Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Bad retail and good retail

Something you don't think about very often: one retail job is not like the other. Yes, they definitely all have bad hours, long shifts, annoying customers, etc. But some stores are places people WANT to be, and some stores are places people do NOT want to be. For example: Hallmark. If you're going to Hallmark, probably 90% of the time it's because you are celebrating a birthday, holiday, wedding, etc. There's that 10% that you're getting a sympathy card or just have to get an obligatory gift, but usually you're pretty happy to be at Hallmark. Then there are auto parts stores. There, probably 90% of people are disgruntled because their battery died and they need a new one, or they have to replace their spark plugs, etc. There are the 10% of people that just need some air freshener or some new car wash soap, but in general people are probably not thrilled about having to fix their car, even if it's just regular maintenance. Somewhere like Target is probably more blended: maybe 25% of people are going to get some new fun clothes or a new CD, 50% of people just need some new laundry detergent and are pretty neutral, and 25% of people are there because they're sick and need some cold medicine or whatever. Just an interesting thought.

No comments: