Before I did this I owned an independent retail store. No, I wasn’t doing retail dance apparel, it was a bicycle shop. So it was in a totally different industry, but I still wore that hat – that hat that says “I’m an independent business owner and I spend my days dealing with vendors and suppliers alongside customers and potential customers.”
And though a bike shop is definitely a different beast than the realm of retail dance or gymnastics apparel, they’re actually two very similar worlds focusing on a niche athletic market.
Parallel Sales & Premium Brands
I started my bike shop business from scratch, built it up and eventually sold it four or five years later. It was a great experience that taught me about parallel sales, marketing premium brands and the importance of being able to speak as an advocate when you sell a product. It also taught me about the challenges of dealing with local and external competition and suppliers.
I think that background and experience has not only helped me in my day-to-day dealings with our retail dance wear partners, but also in developing many of Motionwear’s polices and customer service principles.
Our Goal: Ship Complete Orders, On Time
As a manufacturer and supplier, we want to sell goods and we want to keep our customers happy. And since I know what it’s like to be on the end of an order, I make sure that Motionwear is always shipping complete orders on time. We also provide our retail partners with detailed dancewear catalogs and other selling tools that will help them present and sell more Motionwear product.
These are all strategies and promises born from the fact that I’ve been there, I’ve stood in their shoes, and I’ve worn that hat. And every single day, I’m asking the question “what do I need to do to make my retail dancewear partners a success?”
So, let me ask you… What do we need to do? Are we there? Could we improve?
If you’re a retailer, partner or not, I’d love to hear your input in the comments section.
