This month's retailer spotlight is on Rick McKnight, owner of Kiddie Shoppe in Columbus, GA. Founded in 1936, Rick bought the business from the original owners' children in the 90's. Rick, who holds a BS degree in Fashion Merchandising from The Fashion Institute and a BS degree in Business from Auburn, moved the business to its current location in a lifestyle shopping center. The store is 5500 square feet and well known for its shoe and clothing selection from newborn through teens. Three years ago, Rick converted space that previously housed high-end women's clothes to toys. This has proven to be a boon to the business during the natural down cycles of the clothing/shoe business. Never one to rest on success, Rick plans on adding kids haircuts as soon as he finds the right employee.

The Kiddie Shoppe philosophy is to be all things to a certain specific customer. Rick and his staff welcome them as friends, know their children's names and participate in the activities they are involved in (community endeavors). Rick looks for products not widely available elsewhere in the area and attributes his success to the "4 P's", product, presentation, personality, and price. Rick also works hard to create a reason for his customers to come back to his store. Recently, he had an artist come to the store to draw silhouettes of the customer's kids. Rick reported that the days that the artist was present, he beat his plan by several thousand dollars.

In an effort to get a professional's point of view on how to grow top line sales, I contacted Ms. Jacqueline Taylor, the local director of the SBA as well as a professor of Business Administration at a local college. I identified my position and asked Ms. Taylor "How do retailers attract more customers with a limited marketing budget"? Ms. Taylor suggested utilizing email marketing with a newsletter that is parent specific. Of course, you want to speak about your store with regard to product offerings, promotions, etc, but it is also helpful to include a piece about something parents may find interesting which is relevant to the season (i.e. the correct way to apply sunscreen). We would be happy to talk about Constant Contact (what Twig uses) as a vehicle for this type of communication. If you do create a newsletter, be sure it is easy to "forward on". Ms. Taylor suggested other types of marketing such as partnering with another type of business to reach more customers. Posting local fliers in kid specific businesses (dance, karate, gymnastics, etc) could help you reach new customers. Joining marketing efforts will also help in keeping the cost down. The Professor also offered two suggestions for books that will really help you get started: "Guerrilla Marketing" by Levinson and Lautenslager. "How to Say it: Marketing with a New Media: A Guide to Promoting your Small Business".

Keep in mind that Stride Rite will be aggressively promoting their "Buy One, Get One" sale beginning August 3rd and running it through the entire month. We realize that this sale is very hard to compete against so we encourage creativity. One customer ran a promotion last year during this sale that was quite effective. Ahead of the event, the owner partnered with a new women's spa that opened up a few doors down. The owner "purchased" manicures from the spa owner for $5 and sent out an email blast to her customers that said "Mom, you are always doing for your kids, do something for yourself. Spend $100 on back to school shoes and get a free manicure"! Apparently, the promotion resonated with Moms as the owner reported giving away 168 manicures!

If you have any suggestions that you would be wiling to share with your fellow independents, please email us. Twig feels very strongly that consumers want to "put their money where their house is" (a sign posted in the window of a customer), so go ahead and promote your local business. Don't be shy! Most people want to support their friends and neighbors!

Have a wonderful June!