It’s no secret that ecommerce has absolutely skyrocketed over the last couple of years. But what about retail? As shops are opening up again, more and more customers are craving that in-person shopping experience.
International retail executive and consultant, Stephen Rector, has extensive experience leading merchandise strategies in both retail and ecommerce. In 2017, Stephen helped establish Macy’s supply chain in China, creating a multimillion-dollar international expansion business. Now he works with several startups to accelerate growth for digital and in-store businesses. It’s safe to say that Stephen knows how to scale!
We’re very excited to welcome Stephen to The Ecom Show. Our CEO and podcast host Daniel Budai chats to Stephen about:
✔️ Stephen’s Journey into Retail and Ecommerce
✔️ Ecommerce Retail
✔️ Building Brand Awareness
✔️ Breaking Into Retail
Like many marketers, Stephen didn’t study digital strategy and marketing at university. Instead, he studied Political Science and International Relations at the University of Missouri - Columbia. Writing papers and preparing and delivering presentations, although unrelated to retail and ecommerce, proved invaluable to Stephen’s communication skills. Stephen says that he’s been utilizing the skills he acquired at university throughout his entire career.
Whilst in university, Stephen worked full time in retail as a Manager in a music store. When he graduated, his experience attracted companies in...you guessed it, retail!
Since then, Stephen has worked in merchandising, branding, sourcing, and pricing, swiftly honing his skills in retail to ecommerce in the 2000s
Huge ecommerce stores have an interesting relationship with retail. Amazon, for example, implements ecommerce tactics for data collection in all their physical stores. Cameras and shelf stock collect buyer data, behaviour, and conversion rates.
Stephen also points out that many Amazon stores across the US don’t have a checkout. Instead, customers are automatically charged when they add items to their basket.
Amazon isn’t alone in its efforts to enter the world of retail. The Founder of Gymshark, Ben Francis, speaks openly on his YouTube channel about opening physical stores with gyms where customers can work out and try on clothing.
If you’re thinking about moving your ecommerce store to retail, make sure to continue using all that valuable data you’ve been collecting!
Stephen points out that it’s harder to get brand awareness in-store than it is online because retail is saturated with brands that so many people are familiar with.
Stephen advises that the vast majority of sellers need to build brand awareness online before even thinking about trying to get into a retail store.
And brand awareness building doesn’t stop once you get to retail. Stephen praises Casper Mattresses for having a fantastic ecommerce strategy and partnering with Target and Bed, Bath and Beyond. In order to scale, it’s clear that you need as many eyes on you as possible both online and offline.
Daniel and Stephen agree that building brand awareness online is the first step towards breaking into retail. Other than this, Stephen identifies the 2 biggest challenges of doing business with retailers:
Getting through to retailers isn’t a walk in the park. Aside from online branding, use your network as much as you can. If you have anyone with retail connections - get in touch! You can also find specialists on how to enter retail relationships or partnerships on LinkedIn.
Evaluate how much it costs to make your merchandise before meeting your retailer. Your retailer will be aggressively pushing down costs on their end as much as possible. Know your stuff, and know your profit margin. Take a look at your competitors in your chosen store, their price point and category. What’s your differentiation? It’s all about presentation and profit.
TL;DR - If you’re thinking about going into in-store retail, your first step is ecommerce.
For more advice on retail, ecommerce, and merchandising strategy, reach out to Stephen on LinkedIn.
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