements under tight control. But there is a vital part of a retail operation that is often overlooked, but you should be all over to ensure success.

Watching the way that people behave in your store is far more than just an interesting pastime. It actually gives you vital data that will help you –

·         Reorganize the layout

·         Place the most effective promotions

·         Supercharge the way your team interact with your customers

And this is where Retail Flux comes in. Using cameras high above the sales floor, they are able to deliver data that can transform the way you do business with your retail customers. Looking down on the way that people behave when they are browsing your store will give you all the information you need to know about how your current layout is affecting behavior – and how to make changes that will bring you more.

High quality information

Now it would be easy to watch the cameras you already have in store and see if they offer any clues to how people interact with your store. But that’s a low-tech and time-consuming way of seeing what is happening. Retail Flux has the high-tech solution. We analyse the data streams, based on the movements around your store. This provides you with heat maps, so you can see –

·         Where all the hot areas of your store are

·         Any cold areas that produce low footfall

·         How effective your in-store promotions are

·         What effect the layout of the store is having on the way your customers shop

And this is delivered by showing the flow of shoppers, number of visitors, the routes they take and the way they queue.

It is easy to set up, as Retail Flux can adapt most systems that are already in place. This means that you don’t have a massive cost installing a new system and there is no disruption for your team or customers while systems are fitted. The information you get is ideal to help you manage the effective operation of your store. This is the next level of data that will allow you to be successful and stand head and shoulders above your competition in terms of planning and control. Retail is detail – and Retail Flux gives you detail beyond what you could have ever imagined.

See the real power of Retail Flux and maximize profits

Looking beyond the ordinary is what we all aspire to as retailers. But without the systems to offer something truly different, how can you make that happen? Retail Flux helps you to get the very most from what you do every single day of the week. Check out their YouTube channel to see exactly how this works in the real world.

And the way it can boost your retail business is real. Think about the massive effect that subtle changes can have, such as –

·         Making the marketing and promotions you use much more effective

·         Designing a layout that gets the most from every visitor

·         Make higher sales by placing your key products in the right places

·         Align the resources you have with what the shopper actually wants

·         Maximize your profit by looking at high margin items in high footfall areas

Now all of this gives you the insight you need to generate the maximum sales from your retail operation. No more guessing what might work for you. Have the knowledge you need at your fingertips with Retail Flux.

THANK Bunny supercharges your retail business

Retailers need to stay on top of all their data to make the most of every opportunity. But so many either –

·         Keep notes on pen and paper OR

·         Have no management information at all

This means they are working in the dark. That’s where THANK Bunny comes in. It is the perfect cloud solution for all retail brand management needs. To manage your business efficiently and generate more revenue, you need to have complete control of –

·         Your inventory and pricing

·         Your customers

·         Loyalty programmes and offers

·         Your vendors or suppliers

And that’s where THANK Bunny takes your retail business to the next level.

The ultimate in retail automation

Being able to automate parts of your retail company transforms the way you do business. You get to control all the vital aspects of what you do. THANK Bunny takes the customer-first approach in managing retail operations.

A retail merchant gets the ability to delight customers and drive loyalty. All of this while managing vendors and inventory for the smoothest process possible. The platform’s real-time reports and sales forecasting give an edge for the retailer. Tracking, measuring and managing all the operations of your retail business is the only way to operate. Don’t delay – signup to THANK Bunny today to streamline your retail operations.

High quality shop fittings at low prices from South West Shopfittings

Retailers have seen the need for shelving increase over the years. From the original shops that sold what you can see, to developments such as Just-In-Time inventory systems, retail tried to reduce their back stock and still keep up with the demand from consumers. But it doesn’t work this way. Predictive ordering can see back stock develop and the best way to cope with demand is to have more of your best products ready for customers. The shelves that you display your products on have to enhance the quality of your products.

Quality shelving systems are a retailer’s best friend. They help to keep track of stock and to meet the demand. They can showcase products to look their best and increase sales.

And the best shelving systems available are supplied by South West Shopfittings. They supply quality products that help retailers of all shapes and sizes to make the most of their stockroom areas. Why are they so popular?

·         They have a price promise so you know you are buying at discount prices

·         They have a huge range of products for you to choose from

·         Their retail shelving units are high quality so you can rely on them to look great for years to come

Their products will enhance your store and make it an inviting place for your customers to browse and spend their money. If you have any retail shop fitting needs then get in touch with them today to see how South West Shopfittings can help you.

High quality Retail Shelving at half the price!

For all your retail shelving needs, then check out the South West Shopfittings website to see what they offer. The products are high quality and can make your store look as professional as you desire. It is made from quality materials and offers functional design.

But the real difference here is that these shelves are available at a discount price. So, you get the same high quality shelves that you can see on many supermarkets but without the price tag to match. They are available on wall fitting and gondola units so no matter the size of your store, SWSF has the shelving units to match.

Shop fittings for any kind of store

South West Shopfittings supply high quality fittings that compliment your store and allow you to show off your merchandise in the best way. Customers are taken in by displays that are well designed and look great, but you need the right fittings to make this happen. SWSF have sourced the best quality fitting so everything you do will look great.

But again, they have managed to do this without a hefty price tag. They really are pulling out all the stops by giving you quality at a knockdown price. You get the best of both worlds – a store that looks a million dollars but not one that costs that. Retail is about making the customers feel special and keeping an eye on the cost. South West Shopfittings allows you to do both.

It is important to get things right for your customers. The way that your store looks and feels sets the tone for customers. If they walk into a tatty store than they expect to pay rock bottom prices. It is as simple as that. But if you get this right then you can have a store that people love to spend time in. They will be in your shop for longer and this prompts them to buy. South West Shopfittings give you the best materials to work with. This really is the best way to maximise your retail store.

Is retail being drawn to larger cities?

I went on a shopping trip to Leeds at the weekend and I was a little shocked to see how busy and vibrant it was on a week in late January (at the end of the Blue Monday week) when we are told that people have little or no money. It was cold. It was overcast and it looked like it was a typically British winter day. As the day went on the cold was added to by some drizzle yet there were still thousands upon thousands of people going about their shopping, eating in restaurants and sitting in coffee shops.

Contrast this to my local town which is deserted on a Saturday afternoon except a few men in and out of the bookies and the pubs.

So I thought back to other visits to big cities I have made recently and there is a definite trend emerging. The big cities are taking retail away from the small towns. I suppose it is inevitable if you think about it. The fact that a big city has ample parking, good transport routes and a huge choice of shops will always make it more attractive than a local small town. The fact that many cities (Leeds included) have developed the number of indoor shopping areas only adds to the attraction.

An ongoing trend?
There were so few vacant shops and people were out, even in that weather, selling on the streets. There were student demonstrations in different parts oft the city against eating meat and Donald Trump (surely there is a link there?) and this only added to the vibrancy of the city as a destination. Several coffee shops and cafes were full and were turning people away and some of the restaurants had long queues outside as people waited to be seated.

It all lead me to ask two questions-

1. Is this something that will continue to happen?
2. Is it something that we should embrace?

Let's take a look in more detail.

Is this something that will continue to happen

The short answer is - I can'y see why not. Having a local High Street that caters for people Monday to Friday while going to bigger and better shopping destinations on the weekend is something that will keep on rising in my opinion. The fact that retailers are happier to invest in places where they know they will generate a good footfall helps them to feel more secure.

A central location that offers more then just shops is another ideal for the visitor. I would happily spend the night in a hotel and do a weekend break somewhere like Leeds because there are museums, sports venues, concerts and other things going on all the time. It turns shopping into only a part of the reason to visit a city but an important part of it at the same time.

Is it something that we should embrace?

This blog has been set up to champion the High Street, so it may feel as though I am betraying my roots by proposing we abandon our local High Street on the weekend and trot off to our local city. But the High Street needs to evolve to survive. I think that there are destination High Streets and there are more functional High Streets. The first will be somewhere you go at the weekend while the latter is fine to pick up a few bits during the week and will survive well enough on that.

Retailers need to be ready for the Christmas rush

This is the time of the year for retailers. I have worked in retail for a long time and Christmas saves many businesses that have struggled the rest of the year. I know of some companies, including some national U.K. retailers, that look to break even all year round and get all their annual profit in the next six weeks or so.

But it isn't about opening your doors as usual and hoping that more customers will walk through them. Retail doesn't work like that and even with plenty of empty units out there you will still face be a lot of competition. It isn't always easy to see where your competition is coming from nowadays either with the internet undercutting many traditional retailers. Here are the things you need to get right for a successful retail Christmas.

