David Livingston

Independents Losing Ground

August 16, 2010

FROM RETAILWIRE:
According to an article in USA Today, independent retailers are fairing worse in the recession than larger chains due to a litany of reasons, from buying clout to lack of management smarts. What are the major challenges independents face when going up against chain stores?      [more...]

I'm going to totally disagree that independents are at a disadvantage. Oh sure they might not have some of the financial muscle that a chain has but they have other advantages. Independents can react to market changes faster and change policies almost instantly. I've got one client that kisses and hugs all his female customers. I'd like to see a Wal-Mart manager do that. Another that has the local police and fire departments in his back pocket to help out in an instant. One that visits his best customers when they are in the hospital or attends their funerals. One grocer I know of carries a loaded weapon on him at all time. He can keep his shrink down compared to the chain store across the street. Independents can hire and fire at will and get away with discrimination. They can retain employees better because they can treat them like family rather than a number. The list goes on.

I also disagree that independents don't have the real estate muscle. I'm going to brag here and tell you when I worked for Roundy's we made a lot of independent retailers zillionaires by getting them in some of the very best locations while at the same time humiliating A&P, Jewel, and Fleming, undermining their real estate strategy, and running them out of town like scared dogs. Take a drive around Milwaukee and you will find plenty of skeletal remains of vacant A&P, Jewel, and Fleming stores. For sure, one thing Roundy's did right for their independents was to make them very competitive in the real estate forum.