As a retailer you have spent a lot of money over the years making your stores – “stores”. You have the store itself and the associated costs (Rent/Lease/Insurance/Utilities/Taxes etc.). You then have the fixture expense for the store. The lighting. Painting. Flooring. Mechanical needs. Signage outside and inside the store. Then you have equipment costs for the warehouse; lifts, forklifts, racks, tables, desks, lines on the floor, safety stations. Now the inventory – and that is a big one. All this (and probably more) before you even talk about all the wonderful people to turn on the lights and make the magic happen each and every day. A store manager. Associates. Designers. Customer Service. Warehouse. Again, sure I missed some. And all this before the door even opened for a chance at a sale. PLUS, this is repeated for each store. So as you plan on your next “Flagship” location our your next outlet; while those costs are sure to be fresh in your mind – think about how you “view” investments in things like your Point of Sale Systems and your Website. Not to long ago I had a dealer tell me they expect great things from their new website. It is going to become their biggest “influencer” of revenue. But I wonder if that website is just another line item cost on an existing P&L – or if they truly set it up for success? Maybe they did – we will surely see.

A unique perspective while you take a few away from the busy day. How do you view your technology investments?

Retail on.

Jesse