Stock

Having the right selection of products on your shelves as well as enough of them is vitally important. You need to do something to supplement what you already offer. People are looking for something completely different at this time of year so make sure that you are in a position to provide it. Look at your range and see how it can be adapted and added to for this time of year.

People shop differently at Christmas. They will be buying gifts for people and will take a guess at what they might want. The refund and exchange counters at the big stores are packed after the big event with people taking back gifts they didn't want. You need to cater to the demand of people who don't quite know what to get. Either have a gift selector on your website or make sure your team are ready to help here. This brings me on to the next part.

Your team

You may need extra bodies at this time of the year to cope with the rush and to keep up your service levels. Think about taking on Christmas temps to help you out. You can give them short term contracts to see you over the busy period. You may have extended opening hours (more on this later) so you may see your existing team spread a little thinly. Try to counter this with help.

Make sure your team are geared up for Christmas. It might seem like they will just cope with whatever you throw at them, but show that you care. It is a hectic time for most people so help them unwind and keep up the spirits. Your customers will notice.

Extra training may be needed if you are offering new products or services. Get your whole team involved in this to get the most from it. Retail is all about the experience you give your customers so make it the best possible.

Opening hours

Shops do open longer over Christmas. You may find that the rest of the retail units in your town or shopping centre open later for one or more days per week. Look at the number and type of extra customers this will bring in and make your opening decisions based on this. With out of town large shopping malls often open until 11pm or midnight and the supermarkets and online retailers open 24/7 you can't compete with everyone on this. Choose your battles wisely and extend your hours where it will help you the most.

It may be that opening earlier helps people in their way to work pick up things from you. It may be that you are more likely to attract extra trade by opening later. Work out what you need, get your team in all the right places and do what will work best for your customers. If you don't have an e-commerce website to sell all hours of the day and night then think about getting this sorted before next Christmas.

This is a hectic time of the year and it can come with a lot of stress. If you get things right before Christmas hits though you will be able to enjoy it more.

What's your favourite part about Christmas as a retailer? Let me know in the comments below, I'd love to hear from you.

Retailers - what are you selling?

I browsed and shopped in a major shopping centre yesterday and something really struck me. Retailers seem more and more indifferent to their customers than ever and customers seem less and less bothered. The reason I say this? It's all linked to customer service - or the lack of it. So many places I shopped or observed had long queues, tills that could have been opened and staff in the shop floor. But none ventured to connect the three and put the extra staff on the tills to reduce the queues. In fact on more than one occasion there were team members chatting to each other (whether it was work related or not I couldn't say) while very near to the queues at the tills and did nothing to either halt their conversation nor to deal with said queues.

What is the problem? Is there a problem? Has retail moved into a new phase?

I think that there is a problem because the customer deserves better when there are resources available. I have worked for and with retailers for a very long time  and it has always been a huge focus on serving the customers waiting at the till. If every retailer develops the attitude that this isn't important at the same time then the customer loses out. But if only the slack retailers develop this attitude then the smart retailer can win.

Lack of management presence

I see a real lack of management presence on the shop floors of UK retailers and it creates an issue. Wether this is a change in strategy or the fact that management teams have other priorities I don't know but I do see a large movement away from supervision and this leads to self-supervision. People will often make the decisions that makes life easier for them and not necessarily the customer. What I witnessed yesterday was people finding shop floor tasks easier than serving at the till and abandoning customers. With a management presence on these shop floors this wouldn't be allowed to happen.

I think that contrary to popular belief there is a need for middle management to look after the relationship between shop floor staff and their customers. This protects the company's bottom line far better than cutting costs.

Cost control isn't everything

There is a drive with many retailers to keep down the costs and reduce waste. While I applaud this general idea there is more to retail than this. If you cut one cost too much (particularly if it is staffing) then you lose the balance between price and service and your customers go elsewhere.

It all comes back to the initial question of "what are you selling?" I don't believe that a store is simply selling the stock on their shelves. They are selling emotions and thoughts-

• The feeling that tou have the latest fashions
• The feeling that you offer great value
• The feeling that you are on-trend
• The feeling that you only sell quality products

But this isn't enough without the customer service to back up the proposition. I queued for 10 minutes  yesterday to but two T-shirts from a quality and hugely popular clothing retailer yesterday because the staff on the shop floor didn't react to the queues. In fact I'd say that the store is proud of its queues because they rarely work hard to reduce them. I won't shop there again.

