Is This a Business?
Merchandising the business of a mission
"It started as a mission".
No matter if we are discussing a shrine or gift shop located on
the campus of the parish church, or if we are discussing a multiple location chain of Christian book stores, mission was traditionally
one of the foremost ideas in the initial thought process. Some
of those interviewed for this article stated they felt it would
be very difficult to be a part of this industry if their mission
was solely to be a business.
If we were to take the mailing
list of a trade organization, and
visit all of the locations across the United States we would most
definitely see a broad array of styles of operations. Perhaps
the first we would see would be the all volunteer shop that does
not have set hours of being open, and operates in a corner of
the parish hall.
And within our travels, we would
also see the location bearing a strong resemblance to the Christian
retailing store
that we would expect to see in a mall, shopping center, or in a
stand alone location.
If we stated that the initial
task of each of the shops was that of inviting the parishioner to
visit, we would immediately see the differences in these operations beginning
to surface. The parish shop is most likely to attract
people from their own parish and from parishes that do not have
a shrine or gift shop as a mission of their church. Visitors
from another parish are likely to find this parish shop through
word of mouth or the traditional small ad in their parish bulletin.
And, folks that are not of the Christian faith are at
a disadvantage in finding these shops when they are wanting to
make a purchase for a Christian friend or family member.
For
the shops that are located in stand alone buildings or with other
businesses in a traditional shopping center, the task of attracting
parishioners becomes more complex as the traditional components
of advertising are involved. Most stores have utilized mailing
lists for direct mail, yellow pages, and Christian oriented magazines.
While many of the shoppers in
these locations have made the store their destination on a shopping
trip, businesses are more apt to have an occasional or even frequent
non-Christian shopper.
From these two basic premises,
we will begin to see the difference in how these more traditional
businesses are merchandised. With books being a strong point for
many shops and stores, many have placed their book displays in the
rear section. The logic most frequently given is that people interested
in books like to thumb through a book before making a selection
and purchase.
Placing the books in the rear
creates a draw through the store, and eliminates much of the possibility
of clogged aisles that you frequently experience with book stores.
The exception to this merchandising technique is the placement of
new titles in a display near the front door so that customers will
know the store is stocking the latest releases.
In designing book
racks, displays should not be higher than six feet as the books
above that height are out of reach of most customers. Books that
have their cover facing the customer provide more appeal through
their attractiveness, but due to space limitations this method
is often not possible. And in using your book racks, they should
be designed so that no matter if the customer is standing at the
side of the rack or at the end, there should be something for sale
for the customer to see. Ends of book racks are a great place to
have a small display of inspirational book marks and book covers.
The space from the front to
the back of the store or shop is often a progression from "soft
inspirational" products
that would appeal to Christian and non- Christian alike, to the
rear of the store which will have more of the traditional Christian
sacramental items.
The forward sections of the
shop are the ideal locations to place seasonal merchandise and products
that appeal to impulse purchasing. If your shop is selling cd's
then you need to have an album playing, or make it easily available
for the customer to play the album before making their selection.
One shop owner, noting that
many times the shoppers had young children with them, created an
area of children's books and products that children would be most
likely asking their parents to purchase for them. There was even
a couple of child size chairs provided so that the parents could
shop without distraction.
Many of the businesses that
sell to the parish itself include displays of vestments and other
non-consumer products in these sections in the rear. Again the thinking
given is that the representative of the parish has driven to the
store or shop to s elect merchandise for their needs and after being
greeted by your staff, will ask for anything they cannot locate
themselves.
No matter who your audience
is, the key of good merchandise,
well displayed,
and reasonably priced will always be attractive to
shoppers.
The managers and owners that
we spoke with explained that their shops were always decorated appropriately
for the season. As one merchant stated, "my customers shop
according to cultural moments. I need my business to reflect that
feeling and be able to assist them."
Most of the shops evolved to
their present design. As sources of inspiration, there were many
ideas seen in both secular and non-secular bookstores, as well
as gift shops and card shops in general. One unique shop placed
the register at the rear of the store so that each customer making
a purchase would have to travel throughout the store. This shop
owner was thrilled with the result as she mentioned that customers
were often returning to the register after having made a purchase
to pay for "just one more item that I saw on the way out."
Throughout
our tour of these shrine, gift and book shops we will find varying
levels of success; whether as a business for profit or as a group
of volunteers looking to increase the amount of mission money
they give to their parish. And with each of these, they have not
relied upon an expected level of loyalty from the past and prospective
customers, but have instead worked to help shoppers set up a chapel
in their or someone else's heart, and are serving Christ in the
world.
