Gift shops are unique businesses. They offer a carefully selected range of products, supported with personal service and displayed in a locally appropriate way. Gift shop owners take pride in being different, offering an experience unique compared to department stores and national groups.
It is these local gift shops offering personally selected products for local shoppers on which Tower Systems focuses its services in the gift shop management space.
The Tower gift shop software has been developed specifically for locally owned gift shops. It is specialist software, packed with tools aimed to serve unique needs of these specialist retail businesses.
It is this commitment to specialisation that helps Tower Systems to be in such a strong position with gift shops, serving hundreds of businesses in this specialist retail space. These retailers help us further develop the software to provide even deeper connections with the specialist requirements of gift and homewares businesses.
In addition to providing excellent gift shop software, Tower Systems also provides sound advice to help gift and homewares retailers improve the in-store experience.
One example of gift software management advice is this advice on shop floor product rotation:
- Rotate gifts at least fortnightly. By rotate, we mean major change, so the gift department and every gift display looks completely fresh.
- Each placement / display ought to tell a story. By this, we mean it ought to appeal to the same shopper. There is no point in putting gifts mixed in with gifts for guys.
- Follow a treasure hunt principle: place displays to encourage people further into your shop. Displays themselves should present surprise to shoppers. Do not place gifts in a line on shelves. Be creative with displays that are visually enticing.
- The more targeted each display the better chance it will work.
- On a daily basis, through a structured (rostered) plan, clean gifts and shelves. Dust blocks sales.
- At least weekly, call out a gift on Facebook with a carefully written post about why the gift is useful.
- Be disciplined about quitting gifts that are not working for you. The longer you carry an underperforming item in your business the more its costs you.
- Manage your gift displays to drive traffic, not to leech off existing traffic.
