In the penultimate Academy in Action visit of 2018, the IAA and category partner Better Retailing visited Natalie Lightfoot to help her improve her shop layout
Shop layout is about designing your shop so customers find it easy to use and are able to buy more of what they want, more often. Making sure shoppers can easily see offers and have a better experience in a well-lit and easy-to-walk shop will make them want to come back again and again.
Before benchmarking your shop against the IAA’s criteria on the right, read how Stefan Appleby of category partner Better Retailing worked with Natalie to find shop layout solutions to benefit her business.
Natalie Lightfoot’s Londis shop in the Baillieston area of Glasgow is located on a busy main road, with competition from nearby Lidl, Morrisons and other convenience stores, a newsagent next door and cafes and butchers within a two-minute walk.
How can the IAA help Natalie improve her shop layout?
Why I take part?
“I don’t know of any stores that are perfect and can’t improve. I’ve got a really active Facebook group that I use to promote my offers and build great relationships with, so learning how to bring that to life in store through the IAA would be great. I’d love an action plan to help me work out what I need to improve and how to keep taking my shop forward.”
Natalie’s challenge: Arranging categories to guide shoppers through their journeys
Natalie used to do lunch meal deals but took them away recently. She has a coffee machine with a coffee and doughnut linked deal at the front of her shop. But are there missions she isn’t catering for and could be taking advantage of?
Stefan says: “Natalie gets a sandwich order three times a week, showing demand. A sandwich, crisp and drink deal would be perfect for her transient customer base, which includes office and shift workers and motorway travellers. It needs to be clearly signposted, as should the coffee and doughnut meal deal, which is not communicated as the great promotion it is.”
Action: Introduce meal deals and promote them to passing customers and new shoppers to drive basket growth.
Natalie’s challenge: Making your layout work for you
Natalie has a brilliant chiller section running the length of her store, with milk at the rear to draw customers right through the shop. But could she increase their basket spend by thinking about shopper missions throughout their journey?
Stefan says: Natalie wants to grow basket spend to £10. Linking the right products together is key to making this happen. She has a great grouping of breakfast products such as square sausage and tattie scones but needs clearer signposts to her passing customers. She has a great range of ‘to-go’ yoghurts- siting them next to juice will encourage a linked purchase and increase spend.
Action:Walk the shop and create a plan to have the right products next to each other on the shelf.
Natalie’s challenge: Reviewing and improving your shop layout
Natalie has put real focus on her alcohol range over the past four months, including introducing specialty and flavoured gins, and has grown sales as a result. But do they standout enough and is she really shouting about this as a point of difference?
Stefan says: Natalie’s gin range is great, but is difficult to see behind the till. Putting it at eye-level, as a key selling point, will position her store for the student demographic she wants to attract, getting them to purchase other products. Promotion needn’t rely on labels: using the media screens can tell people what they can find at the front of the shop.
Action: Identify the key drivers for the target audience and make sure they are clearly signposted at eye-level.
Partner Advice
Stefan Appleby, Head of Product, Better Retailing
“Natalie has clear ideas on who she wants to market her shop to and how she wants to grow sales. By seeing how products might link together to help shoppers on their journey, Natalie will be able to increase basket spend to £10.”
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