Page 120 - DMGT553_RETAIL_STORE_MANAGEMENT

Unit 7: Store Audit

Improve reporting – reduce the time between check completion and data collation Notes
Web based reporting – access to information wherever you are
Quick deployment of new checklists – instantly downloaded from HQ

Store Ranking – compare stores based on points accumulation
Store Compliance – measure stores against compliance to standards
Assess Managers – re they performing the way you want
Competition – use the data to introduce inter-store competition and rewards

Expect more – remember, you can’t expect what you don’t inspect
This is not your ordinary audit, complete with bean counters and notes to financial statements.
Instead, it’s a process designed with the cooperative principles and missions in mind.

7.6.1 By Request of the Managers

Audits are actually a highly desirable activity for members of this group, requiring an official
request from each store’s manager to be added to the queue. The host store’s manager prepares
for the audit by giving these peers a list of items that they are reviewing.
The store audit process has evolved over the last decade from a simple checklist of “does well”
to “needs improvement” into a tool tailored by each manager to learn about co-op operations.
Managers (and a few key staff) learn things they might be otherwise too busy to stop and notice,
or in some cases things they simply do not know. Some historic examples have included:
signage issues, expansion plans, financial management, inside/outside, ingress/egress, traffic
flow, product department management review, value added activities, IT, how to deal with the
psycho shopper—and the list goes on.
This is an organic process that normally is a positive experience for all parties involved. It is
common for those conducting the audits to benefit as much as those receiving the input.
Ultimately, store managers can use this peer review to solve operational issues; to grow and
develop the skills of the management team; and to prepare the manager to facilitate board
education on growth and market-change issues.
An indirect but equally beneficial result of the audit is the “first impressions” that outsiders
from your member community can provide. This technique is commonly used in other industries
because it provides professionals input from those who share the same questions, struggles, and
objectives.

7.6.2 Improved Performance and Accountability

The desired goal is to improve the performance of individual co-ops across the region and to
foster accountability among the core management, all in a confidential environment. Peer visits
also highlight the positive, especially when the host co-op shines and performs in the upper
fourth.

Tips on Improving Retail Stores

Choose Effective Retail Displays

Retailers can improve a store’s appearance and gain a customer’s attention with retail displays,
according to a July 2010 Retail Shopping Secrets report. Attract more customers by adding a

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