Do you have a pet hate when it comes to retail? What would you change instantly? Let me know I'm the comments below.

This week is the MUST DO week when it comes to assessing how your Christmas sales are going

It's a hugely important time of the year for most retailers. I know of some retailers that trundle along through the rest of the year happy to break even or make a small profit on the basis that their Christmas trade will make up for it all. Many retailers I've worked with report that over 50% of their annual trade will happen during this quarter of the year. And there's the sales after Christmas to take into account as well!

With this time of year being so important, so busy, you can often forget to take a small step back and assess things. So ask yourself this question today-

How is it going?

Really. Find some time this week to answer that question. It's vital to the success of the rest of the year.

The big retailers have cottoned on to one truth that I'm going to share with you today-

Customers only have a finite amount of money to spend at Christmas.

It sounds pretty straightforward doesn't it? But it changes the way they operate. Their whole ethos is based around getting you (and your customers) to spend it with them and to spend it early. Look at the incentives-

• Extra loyalty card points
• Tesco Clubcard exchange
• Sainsburys Nectar point exchange
• Boots points events nights
• Boots Star Gifts and weekly offers
• Black Friday
• Cyber Monday

And the list continues. The idea is that you incentivise your customers to shop with you early. A typical Christmas list might read-

• Wife
• Eldest
• Youngest
• Mum
• Dad
• Mother-in-law
• Sister
• Brother
• Niece
• Nephew

And once there's a tick next to every name on the list, then Christmas gift shopping is pretty much done. So if it's done at a Boots points event, for instance, then the spend at Boots will minimise the likelihood that there will be any spend in other retailers nearer Christmas.

As for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, these are not American imports, as the press likes to label them. These events mean more to the British market than the American one. In the USA, it's our equivalent of the January sales - they are selling off post-Thanksgiving stock that didn't sell. They don't do Christmas in the same way we do. Over here it a great tool for retailers to get those sales in early.

So have a look at what you have done and what you have planned and see how you can secure those early sales. It will make a big difference to your performance for the rest of the year.

A purely retail task on The Apprentice, a Welsh village taking a stand and a message to the multinationals

At last there's been a purely retail task on the current series of The Apprentice. It will strike a chord with my readers that are independent retailers themselves.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06q7jtl/the-apprentice-series-11-7-discount-store

The task was to operate as a discount retailer by selling and reinvesting the proceeds in the items that have actually sold well. Which is independent retail in a nutshell.

There's the obvious and repeated issue with The Apprentice of many pieces of expenditure being totally ignored when it comes to calculations of profit and loss at the end of the task. I looked at it in a previous blog here - http://mytimeinretail.blogspot.com/2015/10/see-lessons-to-be-learnt-from-this.html

This week the ignored items included-

• Rent
• Staffing costs
• Tax
• Licence on the stall

I know it's the land of television and normal rules don't apply, but it's just not a level playing field.

Which brings me to my second story this week. It's about a village in Wales that is trying to level the playing field when it comes to competing with Starbucks and Amazon.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crickhowell-welsh-town-moves-offshore-to-avoid-tax-on-local-business-a6728971.html

The tax structures of local business and multinational business are so different that it allows the biggest companies to move their money across divisions and borders to minimise their tax burden.

I personally think it's time for the government of the day (whichever party they may be) to stand up. The message needs to be-

If you want to do business in this country then you'll have to accept lower profits.

The message is stark but necessary. Reduced profits for these companies mean several things-

• Higher wages for the lower paid in society
• Smaller tax credit burden on the government and tax payers
• Large multinational corporations paying their fair share in tax

I'm sure that everyone would agree that these are positive things that we can all get behind.

Read how one garden centre bucks the trend and gives lesson for us all

I'm currently out shopping at one of my least favourite retail destinations - the garden centre. I find that they so often get so much wrong and it frustrates me. They are a retailer that doesn't have the traditional problem of lack of space. They have the problem of too much space snd tend to try to solve the problem by filling the space with anything and everything. I wrote about this in this is a previous blog-

http://mytimeinretail.blogspot.com/2015/11/see-why-entrance-to-your-retail-store.html

The garden centre I'm visiting today is a little different, if only at this time of the year. The front half of the garden centre has been transformed into a Christmas shop. It's full of colourful tinsel, glowing decorations and happy people. If if the customers aren't there to buy Christmas decorations they are there to look around. They car park is full, the café is full and the customers are mingling, talking and generally enjoying themselves.

