|  | Our Portfolio Some of the ways we have supported clients Perfecting the Customer Experience: Serious Business Lessons in the Fun Environment of Disneyland® Images from the pilot program of Perfecting the Customer Experience: Serious Business Lessons in the Fun Environment of Disneyland®, November 2010 (clockwise from upper left): 1. When you pass the Disneyland train station, you start to see service “excellence” in action. 2. Former Disney cast member Jeff Kober introduces Ted Topping to “The Boss.” 3. Disney is a big business when you look at it today, but it all started with a mouse. 4. This popcorn cart near the castle illustrates the value of having a clear mission. 5. Ted Topping shares an interaction, not a “transaction,” with Disney cast member Dave. 6. Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln illustrates the crucial role of leadership in customer excellence. Read more about our Perfecting the Customer Experience program. |
Innovative Merchandising and Product Presentation: Trev Deeley Motorcycles, Harley-Davidson Dealer, Vancouver With financial support from the Workplace Training for Innovation Program, Creative Insights worked last year with Trev Deeley Motorcycles in Vancouver. For us, this was a return engagement, an opportunity to build on a training program that we conducted for GM Darwin Osarchuk and merchandise manager Jennifer Glatt several years ago. This time, a team of five staff members from the service, parts and general merchandise departments participated in two half-day classroom sessions, a day of Customer Experience Mystery Shopping and several days of hands-on merchandising and product presentation demonstrations and practice. Working together, we used our collective knowledge and varied backgrounds to enhance the overall customer experience. Read more about our Innovative Merchandising and Product Presentation training. 
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| Several years ago, we introduced a set of merchandising standards at Trev Deeley. Wall displays, for example, should feature at least four related items. This “complete solution” display features seven. | To help younger riders feel comfortable within the Harley-Davidson environment, we created a showcase that integrated fashion clothing with the so-called “bar bike” that this customer may prefer. | 
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| Although most Harley-Davidson riders are men, women represent a growing market. The women's department at Trev Deeley is more fashion-forward, but we also had to make it comfortable for serious riders. | Inviting aisles are crucial to the H-D retail environment, so we created this clear path that runs the length of the dealership. It links reception, parts, sales, financing, accessories and the motorcycle exhibition. |
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Retail Study Tour for METRO Department Stores, Singapore | 
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|  | Creative Insights received an e-mail one day from Louis Koh, a retail consultant in Singapore. Acting on behalf of Service Quality Centre, Louis asked us to lead a Retail Study Tour for managers from METRO Department Stores. We welcomed the opportunity to support an international client. Over the course of a week, we shared our pride in both Vancouver and Canadian retailers, including hands-on visits to among many other stores (clockwise from upper left): PLUM Clothing, Roots, Harry Rosen, Urban Barn and Mountain Equipment Co-op. The METRO team also studied Tourism Retail during a visit to the Trading Post at the world-famous Capilano Suspension Bridge. Creative Insights handled all of the Study Tour arrangements except travel, and created the custom Welcome to Vancouver tour booklet on which Ted Topping based his keynote presentation. The participants truly earned the certificates they received from SQC. Read more about Retail Study Tours by Creative Insights Inc. |
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Retail Tune Up Consulting: Old Salty, Salt Spring Island, BC One of the broadest assignments that Creative Insights has handled was the Retail Tune Up we did for Old Salty. A small gift store on Salt Spring Island – one of the Gulf Islands off the coast of British Columbia – Old Salty is one of three stores operated by Mouat’s Trading Co. Ltd. in the village of Ganges. When Mouat’s GM Kevin Bell called us, he explained that Old Salty was no longer selling tobacco products, and needed to transition from a variety/card store to a gift store. Working through store manager Mary Lou Bompas, we began with a sale on any products that had celebrated a birthday. We then held focus groups with both regular customers and “friends” of Old Salty to help find the new direction in which the store should head. As it turned out, that answer came in the person of Finbar Leif Mouat (aka “Old Salty”), the fictitious store owner that we developed to guide us through the transition and beyond. “Finbar,” said our faux-historic plaque near the entrance (upper left), “has endless curiosity about rich culture, timeless craftsmanship and various art forms in foreign countries.” That was all we needed in order to to divide the 1,200 square-foot store into six “lands.” Each told a complete yet ever-changing product story. We added art, jewelry and books to the store’s product mix and handmade barn-board fixtures such as picnic tables and treasure chests to the retail environment. We then watched the store’s total sales and average transaction soar. Read more about our Retail Tune Up Consulting. |
