With 2024 approaching, now is the time to start your retail business forecasting!  If you’ve never done this process before, today’s episode will walk you through the first step: looking at the commitments you’ve already made, the trips you’ve already booked, and any events you know are on the books. Listen in to learn what retail business forecasting is, how you can get started, what you can expect in 2024 based on what’s already on your calendar, and how going through this process can...

New Year, new store? If you’re like most independent retail store owners, a new year can feel like the perfect time to make a fresh start by reworking your product lines, introducing a new category, revamping your staffing…or even changing business models.  But before making such a drastic change, there are a few key things to consider. Changing business models is not a decision to make lightly, so today, I’m sharing some valid reasons to change (and some NOT change!) your business model.  ...

The Savvy Shopkeeper online shop has been revamped, renamed…and is relaunching with a Post-Black-Friday sale event!  Introducing The Shopkeeper’s Marketplace: an online shop just for indie retailers. Full of useful digital products, merch, and swag, it’s the perfect spot for indie retail store owners to find products made just for them. Listen in to learn why I’m relaunching the shop, what you’ll find inside The Shopkeeper’s Marketplace, and all the details about the special...

I’m not a big gratitude journaler. I rely on my journal when I need to get things out of my head, which helps me gain clarity and see the complete picture.  But there is a straightforward gratitude exercise I love, and today, I’m sharing it with you. Listen in to learn why this simple gratitude exercise has helped me gain a new perspective after a challenging year and how you can do it for yourself. For show notes, visit www.savvyshopkeeper.com/episode196.  Learn more about Kathy Cruz and...

With 2024 in our sights, we’re not far off from the next round of presidential elections. One of our Master Shopkeepers members, Julie, recently asked if I could share any insights into this question: “do election years affect retail sales?” There are many small business owners—and in particular, independent retail store owners—who firmly believe that retail sales dip in presidential election years. In a recent poll on my Instagram stories, more than ⅔ of respondents said that retail sales...

Many shopkeepers avoid hosting retail store clearance sales. Whether they’re worried about the perceived value of their goods or what other store owners might think, it’s common for shopkeepers to avoid marking down their old stock. Sadly, these worries can affect their bottom line and the health of their business. A well-executed retail store clearance sale can be an incredible opportunity to destock your store and get a healthy influx of cash! In fact, it could be your best sales day...

Many of the store owners inside Master Shopkeepers and the Savvy Shopkeeper community at large are also creatives, makers, and artists. After establishing their stores, the next question those makers ask is, “When should I wholesale in my business?” In today’s episode, you’ll learn how to decide if it’s time to start wholesaling in your business from the founder of Proof to Product, Katie Hunt. We cover the basics of starting as a wholesaler, the outreach marketing strategy all successful...

Whether you’re a Savvy Starter with a newly opened storefront or a Growing Retailer expanding into a second location, your first point of contact with customers isn’t happening at your store. It’s happening on the web!  In today’s episode, I’m sharing how you can conduct a simple retail store website homepage audit to ensure that your website is helpful, welcoming, and convinces customers to stop into your store. For show notes, including links to anything I’ve mentioned in this episode,...

After years of leading groups with hundreds of store owners, I can confidently report that ALL POS systems go down. Yes, all of them! There’s not one system that’s better than another when it comes to this.  So if—scratch that, when—your POS system goes down, do you have a plan?  Listen to this quick, valuable episode to learn what options you have when faced with a system or internet outage so you can be prepared when it happens to you. For show notes,...

Credit card fees are a contentious topic among retail store owners. As credit card fees continue to rise, shopkeepers are wondering what they can do to lower this expense.  One popular solution to this issue? Charging customers for the privilege of using a credit card.  While I’m not usually one to offer prescriptive advice, this is one instance where I have a definitive stance: you shouldn’t pass credit card fees onto your customers.  Listen in to learn why you should continue to absorb...

What’s less than 8 weeks away and right in the middle of the busiest quarter for indie retailers? It’s the biggest weekend of the retail holiday season: BFCM Small Business Saturday Weekend. With this mega retail weekend quickly approaching, it’s time to start planning! Listen in to learn why indie retailers love this weekend, which days to focus on, and how to prepare with my newest resource. For show notes and links to everything mentioned in this episode,...

Did you know you can sell from your window display, even when your store is closed?  In today’s episode, I’m sharing my QR code tutorial for brick and mortar stores. This is a fun way to make your window display attract potential customers, provide them with product information, and even drive them to your online shop! For show notes, including a link to get the tutorial and template I mentioned in this episode, visit www.savvyshopkeeper.com/episode188. Learn more about Kathy Cruz and...

I get asked a LOT of questions about Master Shopkeepers. As a retail store mastermind coach, I completely understand why you have questions and want to put your mind at ease. With applications closing for 2023 on September 30, I’m answering the five most common questions store owners ask me about Master Shopkeepers. Listen in for the five Qs & As—and learn about the two incredible bonuses you’ll get if you join before Q4! For show notes, including everything I’ve mentioned in this...

