Target customer equals retail bullseye

This year's TNT Ragtrader Retailer of the Year (ROTY) Awards afforded an invaluable snapshot of Australian fashion retail in all its forms.
Within the broad categories of independents and chains, contestants differed widely in terms of business size, product and number of years in retail.
However, whether large national chains stocking a multitude of brands or single outlet boutiques offering a self-named label, one overriding principle united them all: know your target market.
This underpinned all aspects of the most successful retailers activities; including branding, advertising and promotions, customer loyalty schemes, recruitment and staff training, supply chain and stock management as well as the in store experience.
Sydney based chain General Pants Company had incorporated all these into a seamless whole, translating the brand proposition clearly to its target market and co-opting both staff and customers into a community of like minded individuals.
Independents without the large budgets available to chains often relied on a carefully nurtured, local customer base or - in the case of Brisbane womenswear boutique Maiocchi - a unique, self-manufactured label. They also ensured their offer - including product, pricing, customer service and in store experience - was differentiated from that of their competitors and, again, clearly targeted.
While most retailers understood the importance of the target market, many conceded that ensuring consistency of execution in store was a challenge, especially for chains or boutiques undergoing expansion.
Melbourne menswear boutique Calibre - which now has several stores across the country - had safeguarded against such perils and retained its boutique ethos by offering own-label, high quality product and a high level of customer service across all its outlets.
While many contestants were retailers of long standing, the judges also found inspiring examples of young entrepreneurship, including Melbourne retailer Bolis Mens. Bolis had entered the market with a clearly targeted menswear offer and a unique branding proposition, thereby gaining access to major international brands during its first year of business.
Focus, balance and consistency of execution were found to be the watchwords of successful retail. Like a number of juggling balls in the air, the standout stores kept all aspects of their business working in concert around one central point; the target customer.