Recently I caught up with Dave Krenn, the manager at Liberty Mullumbimby – North Coast NSW. Dave is relatively new to the industry and has achieved a lot in his time as manager. Since taking over as manager Dave has made a lot of changes to the layout of the store.
People on the North Coast are big on supporting local brands so Dave stocks a lot of products that are produced locally. With a fairly small store, there has been a lot of thought put into the products that are stocked. There is a Woolworths supermarket just down the road so besides the essential grocery items, grocery is not a focus.
Dave is conscious of keeping stock levels to a minimum so that there isn’t a heap of cash tied up in stock.
As you can see from the photos this is a clean, tidy and well organised site. Dave spends a lot of time outside the site making the place look presentable and attractive to customers. The local Food Inspector actually called in to do an inspection because he thought that there were new owners! He identified keeping the canopy free from spider webs and the lawns mowed as small things but things that have a big impact.
The plants you can see in the photos are from a local supplier. They sell well and make the shop front look great.
In store, all products have a clear price label making it easy for customers to know the price. The UCB promotional program helps drive sales.
Dave shared an interesting take on merchandising the fridges. He has had a lot of success placing lesser known brands at eye level in the fridge and popular products like 600ml Coke in a less prominent position.
Dave’s theory is that if people come into the store and they want a Coke, they will look for it and find it. This strategy has seen an increase in the sales of lesser known products while still getting great sales on popular beverages like Coke. He also has merchandised his fridge in a way that customers have to walk past all the other beverages before they get to the popular drinks.
It’s great to see retailers trying something different and getting great results!
Liberty Mullumbimby has a great food offer with products sourced from a local bakery.
Dave loves talking with other retailers about common problems and solutions people come up with. Make sure you leave a comment below or ask Dave a question.