After spending the day with three independent retailers in Berkshire last week I learned the importance of retailers learning from and helping each other.

I visited Roli Ranger, Yogi and Bunti Tatler and Arjan Mehr who all own Londis stores in Berkshire. They are all located within a few miles of each other, but they are not competitors. They regularly visit each other’s stores and meet up to talk about how they Ican improve their businesses. Through sharing their experiences and ideas they have all helped each other become even more successful.

It was with the help and encouragement of their retailer peers that they have all undertaken refurbishments in their stores, which have increased their profits (Roli saw a 100% sales uplift after his store was refurbished!).

Working with and learning from other retailers is the key to their successes, and something that they encourage all independent retailers to do.