Retail Business 101, Inc. provides a variety of services to assist golf professionals and golf shop owners to improve their businesses. Company president, Alan Fisher has worked with a wide range of golf shops and consulted with providers of ePoS systems to the golf industry. Clients include the buyers and financial staff of large US golf resorts and the owner/managers at small and medium-sized golf facilities.
“After serving as a sales manager for several golf ePoS companies in the United States, I became frustrated with the number of golf facilities that purchased a system expecting their business to change,” he said. “After 3-5 years of using the system for little more than a tee sheet and cash box, many would replace the system with the assumption that the software was the problem. The process would start over and another 3-5 years would be wasted with a cycle of computer installation projects.
“As I worked with buyers at these golf facilities, I recognized that the systems, with 5000+ sales and inventory reports, were creating a paralysis-by analysis situation. Most software companies did not understand retail or tee sheet yield management. Whereas few persons in the golf industry have knowledge of sound retail practices, I realized that they were looking to the software provider for guidance. ePoS’s emphasis on detail reporting was pointing people in the wrong directions.
“As a result, Retail Business 101, Inc. was created to help these individuals better manage their businesses. My approach is one of a financial nature in that no controller closes a financial month and then attempts to analyze by reviewing general ledger transactions. A controller reviews a financial statement and accounting period in comparison to budgets and previous periods. Upon finding a problem, this person digs deeper to determine what has caused a problem in that revenue, cost of goods or expense. With my clients, we find reports that look at a broad-brush perspective of the retail business and then peel one level at a time until we find the reason for success or failure. Rather than review a 500-page report, we find valuable 1-2 page reports that provide the equivalent of a financial statement for the golf shop.
“As a result, several software providers have engaged Retail Business 101, Inc. to review the strength of their products and then help them develop the tools to make their customers more successful. With retail clients, I focus on helping shops manage their inventory investment and then help determine retail-smart decisions that need to be made. The typical goal is to increase profit margins and reduce inventory investment.
Retail Business 101, Inc. provides multiple levels of services to assist in making golf shops more profitable, some of which do not require an on-site visit.
- Retail, Procedures and Systems Review: Retail Business 101, Inc. will visit the facility for a specified number of days to review many aspects of the golf business including sales planning and inventory budgeting (Open-to- Buy), ePoS systems in use, retail policies and practices, and tee time utilization.
- Open-to-Buy: the OTB plan offers a simplified version of the full review and is conducted with information provided by the golf facility with or without an on-site visit.
- Systems Selection: Retail Business 101, Inc. will conduct a review of needs for a golf operation with the plan of assisting in selecting an appropriate epos system for the facility.
- Special Projects: business planning, development or data analysis; any requests to assist in making the golf business more profitable.
Retail Business 101 www.retailbusiness101.com