Reddit mentions of Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping

Very good observations, all. I strongly recommend you check out a book called "Why We Buy" by Paco Underhill, one of the pioneers of observation-based store layout and product placement.

The things you learn by subscribing to pornographic reddits. I love the Internet.

Sounds like a train wreck in the making.

As part of the deal, get some training in day to day operations. Most of these guys are so used to how the business runs they aren't even conscious of dozens of little details. Find out through observations as much as what they tell you. Employees can help -- if the business isn't churn 'n' burn.

If you're keeping the employees, find out their strengths, weaknesses, tendencies, etc. Too many of these have no concern about employee interaction with customers, and these employees are the face you show the public. Don't get a new logo. Because these people represent your branding in ways no graphic designer can even comprehend.

Develop a "dashboard" for financials. Know what your margins are, because small time retail is harsh. If you and your accountant are on speaking terms, coming up with a few key indicators to look at that tells you at-a-glance how the business is doing.

You have "the book." That's the current owner. Don't close it just yet, that's your best book -- if you know how to read it.

Next, see where the losses are. Shrinkage. See what you can do to reduce it because that's money hemorrhage.

For example, if you have clothes on hangers ...right by the front door, alternate how the hanger hooks face. Something simple like this can keep a shoplifter from grabbing a whole rack and making a dash.

Once again, every business should have a few dozen of these tricks-of-the-trade. Be sure to go after them with the owner. And developing some of your own should be on your list of things to do.

My suggestion on reading would start out with Why We Buy by Paco Underhill. Consumer behavior 101. If nothing else it tells you how to read your customers like a book through observation. Not what they say, what they do.

Visual merchandising has many margin growing ideas. Learn them.

Marketing is vital for your business. First is knowing the difference between consumers and customers. Best thing you can do is have a database of best customers you mail to.

Don't have one? Owner doesn't keep track? Get one. Get every best customer into it. Learn how to market. Not how to slash prices -- how to market your business. Slashing prices, the "sale" is the price you pay for not learning to market.

Despite what everyone and their brother tells you, if your marketing hinges on running discount sales, consider your marketing a failure in need of immediate attention. Know marketing. Know copywriting. Know customers.

Finally, do update the business. Integrate online sales with retail purchases. Do innovate with an integrated online/offline mobile presence if at all possible. Evaluate and consider making over the physical retail space, if needed.

Don't get caught up on bells and whistles and surface decoration that does, literally, nothing for the business. Test everything and become a fanatic about testing. If you want a mentor, take a look at how this guy does it. All the crap designers sell today? That's to make up for the owner's lack of interest and enthusiasm.

Learn that design -- real design -- can be a strategic asset and not vapid junk. Design your business, do not decorate it. Worst thing you can do in retail is misunderstand design. Move up the design maturity continuum.

Accounting will tell you there's a problem. Design can tell you what the solution is ...if you're not splashing about in the shallow end. Accounting gives you the numbers. Design drives the numbers.

When Gateway was closing all its stores, along came Apple to eat everyone's lunch. Why? Everyone else was looking at the numbers, running their business by the numbers. Apple focuses on driving the numbers.

This is so not about S corp versus LLC. You do not want to have to fall back on limited liability shielding -- the last resort when all else fails. Figure this out and get it out of the way -- quickly. Avoid failure. Grow the business.

I completely agree with Creativity, Inc. and the design of every day things

A few that I would recommend on top of the list from OP


Why we Buy:
http://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Buy-Science-Shopping/dp/0739341928?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0


Predictably Irrational
http://www.amazon.com/Predictably-Irrational-Revised-Expanded-Decisions/dp/0061353248/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1464902735&sr=1-2&keywords=irrationality


Decoding the New consumer mind:
http://www.amazon.com/Decoding-New-Consumer-Mind-Shop/dp/1118647688

There's a fascinating book that you might find interesting! It's called Why We Buy and it looks exactly at the question of the role of shopping in peoples' lives. https://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Buy-Science-Shopping/dp/0739341928