As with all my blogs, I look at the success and failure of others to see how it can transform things for all of us. I think that a large part of retail is looking at how others operate and applying that to our own business. In this case, it may not just be Christmas that is the winning formula but how it is approached. I spoke in the last blog about garden centres on the need for making the front of the shop something to shout about. And this garden centre has done just that.

The message here us to carry out anything that you do as though you really mean it. Having this Christmas shop has made the garden centre a destination. Like Fenwick's Christmas window in Newcastle, it has become part of some people's Christmas tradition. This makes you a winner straight away because customers will walk through the door as a matter of course.

Think about your own shopping trips. There will be stores in certain towns or cities that you will walk into and look around out of habit. You may not be looking for anything in that category but go in there anyway. It may be their coffee shop, the fact that they have different things every time you go in or their displays. You need to find your reason for shoppers to visit and make the most of it.

Think long and hard about what you do, what you want to be known for and then work hard with your team and your marketing to make this happen.

Why this week's The Apprentice (and a shopping trip) leaves me fuming

I hate homemade signs. I hate handwritten signs even more. I REALLY hate badly-made handwritten signs. After watching The Apprentice last night I despair even more!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06phn4w/the-apprentice-series-11-6-handy-man

Mergim felt the need to make a signs for their handyman business. I understand his motives but the execution was never going to win any design awards.

I've been out in a local town centre today conducting some mystery shopping (I talk about my mystery shopping in this blog) and I spotted loads of homemade and handwritten signs, complete with poor formatting, bad handwriting and spelling mistakes. I don't know what goes through retailers heads! The effect is unprofessional and does absolutely nothing positive for your brand, store or products.

The retailers I saw these signs in today included-

• A gift shop
• A nail bar
• Boots
• Holland & Barrett
• A sweet shop
• Several cafés and restaurants

So it's not an independents disease, nor that of a certain type of retailer. I really can't see any excuse if you're working for a major retailer. Every piece of marketing material is approved and provided centrally, it's even something that I've been asked to check up on during the mystery shops I carry out. If you want to know more about my mystery shopping and how you can become a mystery shopper then check out my blog- http://mysteryshopperblog.blogspot.co.uk/

Even independents can move quickly enough in their feet to avoid this. Having a good marketing, design and/or printing company to hand is a simple solution. Even getting training on design or using a friend with design skills will be better than handmade. By planning ahead and putting as much time as possible between thinking of the sign and using the sign gives you time to get the materials produced.

If you don't have the skills yourself or know anyone who can help you out the fiverr.com could provide you with an answer. It's an online community of freelancers that can produce one-off items for the low, low price of $5. Provide an outline of what you want and a timeline of when you need it and you'll find a willing designer to produce a file for you to print or have printed. Give it a look and you may find your answers.

You can find my profile at  https://uk.fiverr.com/homeestates

The Apprentice, Mannys Sauces and your business - see how they all connect

As a retailer, sometimes a part of your job is to launch a new product or bring a great product to people's attention. It's not always an easy task, as the competitors on this year’s The Apprentice have found out on two tasks so far this year-

There was an early episode where the two teams had a go at launching a new shampoo made with the cactus flower-

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06jlg57/the-apprentice-series-11-2-advertising-cactus-shampoo

And a more recent episode featured the two teams (and those within the teams) going head to head against each other in designing and selling their own children's book-

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06nw576/the-apprentice-series-11-5-childrens-book

It is not easy to launch your own brand or product but one man that has launched his own brand is Manny. Here's his story-

“As any other person in the world, I had a huge dream - to open the first Piri-Piri Chicken Restaurant in the world, and then spread this dream to every corner of the planet. It wouldn’t be easy to achieve, but neither was it impossible. I had the will, the courage, the faith and family support to make it come true. Early in 1985, I sold my home to open the first piri-piri chicken restaurant outside of Mozambique. CHICKENLAND was the chosen name and Johannesburg, South Africa was the birth place of my dream! After a short while, I was making, bottling and selling a range of 5 different Piri-Piri Sauces and Marinades. After a slow start, the business was a stunning success! The name quickly spread across the city and everyone was talking about this new food place that was taking the food industry by storm.

