Stores Magazine - October 2007 - (Page 116) CONSIDER THIS/ POINT OF VIEW Building Brands Through Operations BY CHRIS CHAPIN For more than a decade, the concept of branding has been the foundation upon which most marketing is centered. When a product is offered in a retail setting it becomes inseparable, in the mind of the consumer, from the sales environment it inhabits. Consequently, facility design and maintenance are key to formulating a branding strategy sophisticated enough to maximize retail sales. This integral part of all retail brands is commonly referred to as the “experience of place.” Whatever the product, the shopping experience must be enjoyable and one that customers can count on. The Chris Chapin is president seminal example is McDonand CEO of FacilitySource. ald’s. For more than 50 years, the Golden Arches have been considered the key to the company’s marketing genius. But while the arches are an iconic visual symbol, the brand was driven by excellent operations that ensured a consistent culinary experience, positive customer service and immaculate facilities. platform, stores look better, customers have a better experience and, most important, sales increase. Operating platforms that are intuitive in design and wellfunded (if something breaks, there’s a clear policy for repairing it quickly) are successful in upholding the brand’s image, and brand leadership plays a seminal role in these efforts. It is up to them to establish the standards and insist on consistency from one store to another. Creating standards and building an operational platform are integral to the brand, but so is the consistency with which those standards are delivered. It may be relatively easy to maintain consistent standards in one store or 10, but a chain of 1,000 to 10,000 stores presents a formidable challenge: in such cases, a retailer runs the risk of a thousand or more interpretations of its standards, which could damage the brand by confusing customers. FacilitySource addresses these issues through a nationwide network of facility experts who audit the facilities and establish criteria for consistent standards. Stores are surveyed and standard picture sets are established using 20 to 50 locations. Based on the completed survey, brands are able to establish costs to bring the chain up to standard, as well as determine which stores should be closed or renovated. Consistent standards Retail operations grow by building their brands with flawless customer experiences. Brands must have consistent standards in the cleanliness of the facility and the associated array of stimuli (lighting, music, wall colors, materials, fabrics, flooring, ceiling height, temperature and scent). The decibel level of the background music and the brightness of the lights may help determine customer demographics, but it is the consistency of such elements in all store locations that will ensure those customers’ brand loyalty. Each facility must support the established brand standards. Among FacilitySource’s objectives is to work with brands in strengthening the consistency of their standards. We help organize business rules that enable organizations to uphold established standards and build operational platforms from the facility maintenance angle. The platform is the process, procedures, systems and best practices utilized in maintaining the brand’s operational standards. For instance, every retail outlet should have design elements — fixtures, flooring — that appear “like new”: even if these elements are aged from a design standpoint, they should look fresh. When facilities operators have a well-defined operational 116 STORES / OCTOBER 2007 Reactive vs. pro-active FaciltySource not only helps stores see what they look like from the customers’ point of view, we provide retailers with the tools necessary to analyze their data and build a consistent brand experience. While many retailers consider their maintenance departments to be “top notch,” most function from an orientation that is reactive rather than pro-active and preventive. FacilitySource was created as an adjunct to retail management: Our role is to provide immediate response to individual problems, as well as create and maintain operational standards that prevent problems. We do this through a customized program of configurable software, experienced agents and an unsurpassed network of tens of thousands of service providers. With our facility maintenance optimization (FMO) process, we help retailers deliver on their brands’ promise and consistently maintain and reinforce the health of the brand through operational excellence. WWW.STORES.ORG http://WWW.STORES.ORG
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