Poker Face

I got the opportunity to follow my boss to meet a potential retailer down town Stockholm. It was very instructive.

Here is the thing, we wanted to sell in our new concept collection consisting of unisex garments to a niche retailer. The meeting was definitely not that ”corporate" as I thought. It was very quick and quite awkward I would say.

I was unpacking the garments while my boss was presenting the concept and telling the story behind the brand. The store manager/buyer had one of the perfect poker face I ever seen in my 28 years of life. He didn’t say much, just nodding and inspecting the finish of our garments. Afterwards, he asked few questions (general questions such as material, quality and price, how long the company has been up and running etc.). He was very quick to let us know if he wanted us in or out.

Now, I don’t know how these types of meetings look like in general in real life, but after this experience I would like to share some insights with you:

1. Do your own homework well. If you get a suggestion from someone that your product could fit in a particular store go and check it yourself. To google the store and visit their webpage is not enough. Visit the store as well and try to understand who the clients are.
2. Adjust your selling pitch. Some things may trigger a positive outcome for some retailers but the same arguments should be left aside for others.
3. Listen carefully to the feedback you get, whether your brand is accepted or not, they can be extremely useful for your next meeting with other buyers.
4. When you get a ” we are not interested” but you really believe that the product fits well with the retailer's assortment range, use the feedback you got (point 3), work accordingly and go back there next year and try again!

This is my last post for this year so Merci, joyeux noël et bonne année you all.