Being a mompreneur is incredibly rewarding, but it’s also challenging to find a balance between motherhood and owning a business. We love our kids, but we love our businesses, too. Finding the time to do it all while still making ourselves happy, well, that can seem impossible at times.  No one knows this better than Megan Moran, a third-generation mompreneur, the founder of Mompreneur Co., and of course, mother of two. She’s on a mission to give mompreneurs the tools and space to help them...

I can’t tell you how often I’ve seen a shopkeeper open a second retail store location and want to tell them, “Wait, don’t do that quite yet!” I’ve also seen many store owners go on to close their second retail store location later on.  This doesn’t mean that second, third, or fourth locations don’t work out for ALL retailers. They absolutely can work! But before you open a second retail store location, there are a few things to consider.  In this short and sweet episode, I’m sharing eight...

Your brain might tell you that every other business immediately succeeds—and that you’re a failure when yours doesn’t. But what if you could reframe your failures as experiments instead? Failing versus experimenting might seem subtle, but this reframe can be a pivotal mindset shift for retail business owners!  In today’s episode, I’m sharing my 3-step process for reframing your thoughts around your business’s success and failures so you can be a happier, more resilient, and more successful...

Over the past few weeks, I’ve shared why an operations manual is beneficial, five systems you should document for your retail store, and a free resource to give you a head start on creating your operations manual.  All of these podcast episodes have had one goal: to help indie retail store owners optimize their operations. Today, I’m excited to share that we can work together on this same goal inside a 5-week, small group program!  Optimize Your Operations is intentionally designed to help...

Whenever I talk about creating an operations manual, getting started seems to be the main roadblock keeping store owners from creating theirs. From figuring out what chapters to include to how thorough each section should be, just outlining your retail store operations manual table of contents is daunting! In today’s episode, I’m sharing a brand new FREE resource with you: the Retail Operations Roadmap! Listen in to learn what’s included and how you can get started. For show notes,...

A fact that might surprise you: EVERY indie store owner has a set of brick and mortar store systems. Yes, even those of you who don’t yet have an operations manual! You might not have them anywhere but inside your head, but you do have a set of systems and processes that you follow.  We're diving deeper into operations manuals in the second installment of this four-part series. Listen in to learn the five key systems that every indie retailer should document, including one system you can...

Creating an operations manual can feel intimidating and overwhelming, especially for indie/micro business owners. That’s why in today’s episode, I’m sharing the top eight benefits of a retail store operations manual.  Whether you’ve got just one employee (you!) or lots of employees at several locations, an operations manual is where you can outline all of your systems, processes, and guidelines to keep your business running smoothly.  Listen in to this episode and the ones that follow in...

Exciting news: the 2023-2024 Savvy Shopkeeper Digital Planner is now available! I am thrilled to share what I believe to be the BEST planner for independent retail store owners with you.  The planner has a new look, new worksheets, and new bonuses to help you work less, profit more, and grow. Listen in to hear what’s new with this year’s version of the planner, how the planner can help you and your retail business, and where you can snag your copy of the planner before the incredible...

Visit the Savvy Shopkeeper website and click on “Credit Card Reform” in my main menu or click HERE to complete the Voter Voice form.  I recently traveled to Washington DC to advocate for credit card reform on behalf of the Savvy Shopkeeper community and here's why... Visa and Mastercard dominate the U.S. credit card market. They account for 80 % of all credit card volume and have blocked competing networks that offer lower fees and better security from  processing transactions made on their...

The 2023-2024 Savvy Shopkeeper Digital Planner is launching soon! That means it’s the perfect time to revisit the five things I wish I’d known about planning for my retail business early on. When your store is brand new (or still just a dream!), it’s challenging to think about the future because you’re focused on the now. During my Aspiring Retailer and Savvy Starter stages, knowing how to plan would have been incredibly helpful. And now that I’ve learned about planning, it’s a key part of...

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve said, “just grab a good old pen and paper” on the podcast. Not only am I a fan of getting things out of my head, but I’m also a fan of writing things down so I don’t forget them. But after five years of paper piling up on my desk, I was beyond frustrated. I never felt I could find what I was looking for, and my notes overwhelmed me! So in 2022, I switched from paper to digital note-taking, and it’s been revolutionary.  The latest version of the Savvy...

As I looked back at all of the content I’ve written, recorded, and shared with store owners, I realized I’ve covered how to destock your store more than nearly any other topic! There are at least three episodes of this podcast and a few blog posts that address destocking your store in one way or another. In today’s episode, I’m excited to share a new option for destocking your store: The Destash Group for Retail Store Owners Hosted by Savvy Shopkeeper! Listen in to learn what this group can...