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| | | | | | Consulting and Writing | | ◊ | Co-authorship of the best-selling retail resource Start and Run a Retail Business, published in both Canada and the U.S. by Self-Counsel Press. The book has been translated into Indonesian, Russian, Chinese and Spanish (for South America), and a special English edition is marketed in India. | | ◊ | Creation of the concept, writing of the funding proposal and development coordination of Skills Now Retail, a large-scale training initiative for the Province of British Columbia. Also included the creation of all workshop materials, leader’s guides and marketing materials for this ground-breaking program that delivered 60 full-day workshops in 22 cities. • Advertising and Marketing Cost Effectively • Keeping Control of Your Inventory and Cash Flow • Finding, Hiring and Motivating Good Sales Associates • Managing Efficiently Through Retail Technology | | ◊ | Development of a Marketing and Operational Strategy for a destination gift shop. Identification of 10 ways in which the business can increase its productivity and profitability; execution of the redesign and remerchandising of the store to kick-start the implementation of our recommendations. The project covered customer feedback, identity issues, staff productivity, target marketing, inventory management, buying and selling, merchandising and display. | | ◊ | Facilitation of a two-day retreat with a regional management team to develop an Area Representative job description for a convenience store chain. | | ◊ | Co-writing, editing and production for 10 years of a bimonthly magazine for a regional merchants’ association. | | ◊ | Writing and production for five years of Retail Employer, a bi-monthly guide to informed staff management for a regional merchants’ association. | | ◊ | Co-writing and production for two years of bimonthly online newsletters on inventory, marketing, staffing and technology for a regional merchants’ association. | | ◊ | Creation, production and promotion strategy for seven workshop tours (total of 60 workshops) for a regional merchants’ association: • Meeting the Challenge of Wal-Mart, seven cities • Marketing Through Relationships, seven cities • Profiting Through Retail Technology, 11 cities • Profitable Retail Selling I, nine cities • Profitable Retail Selling II, 11 cities • Profitable Retail Buying, eight cities • Profitable Retail Selling III, seven cities |
Read/download excerpts from Start and Run a Retail Business 
Click to open or download as an Adobe Acrobat PDF Chapter 2: Merchandising Organizing into departments, classifications will teach you a lot about your customers Chapter 4: Human Resources Special excerpt on Job Descriptions: First step to finding good sales associates is a written job description Chapter 4: Human Resources Special excerpt on Interviewing: Follow established guidelines to interview sales associates Chapter 5: Sales Management You can coach your people to motivated performance with guidance, additional training Chapter 7: Customer Service One great way to compete with big-box retailers is to avoid selling your customers landfill
| | Interactive Workshops and Train the Trainer | | ◊ | Facilitation of General Merchandise Sales, a two-day sales and service training program offered by Harley-Davidson University for dealership staff in Eastern and Western Canada | | ◊ | Facilitation of Effective Retailing, a three-part general merchandise training program offered by Harley-Davidson University for dealers from Scandinavia at the company’s annual conference and buying show in Orlando. • Buying and assortment planning • Merchandise presentation • Selling skills and product knowledge | | ◊ | Creation of a manual on Hiring, Retaining and Empowering Employees for a national (U.S.) specialized dealer association; development and presentation of full-day workshops based on the manual for the Canadian association. | | ◊ | Development and presentation of a three-part management training program for the head office and store managers of a regional pet food retailer: • In Business as in Sports, Coaching Counts (full day) • Coaching the Profitable Retail Selling Skills (half day) • Coaching Your Staff in the Appropriate Way (half day) | | ◊ | Development and presentation of a three-day management and customer-service skills program for the regional management team of a convenience store chain: • Loyalty in a Marketplace of Change • Building Trust in Three Dimensions • Adding Power to the Service Team • Leadership that Matches the Need | | ◊ | Facilitation of seven management-training programs aimed at increasing the level of management skills and customer service in a group of convenience stores. | | ◊ | Writing the script and supervising the taping of an orientation and training video for new hires of a petroleum retailer. | | ◊ | Presentation of full-day selling skills workshops on tour for Microsoft Canada and a half-day version of the same program on tour for Microsoft U.S. | | ◊ | Presentation of selling skills workshops for the managers and staff of a multi-store retail group (clothing, gifts, hardware and housewares). | | ◊ | Presentation of selling skills workshops for the managers and staff of a retail pet food chain. |
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