innovative thinking talking shop
More than just a shop T
Innovation is one of the keys to Moss of Bath’s continuing success
im Moss was “quite honestly surprised” when his company was declared Retailer of the Year
at The Bath Chronicle Business Awards 2013 last month.
He thinks the success was partly down to
the entry presentation put together by his wife Annie, who is responsible for the company’s PR, marketing and social media activity. Local newspaper ‘The Bath Chronicle’ told IER:
“There was universal agreement that Tim and Annie provide exceptional service, continuing a tradition that is more than five decades old. Their firm combines old-fashioned attention to detail and personal touches with up to the minute expertise, and the customers keep on coming back for more.” Moss of Bath has always been more than just a shop. It was opened on the outskirts of the city by Tim’s father Frank in 1962 “selling black and white tellies, Hacker radios and PP9 batteries. “I was working at the shop – weekends and
holidays - as a naive 17 year old,” recalls Tim. “And I remember Dad saying: ‘Son: why are we in business?’ I said I’d get back to him in the morning with an answer.” His answer was: “To make money.” Frank was not impressed. “’No!” he retorted, rather angrily. ‘If you offer a service that is better than anything else available locally, then you will succeed. Then, you make money.’” Thirty years ago, Moss moved to its existing
site on the city’s St James’ Parade, and subsequently expanded into the next door outlet. Today, it covers around 5,000sq ft. The store sells brown goods, with key suppliers including Pioneer, Panasonic, Sony, Samsung, Bowers & Wilkins, Yamaha, Sonos and Rotel. Innovation is one of the keys to the company’s continuing success. Last year, for example, Moss of Bath celebrated its 50th
l-r: Andrew Cooper of award sponsor Bath Bid, Tim and Annie Moss, awards host Valerie Singleton
anniversary. “We ran our 50-50-50 promotion: 50 days, 50 products, 50% off,” says Tim. Each day during the period, one product was sold at half price (aided by the backing of suppliers). The product in question was only revealed on the day, via the company’s website, Twitter and Facebook. The campaign not only led to increased sales but social network followings during the period were “massive”. And many followers have remained - though Tim says it’s not the numbers that are important – it’s the quality. “It’s no good being someone with a million
followers when they’re not ‘friends’ – you haven’t the faintest idea who they are. We want people who want to follow Moss of Bath. If you’re using social media, you need to monitor it regularly.” And that’s a task performed by Annie. While Tim embraces social media, he has
steered clear of online retailing. “Why would I want to send a fragile television to Scotland?” he asks. Under consumer protection law, any despatched orders can be returned within 28 days. “So, if someone in Edinburgh orders three televisions – 50in, 55in and 60in - they can view all three, and return two. The two that come back will have been taken out of the boxes and may be scratched.” He knows of retailers that have gone down the ecommerce route and got their fingers burnt; “they’ve ended up with a warehouse full of second-hand goods.” Local competition comes from Currys & PC
World and “a couple of more hi fi-oriented independents”. But Moss of Bath’s catchment
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area is huge, stretching to the south coast and London. Selling from the West Country to the capital may sound unusual, but Tim points out that there are many people who live in Bath and work in London and vice versa. What makes Moss stand out, Tim believes, is
service. He says he sometimes gets a bit angry when he reads online reviews of shops “and they all say ‘good service’. We offer very, very good service. I think we’re possibly unique in that we have our own engineers and we do repairs here as well.”
Alongside the traditional store, Moss has
a thriving installation trade, ranging from satellites and aerials through to multi-room and home cinemas. Tim cites the example of a number of upmarket homes being built in the city. “At the moment, they’re just empty shells. But I’ll speak to the buyers and they’ll want a basement cinema, a TV in the gym… I’ll do a spec for the whole house and then work with the builders. We also work with interior designers, architects…” Moss has five vans for installation and they
are usually booked up to 10 days in advance. Business is buoyant, particularly on the installation side, which accounts for around 60% of trade. However, Tim says he won’t drop the shop in favour of installation. “We don’t want to lose the retail side,” he stresses, adding that there are still people coming in off the street just to buy a television. “You’ve got to have a high street presence,” he concludes. Which is reassuringly good news for shoppers in Bath and beyond.
October 2013
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