The New Perspective on Retail
As late as February 2020, I was still writing blogposts to a somewhat skeptical audience about the importance of selling spa retail. Managers were still worried about pushback from their teams! Many found the process of seeking training budget approval from senior management nerve wracking. Combined with navigating the complex forms of the financial department it was too time consuming. Sales suffered.
Connecting the dots between retail revenue, staff training, customer retention and financial health was simply not being done.
Spas that did decide to take the training leap were for the most part considered outliers. Even as they achieved positive results, they still weren’t proof positive enough for a massive industry shift.
And then Covid-19 happened.
Today, we can all bear witness to these simple facts:
- More spas with a strong homecare/retail culture managed to survive than those that didn’t.
- Spas whose therapists were more comfortable selling retail transitioned more easily to online consultations than those that didn’t.
- Spas with robust online retail sales before the pandemic, generated more revenue during shut-down.
The conditions that caused low sales before Covid-19 have not gone away and they won’t do so on their own.
This year, for a different outcome you need to seek out a different solution.
According to March ISPA’s Pulse magazine article “The Training Experiment”, the days of sitting in an eight hour class are over. You may still be cumulatively in class for eight hours, but everything will be online.
This means a shift in convenience and affordability. However, the flood of training means that classes should be carefully assessed for the following:
- Quality
- A solid track record of training before Covid-19
- The information being provided has real value
- The company you select can provide any ongoing support that the spa may need
This means a shift in convenience and affordability. What may have been financially out of reach in the past is now not only doable but critical. However, the new flood of training material means that classes should be carefully assessed for the following:
When you get these things right, you are well on your way to accomplishing your retail goals.
Linda Harding-Bond
