Could Your Store Survive Without a Big Brand?

Few of us experienced, but more know someone who experienced, the Great Depression, and were taught the valuable lesson on learning to live without certain items. What would you and your store do though, if you had to live without a key item or brand of items? It could happen very easily, but can you survive without?

The state of Maine is discussing a ban on all soft plastics for freshwater fish; if this ban became law many retailers in that region would quickly find a lot of shelf space that needs to be filled with something else. How many feet do soft plastics take up in your retail store? Think of how many tackle boxes or bags, weights, pegging systems and scents that are used in conjunction with soft plastics; would you be willing to still carry them and stock them on valuable shelf space? Would you be able to learn how to live without an entire product line, or would you see this as a signal of the end? You could always add fly fishing to your store floor.

The bright side of a statewide or nationwide ban on a certain product or line is that your competition will feel the same effect. Sales could even spike preceding the ban due to liquidation pricing or the well-known buying hysteria that comes with such bans. It would be difficult at first and a learning curve for everyone, both retailers and your shoppers. Your shoppers will accept the disorder that may come with such a large shift if it is government-induced. Let’s hope that this travesty never occurs and life as we all know it continues.

How long though would you be able to survive if your business lost the rights to sell an entire company’s product line? Imagine receiving an email or a letter stating that as of X date you are no longer able to sell Berkley fishing line, Shimano reels, Abu Garcia reels, St. Croix rods or any product that you feel is critical to you being a quality dealer. Of course, for many the first reaction would be similar to Chicken Little’s, and you would feel that the sky is falling.

How long would you be able to stay in business? How long would it take for you to replace such a large void in your product line? I believe that while your store would experience a minor setback and a slight downturn in sales, eventually most retailers would bounce back.

Since we are assuming things, we will assume that there was no action or lack of action on your store’s part to cause this issue. If it was generated due to lack of payment or activities that went against your contract, then you would need to address that matter first. But, as we are assuming the company suddenly went out of business or decided to only sell directly from their own website, then you need to focus your attention on how to replace that product line, and quickly.

Last summer’s Alabama Rig was a wonderful example at how lengthy the process is from the time a new product is identified until you can have it in your store. The sooner you can get a product identified and the contracts signed the quicker you can begin the process. This is where being a part of a large buying group will be a true asset. Working with a distributor like Big Rock Sports will speed the process up, and cut through some of the red tape. If you are part of a group already, they will know who you are, your financial situation and some of your needs. You will already have a contact within their organization and they will be able to jump-start this process. As a retailer, if this happened to you, in less than three months you should assume that you are back to 100 percent with sales within that category. This would also be a great reason to jump-start your social media marketing campaign to highlight your new line of products.

If you are independent of any buyer group or distribution group, this process could quickly become much longer. You would need to identify a company or two you would like to replace the new vacancy with. The more companies you start the conversation with, the faster your store can rebound. How to identify the companies that you will start your discussions with is something that should begin long before this scenario ever starts. Start identifying new lines now, watch how their national advertising campaigns are run, who are their fishing pros, how often are they the innovator of new products, or how far behind are they lacking in technology?

There is no reason that you cannot keep tabs on rival manufacturers than what you carry, in fact you would be doing this for everything you sell. This will keep you more aware of the market, and the advances that are constantly being made – it will also help you be aware of shifts in the market locally before they may be reported nationally. By doing this you may also notice a national company changing how they are marketing their lines or that they are slowing down the number of new products they are releasing.

Eventually either by legislative action, economic calamities, or just old-fashioned bad luck, your store will be faced with either of these problems. It may have already happened more than once to your store – if so, how did you handle it? Are you prepared to go without a product line? If not, maybe it is time to start planning for that rainy day. If you have tips to share with your fellow Fishing Tackle Retailers please share them with us all on Facebook.