Strengthening relationships | FOCUS RETAILERS HAVE THEIR SAY...
‘Relationships have never been
more important’
SAM COLWILL, CHAIRMAN, BATHROOMS BY DESIGN, BRENTFORD
W
ith the post-lockdown pent-up demand and more emphasis being
put on home improvements, bathroom sales are up with no signs of slowing down.
Despite this impossible-to-predict
year, our mission as a business hasn’t changed. We strive to be a retailer who provides the best possible buying experience, with an inspiring, enjoyable and simplifi ed process. We are deeply passionate about helping our customers create their perfect bathroom, headache-free.
The surge in demand is certainly welcome, but not without its challenges, and what is clear is that relationships have never been more important. Working in the bathroom industry can be complicated at the best of times, but the events of this year have really shone a light on the varying strength of the relationships we have with our suppliers. The different levels of service we receive from the 100+ suppliers we regularly
do business with is certainly more varied than we’d like, something we are in the process of addressing. During lockdown we got to work on our ERP system, which now allows us to track supply issues such as stock availability, delayed lead times, errors, quality, damage and faults, or anything that could negatively impact our cus - tomers. We use this to create a Supplier Performance score, which we use alongside a Supplier Importance score based on average order volume, fre - quency, revenue and profi tability. We then
The relationships we have with our tier-one suppliers really feels like a partnership, something that’s absolutely vital to our business – now more than ever
tier our suppliers objectively from one to fi ve – with tier one being the best- performing and most important suppliers for our business.
The relationships we have with our tier-one suppliers really feels like a
partnership, something that’s absolutely vital to our business – now more than ever. The overall support we get from them allows us to serve our customers the way they deserve to be served, while doing so profi tably. Communication is consistently good, so we always know where we stand with orders and deliveries. The training provided by our tier-one suppliers gives our sales team the best chance of creating the optimal solution for the cus - tomer. Technical
support allows us to put out any fi re with speed and professionalism. Discounts, displays and payment terms are favourable, so we can continue to invest in our growth and customer experience.
It really does make a massive difference having suppliers who support us in this way and it’s what keeps our customers coming back. It’s very unlikely we’ll be able to achieve this with over 100 suppliers, which is why we intend to do more with less (and say a friendly goodbye to the tier fi ves). It also leaves more room for the old-school, face-to-face meetings and the occasional jolly. At the end of the day, people buy from people. As a customer of our suppliers, we know that we have a duty to them – it’s not a one-way street. We can and will do more to give back and strengthen our partnerships with more com - mitment to stock, display space, internal training, more orders and prompt payments. We hope this allows us to create true partnerships where the overall responsibility of providing homeowners the best bathroom solutions and buying experience can be shared. That is ultimately what everyone involved should be aiming for.
‘We need to join together’
NATALIE PETERS, DESIGNER, KITCHENS ETC, NORTH CREAKE
Degree course, we were taught to build strong relationships with our peers and our tutors, to abolish the thinking that we were on our journey alone and encourage us to join together and collaborate, to learn from and support each other. We were encouraged to share our ideas and welcome feedback in order to open ourselves up to a new way of thinking and, ultimately, be more creative. It was an enlightening experience that has set me in good stead for building better, stronger relationships with our clients, sup - pliers and installers.
D
uring my time on the Foundation Kitchen Design
With clients, relationships matter from the moment they make fi rst contact with you. As a retailer, you have a small but vital window of opportunity to form a relationship by building trust and rapport. It is fundamental for the design process to have a great working relationship with the client, built on communication, trust, honesty and collaboration, to achieve exactly what the client needs and desires. This relationship continues long after the installation, looking after the client and continuing the good relationship during aftersales is also imperative. We have clients contacting us from 25-plus years ago for help and support and we pride ourselves on this aftersales and continuation of our good and strong relationship with them, which in turn is why most of our orders come from repeat business
We were taught to build strong relationships and end the thinking that we were on our journey alone. We were encouraged to join together and collaborate so that we could learn from and support each other
and/or referrals.
Solid working relationships with suppliers are also fundamental to the success of a retail business. If these are strong, built on transparency and trust, then communication about important aspects like stock issues or new product launches – which is key to a smooth retail operation – will be good. Sales reps – as the main point of contact between retailer and brand – are really key to tying these relationships together.
I am thankful to work with such great representatives of the many companies we deal with, all of whom are only a phone call away for help and support, which really does make a huge difference.
Building strong relationships with installers is also vital to ensuring that the job runs as smoothly as possible and that you reach your end goal – a happy customer who will recommend your business to friends and family.
Good strong relationships help us all in every part of life and every single person we meet can teach us something, if we are open-minded and receptive enough to listen and learn.
November 2020 ·
39
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76
