Reference no: EM131990938
Store Walk Questionnaire- Suggestions for Store walk analysis
Adapted from a store walk list from Ross Barlow-Simpson of Institute Ltd and Retail Management by Levy and Weitz, this list should serve as a framework to help you observe retailers for your store walk analysis and your final project.
Before you enter the store:
- Parking lot and sidewalk cleanliness, parking lot maintenance
- Clean and attractive signage
- Adequacy and convenience of parking
- Exterior lighting
- Are there parking spaces for the handicapped?
- Does the outside of the store look like a store you want to shop in?
Upon entering the store look for:
- A natural, warm, comfortable décor
- Clean flooring
- Adequate lighting
- A festive air of merchandising excitement
- Clean and well-maintained shopping carts
- An attractive customer service station
- Are there restrooms, if so, are they signed clearly and are they clean?
- Is the store easy to shop in?
- Do you get a low price, or quality image?
- Is there background music?
- Is there a new-item section?
Employee presentation look for:
- Are employees well-groomed and do they have a neat appearance?
- Are employees cheerful and helpful?
- Do they have a common dress code?
- Are employees wearing name tags?
- Is there an employee recognition program?
In all departments, look for:
- High standards of cleanliness, both product and equipment
- Convincing proclamations that I am getting exceptionally good value
- Adequate aisle widths, easy shopping
- Merchandise placement for easy shopping
- Product directional or aisle signaling
- A layout that controls foot traffic to expose shoppers to the maximum range of products
- Shelf fixture cleanliness
- Is pricing easy to find/read?
- Is pricing complete and understandable?
- Are some sections overloaded with too many SKUs?
- Does the store use center aisle display? Are the aisles wide enough?
- How does the store smell, especially around fresh foods.
Store private label program:
- Is there a store brand program?
- Is the store brand left or right of the leading national brand?
- Does the store use point of sale on its corporate brand?
- How does store brand pricing compare to national brand counterparts?
- Are the labels in the store brands consistent from item to item?
- Is the label styling up to date with today's standards?
- How is the quality of the store brand promoted in relation to the national brand? Equivalent, superior, below
- Are there exclusive store brand products?
As you leave the store, look for:
- Checkout labor utilization
- Short checkout lines
- Efficient and courteous checking
- Proper bagging to avoid product damage
- A sincere "thank you"
- A quick checkout aisle for small orders
- Appropriate product merchandising at checkouts
- Self-service checkouts
Also observe the store layout:
- What extent are the store's layout, design, and merchandising techniques flexible?
- Notice the lighting. Does it do a good job in highlighting merchandise, structuring space, capturing a mood, and downplaying unwanted features?
- Are the fixtures consistent with the merchandise and the overall ambiance of the store? Are they flexible?
- Does the store layout help draw people through the store?
- Evaluate the retailer's use of empty space.
- Has the retailer taken advantage of the opportunity to sell merchandise in feature areas?
- Does the store make creative use of wall space?
- What type of layout does the store use? Is it appropriate for the type of store? Would another type of layout be better?