Before Peak Trade, Shop Your Own Op Shop
Guest Blog by Rebecca Vize, Retail Pulse Advantage.
As we head towards peak trade, charitable retailers have plenty to prepare: more stock to process, volunteer rosters to fill, Christmas plans to finalise and stores to keep on top of.
But before adding another task to the list, I want to suggest something simple.
Walk into your own store and pretend to be a customer.
Not a manager. Not a volunteer. Not someone who knows where everything is or why things are done a certain way.
Actually shop.
Through my work with charitable retailers, I spend a lot of time observing stores through the eyes of the customer. And often, some of the biggest opportunities don’t require a major investment, new technology or a complete store refit.
They’re hiding in plain sight.
Here are 10 things I’d be looking at as we head towards peak trade.
- Start before you walk through the door
Stand outside your store. What does a customer see? Is it welcoming? Can they quickly understand what you offer? Is the window telling a story or simply displaying stock?
And look at your signage. Necessary messages around donations, theft or store policies don’t have to feel confrontational. Consider the overall message your front door sends before anyone has even stepped inside.
- Notice what happens when you enter
Are you acknowledged? One of the biggest opportunities I see isn’t necessarily a lack of people in stores — teams and volunteers are often incredibly busy putting stock away, sorting donations, pricing and cleaning. But customers can be walking around them without a simple hello.
A smile and “Hi, how are you?” costs nothing. So does “Thanks for coming in” when someone leaves without making a purchase.
- Actually try to shop the racks
Don’t straighten them. Shop them.
Can you comfortably move the hangers? Can you see the sizes? Are racks packed so tightly that discovering something great feels like hard work?
There isn’t one perfect merchandising model for every op shop. Depending on your customer, stock and store size, you might merchandise by size, category, season, colour or a combination. The important question is: does it make shopping easier?
- Make pricing easy to understand
Customers shouldn’t need a calculator or a team member to work out what something costs.
Walk your store and look at your tickets, promotional signage and pricing from a customer’s perspective. Is it consistent? Is it obvious? Can someone make a quick purchasing decision without having to decipher the offer?
Clarity removes friction.
- Curate, don’t just put stock out
One of the wonderful things about charitable retail is that you never quite know what is going to come through the donation door.
Use that to your advantage. Try a New In rack. Volunteer Picks. Designer Finds. Under $20. Seasonal Edit.
Small curated collections can create interest, make the store feel fresh and help customers discover products they may otherwise have walked straight past.
- Use the retail calendar
You don’t need a huge visual merchandising budget to create a reason for customers to explore. Think about what’shappening in your customers’ lives — Spring Racing, formal season, Halloween, Christmas gifting — and pull together a small edit around it: dresses, shoes, bags and jewellery for a formal event, or homewares, books and accessories for gifting.
You’re not changing your stock. You’re helping customers imagine what they can do with it.
- Look at the fitting-room experience
If you sell clothing, don’t underestimate the fitting room. Can customers find it? Is it clean and inviting? Is it being used as storage? Are customers encouraged to try things on?
A simple “Would you like to try that on?” can be both helpful service and the beginning of a genuine conversation.
- Tell people what their purchase makes possible
This is something charitable retailers have that most commercial retailers would love to have: a genuine story and purpose behind the transaction. Don’t assume your customers know it.
Can they see the impact their purchase helps create? Do your volunteers and team members feel confident explaining it? Connecting the purchase to the purpose gives people another reason to choose you, return and tell others about you.
- Prepare your people for peak — not just your stock
Peak preparation often focuses on stock, rosters, donations, displays and logistics. But what experience do you want your customers to have?
Before peak, consider giving everyone three simple customer experience behaviours they can remember, regardless of whether they work one shift a week or five days. It could be as simple as: Acknowledge. Help. Thank.
- Then walk your store again
Better still, ask someone who doesn’t normally work in that location to do it. Ask them to shop, not audit.
What confused them? What did they notice? Where did they stop? What did they walk past? How did the store make them feel? Did anyone engage with them?
Sometimes we become so accustomed to our own environments that we stop seeing what our customers see every day. And sometimes the biggest opportunity in an op shop isn’t what’s sitting on the rack — it’s what happens between the people standing either side of it.
Every additional item discovered, every customer who stays a little longer, every person who returns and every donated product that finds a new home has the potential to contribute more to the organisation’s purpose. And many of those changes can start tomorrow.
About Rebecca Vize
Rebecca Vize is the founder of Retail Pulse Advantage, bringing more than 25 years of retail leadership experience to organisations across Australia. Rebecca works with charitable and commercial retailers to uncover what is really happening inside their stores — from customer experience and team behaviours to operations and retail performance — and turn those insights into practical action.
If you’d like to learn more about how Rebecca can support your not-for-profit stores, get in touch at rebecca@retailpulseadvantage.com.au or visit retailpulseadvantage.com. Alternatively, connect with Rebecca Vize on LinkedIn.
