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Breaking Retail Habits: A Guide to Product Mix Mastery
Why Your Shop Is Full But Forgettable — And How to Fix It
Every week, independent retailers reorder the same stock, fill the same shelves, and wonder why trade feels harder than it used to.
It's rarely the economy. It's rarely the car park. More often, it's this: the decisions about what sits on those shelves stopped being decisions a long time ago. They became habits. And habits, in retail, have a quiet way of costing you money without ever announcing themselves.
In this episode, Keith Lockwood — retail consultant with over 30 years of experience working with independent shops across the UK and internationally — walks through the product mix problem that affects almost every retailer he visits, and shares the straightforward thinking that helps them turn it around.
What we cover in this episode:
— Why stocking "a bit of everything" is making your shop invisible rather than safe — The Four Roles framework: how to think about every product you sell — Key Items, Destination Products, Delight Products, and Dead Stock — Two very different success stories: a yellow fats project in the UK and a fashion house in Milan — and what they both reveal about getting the range right — The 30-minute monthly review habit that keeps your shelves earning their space — Why 1901 retail wisdom still holds — and what "goods well bought" actually means for today's independent shop
This episode is for you if: You run an independent shop — a deli, gift shop, hardware store, fashion boutique, or anything in between — and you've ever stared at a shelf wondering why something just isn't moving. Or if you've ever felt your shop has quietly stopped being the one people talk about.
Free resource mentioned in this episode: The Monthly Product Review Prompt Sheet — a single-page tool you can print and walk your shop with once a month. It takes 30 minutes and will show you things that have been hiding in plain sight. Find it at: retailoutcome.com [or wherever you direct listeners]
Keith Lockwood is the author of The Reluctant Retailer and the creator of the Retail Profit Finder — a free, practical tool for independent retailers who want to see clearly which products are earning their place and which aren't.
View all episodes
By Keith LockwoodWhy Your Shop Is Full But Forgettable — And How to Fix It
Every week, independent retailers reorder the same stock, fill the same shelves, and wonder why trade feels harder than it used to.
It's rarely the economy. It's rarely the car park. More often, it's this: the decisions about what sits on those shelves stopped being decisions a long time ago. They became habits. And habits, in retail, have a quiet way of costing you money without ever announcing themselves.
In this episode, Keith Lockwood — retail consultant with over 30 years of experience working with independent shops across the UK and internationally — walks through the product mix problem that affects almost every retailer he visits, and shares the straightforward thinking that helps them turn it around.
What we cover in this episode:
— Why stocking "a bit of everything" is making your shop invisible rather than safe — The Four Roles framework: how to think about every product you sell — Key Items, Destination Products, Delight Products, and Dead Stock — Two very different success stories: a yellow fats project in the UK and a fashion house in Milan — and what they both reveal about getting the range right — The 30-minute monthly review habit that keeps your shelves earning their space — Why 1901 retail wisdom still holds — and what "goods well bought" actually means for today's independent shop
This episode is for you if: You run an independent shop — a deli, gift shop, hardware store, fashion boutique, or anything in between — and you've ever stared at a shelf wondering why something just isn't moving. Or if you've ever felt your shop has quietly stopped being the one people talk about.
Free resource mentioned in this episode: The Monthly Product Review Prompt Sheet — a single-page tool you can print and walk your shop with once a month. It takes 30 minutes and will show you things that have been hiding in plain sight. Find it at: retailoutcome.com [or wherever you direct listeners]
Keith Lockwood is the author of The Reluctant Retailer and the creator of the Retail Profit Finder — a free, practical tool for independent retailers who want to see clearly which products are earning their place and which aren't.