The business success was proven! The next step was expansion to other parts of the city, country and abroad, and many people tried to get financially involved. Expansion included a need for capital and people, and so in 1987, I sold some of my business shares to two young men: one of Portuguese origin and the other, a South African of Jewish origin. Shortly after they joined, the business name was changed to NANDOS. Chickenland was a nice name, but according to marketing experts at the time, it was felt that the business should be backed by a personal name before the expansion took place. Between MANNYS and NANDOS, I was out-voted two to one, and the latter name was chosen. Despite a few initial problems, the expansion started taking off and now more than ever, the success was tremendous!

A few years later, the rug was pulled out from under my feet and I was forced to leave my business. I lost my dream; one of the best things in my life after my family. After this happened, I opened a few other restaurants including Chickenland in Portugal, but these weren’t my dream. It was a way to make a living, but it wasn’t my passion. It took me a long time to recover from what happened, but I was determined and pushed through until another dream emerged; to make the best sauces and speciality food products in the world! MANNYS SAUCES is now my new dream! Once again I can see this new dream taking shape and growing strong all the way to the TOP! The passion is back and I again have the will, the faith, the support of my family, and the support of so many loyal customers that know and appreciate the high quality products that we make. I am forever grateful to my family and my customers for their support and the divine forces for showing me the way.

Manny x”

And one of retail’s challenges is to get in touch with your customers in different ways. It’s by being what large companies and analysts call multi-channel that gives you the best access to customers. Follow Manny’s lead, where you can-

Try the online store at http://www.mcssl.com/store/mannyssauces for the Chickita - Mann’s famous cured and smoked chicken sausage and the rest of the range of cured meats.

Follow on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Mannyssauces where you can read about the wonderful MannyNaise. With this, you can substitute your boring, regular mayonnaise for the spectacular taste of MannyNaise and transform dishes from the ordinary to the wonderful.

Catch up with them on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/Mannyssauces to hear about the Tomato Fusion – a sauce that’s destined to become the ketchup of choice for the 21^st Century. It’s the next level in tomato ketchup.

Their YouTube site at www.youtube.com/channel/UCPvHPFfaz5yJRTtlv_ViDPQ gives you great recipe ideas and shows you how to use the sauces, such as the original, classic Piri-Piri sauce. This is the genuine, original and unique Southern African Piri-Piri sauce. This is the perfect mix of the heat of chilli and the depth of flaviour that perfectly captures what Mannys Sauces is all about.

Don’t forget the selection of cured meats. Paio is a great selection and is made of pork fillet with a maximum of 5% fat.

And you can just go straight ahead and check out their website at www.mannyssauces.com to see details of what they are all about, more details on Manny’s story, find stockists and much more.

Think about your retail business and how you can make your offering truly multi-channel – it will bring out the best in your products!

They say retail is detail - I often disagree

In my many years working in retail I've often heard the mantra retail is detail. Now in small local retailers, particularly when it's not a fast moving product or products, then this CAN be true - details can make a difference. In large retailers, discount retailers, supermarkets, corner shops, convenience stores, newspaper shops and the majority of clothing retailers then retail is not detail. In these case, retail is about being 90% at most-

90% of your customers served quickly

90% of your products available

90% of your customers asked if they have your loyalty card

90% staff attendance

And the list could go on.

So not very detailed then.

Don't be downhearted, though, because this 90% isn't an horrific figure. On one hand it's probably as much as your competition is managing. On the other hand it still gives room for improvement.

Now to get up towards 100% will take investment. Better wages to get better staff attendance, more staff to keep queues down, more staff and more stock holding to keep availability up, etc.

So the next step would be to ask the question -"what type of retailer do I want to be?"

One that keeps 90% of customers happy? Or do I want to spend a little more?

If you're a small, local, self-managed retailer then is suggest aiming for the 100%. It's being different that will get you noticed. It's really hard to try to compete on price, especially against national or multinational organisations that are bound to have much deeper pockets than you. Providing better service, a better experience at a higher price point is letting your customers know that you are different, you are better.

If you're a large multi-site retailer and you can't be at every site, every day, all day then 90% isn't a bad starting point. You can push your team on from there, starting with the store managers. Motivate them and watch this motivation filter down to the customer-facing team members.