Millets - more retail genius
According to the Telegraph, the chief executive of Blacks Leisure Group plc, which owns outdoor store Millets and other retail brands, recently revealed a revolutionary strategy that will surely send shock waves reverberating throughout the retail world for months.
In previous years, the content of the Group’s window displays across the land has been dictated by bright sparks from their Northampton head office. This inflexible policy reportedly resulted in such strokes of retail genius as featuring winter-themed products like thick, high performance sleeping bags during the heatwave in April last year.
In a bold departure from this tried and trusted approach, Blacks Leisure will henceforth provide each of its stores with a CHOICE of window displays, which can be swapped according to what the local weather is up to. Admittedly, this choice only extends to two options: a wet weather selection and a dry weather display, but still… what a masterstroke!
In fairness - and multiple thick layers of sarcasm aside - the present chief exec has only been in post since the end of last year, so the previous dictatorial process was neither his idea nor his fault. But it surely comes to something when such an obvious, common sense change is heralded not only within the company but also in the national press as being “novel”!
I confess to having considered offering a suggestion to expand the adventurous new strategy yet further. As a some time consultant, I love a good matrix, so was leaning heavily towards a wet & hot / wet & cold / dry & hot / dry & cold model. What a lovely 2 x 2 matrix that would make!
However, I think perhaps it would be best for the earth-shattering new strategy to be given time to bed in first.
In the meantime, armed with “insider” news of this exciting development, you can now take pleasure and interest in checking whether what’s on display in your local Millets shop matches the prevailing weather conditions! You can even check their website, too!
And I’ll continue to monitor for more retailing news that comes with built-in, high street fun for free!
Tags: millets
March 31st, 2008 at 8:31 am
And about time too.
As a previous manager of a shop within the Blacks Leisure Group (resigned in 2002), I was suggesting this very idea for as long as I worked for the company. But no one listened. What did I know?
Next they will be giving the managers power to place stock in the shop, where it might actually sell and start making a profit.