Quick Start Guide to Category Management

So you want to implement Category Management, but…

A) You haven’t attended a NACS training workshop
B) You want to get started now
C) But you don’t know where to start
D) And resources are limited.

Consider this your “quick start” guide.

1. Identify the top five categories that account for the majority of sales and gross profits and focus most of the effort and time there. The return will be greater than if spent on less impactful categories or if spread out over the entire store.

2. Determine the primary strategy of each of these top categories.

      Assigning a primary strategy to each of the leading categories will simplify and focus decision-making and in- store
tactical execution in the areas of:

–  Position: Where am I going to locate the product inside the store?
–  Product: How is the product going to be managed?
–  Presentation: How am I going to present/display it?

3. “Personalize” the implementation of these 3 “P”s by illustrating for store associates the benefits their customers will experience when they implement with excellence.

4.  Provide store associates with a plan and the training to execute these tactics on a regular basis by translating the 3Ps into the issues and activities they need to consider and deal with on a daily basis.

Successful implementation requires the discipline to execute in the store in order to influence consumers’ buying decisions and encourage them to buy more and more frequently.