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Ni Retail Spotlight
Rising to the retail challenge
This month we talk to Gary Pearson of Baby UK about the
trials and tribulations of being in a prime position on a busy
retail park, alongside some of the UK's biggest brands
How long have you been established and how has the industry
changed in that time?
Baby UK has been established just over 2 years now; we were previously
known as 4 Littleuns & Baby, until we acquired the name Baby UK Ltd in June
2009. We moved location into a large and busy national retail park, trading
alongside the likes of M&S, Tesco, Vodaphone, Mothercare, Game and O2. In
the short time we have been in the industry we have already seen a big
change towards customers being happy to buy from the internet to save a few
pounds. There seem to be large internet companies out there (not naming any
names) who are hell bent on selling baby equipment at the cheapest possible
prices, all competing against each other. It seems that the independents these
days are often a showroom for all those internet sellers who are trading from
their garden shed or small industrial units with very little over heads. This is a
typical example of what is going on: You have a piece of equipment with an
RRP of say £499; the independent has this in their store at the RRP of £499 or
maybe with a little discount, £475. The independent has to remember that he
has higher over heads so needs to sell as close to the RRP as possible. The
customer sees this piece of equipment for £375 on the internet but would like
to see the item in the flesh before committing to a purchase, so off they go to
their nearest stockist to have a good look at the item and get a possible demo
of it. After this they decide they really like the item and so ask for their best
Describe your customer base and how you compete with the multiple?
price, the shop owner says this is our best price as we have already discounted
We have a large variety of customers including: expectant mothers, new
it. The customer knows that they can get it for £100 cheaper, so they just say
parents, right through to grandparents. We always compete the best we can
“thank you” and they will “think about it”. Off they go home and complete
with the multiples by offering a superior customer service and the best advice
their purchase on the internet, why not, they are about to save themselves
available. I would rather turn a sale away if I didn’t feel the product was right
£100?! As the owner of my own store I will be starting to look very hard at
for the customer, a popular one is parents looking to get their baby into a
the products that are available on-line at cheap prices, and then will be looking
group 1 car seat before they are anywhere near the 9kg guideline. We always
to no longer sell these products in my store, and looking at companies who are
try to demonstrate the products we sell to the best of our ability and give the
trying their best to help the independent sellers.
customer the best possible advice about all products. If we have to win a deal
over a multiple, I would rather do it by giving the customer an extra something
What products do you sell?
rather than simply discounting an item.
We sell a large variety of products:
Wheeled goods - prams, strollers, twins/tandems, joggers, travel systems etc;
How long does a typical customer spend in your store?
Nursery goods - cots, cot beds, furniture, bedding, everything for the nursery;
Customers come into our store and spend, on average, around 15-20 minutes.
Safety goods - all things for safety in the home and out and about; Activity
You get those who are just passing and come in and browse for a few
goods - bouncers, walkers, gyms & swings etc; Feeding time - highchairs,
minutes, then you get those who come in not knowing anything and want to
bottles, sterilisers, etc; Car seats - all groups from various manufactures; Toys -
know everything about everything, these could spend well over an hour in
baby & pre-school toys.
store.
What about after sales, what is your return policy?
Obviously, when you are selling equipment there will be a need for a good
after sales service. We always try our best for our customers should there be a
need to return a product. We give all our customers a seven days peace of
mind returns policy should they change their mind on the product, all we ask
that they return the product in the same state that they bought it. If an item is
faulty we will honour any policies that the manufactures lay down with their
products. We will always do our utmost to keep our customers happy and to
meet their needs.
When was your website created and how has it evolved?
We do have a website which was created around 18 months ago, but at the
moment it is not our main focus. However, it is our next priority. We are always
being asked if we do a catalogue, however, due to the large expense of this
we will be looking to replicate our store on our website. So then everything
we sell in our store will be available to view on our website and be available to
purchase. Our current website has grown with the number of sales growing
month on month. At present it doesn’t compete with our in store sales,
however our aim is for the on-line sales to catch up.
www.babyuk.net
www.nursery-industry.co.uk
•
MARCH 2010
•
NURSERY INDUSTRY
•
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