With so many online shopping options and so much social media out there, it’s easy to get distracted and forget just how important brick and mortar is to your business. With all that constant competition for attention, it takes more than the old retail playbook to attract visitors to your physical store. You’ve got to consistently reach out and experiment to keep growing.
Direct-to-consumer (DTC) selling isn’t easy. It requires a lot of hard work in the marketing and messaging department and an uncompromising customer focus. Without the convenience of traditional distribution channels, DTC brands have to start from scratch. However, DTC continues to be a popular business model for new retail startups because it offers a number of unique advantages:
You can learn a lot by studying the businesses that break the mold of traditional retail. Although your own brand might not be one of the “retail unicorns” that have grown into billion-dollar businesses, you can still borrow a thing or two from the businesses that faced an uphill battle—and won.
Despite dramatic transformations in retail strategy over the past few years, most retailers are still playing catch-up to meet customer expectations.
Operating a boutique with limited time and resources takes a lot of energy. Having the right retail technology in place can help you maximize your time and make your life easier. But with so many retail solutions out there, how do you prioritize the ones that will be most helpful for growing your boutique business?
Trader Joe’s isn’t your typical grocery store. Instead of offering a broad selection of items in a huge space, TJ’s curates its products carefully and makes them easy to find by keeping the store’s footprint small. And although many of the products are fairly standard, they’re presented in unique, branded packaging, and many products achieve cult status among customers.
Your customers want quick, responsive customer service. But the expectation of prompt customer engagement can be a burden on your limited resources.
Direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands like Glossier and Warby Parker have become huge success stories by going outside of traditional retail channels and focusing on online sales.
Don’t let the Debbie Downers discourage you; it’s an excellent time to start a boutique retail brand. Small businesses now have unprecedented access to technology that can help them connect with customers like never before.
Your customers witness the power of technology on a daily basis. They use their smartphones to deposit checks, monitor their heart rate and REM sleep, and summon vehicles to pick them up wherever they’re standing.