In this day and age we are all working to find ways to cut down on our spending; as a corporation, as a business, as a family, and as an individual. Maybe in the midst of all this cutting down the value of your gift shop is questioned, whether by management or a nosy customer. Reviewing this blog post from the Gift Shop Mag will surely refresh your mind on why a beautiful escape, and a little bit of retail therapy, can make the hospital a little more bearable for patients and caregivers alike.

As someone who has worked in the gift shop as both a volunteer, employee, and manager, I have seen the places I work and the people I serve at every level, including the customer! From the very beginning at 14, when I started volunteering for the first time, I saw the importance of their being an escape for people who were often going through a lot. From the guy who came in to buy his girlfriend who was critically ill an engagement ring, to the family members who flood in with the excitement of a new baby the gift shop holds something unique for all of them. 

Just this week I was reminded of the impact that the gift shop has for patients as well. I had come in to cover for a volunteer who was unable to make it on a Saturday morning, and for each person that came in I genuinely greeted them with a smile and asked how they were, looking them in the eye and giving them a listening ear if they chose.

Mid afternoon a very pregnant woman was wheeled into the gift shop by her husband, and accompanied by someone who looked to be her sister. I let them look for a bit, and then asked them how they were doing. We got into a discussion about life, opportunities, and her struggles with having a child. She told me that when she was 17 doctors told her she would never have children, but now at 26 and happily married, she was expecting a little girl. She had been dilated to a 7 for the last two days, and thankfully not in too much pain, but she had been stuck in her room for the last 48 hours. Her nurses had finally given her the go ahead to get out for a bit, as long as she stayed in the hospital. She decided to go right to the gift shop, and was excited to see the fun jewelry, baby clothes, and other trinkets as well as get some positive social interaction. 

For a lot of the people that come into the gift shop there is a story that is not immediately visible, whether it be a volunteer who recently lost their husband or a patient about to have her first child. The opportunity for humans in all walks of life to connect on the basic level of pain, empathy, excitement, and joy is to me what makes the hospital gift shops a necessity. Not only are we providing trinkets and gifts, we are helping older people connect with their community, young people to learn the importance of giving and learning skills, and everyone who comes in a safe place to escape from the starkness of the hospital rooms.

Budgeting: (verb) one of the scariest parts of being an adult. 

Whether you are working with your own money or buying goods with someone else’s, budgeting is vital to make sure that you are within your means. When working for a hospital gift shop you will not be spending your own money on the cost of goods, making it a bit easier to go a little overboard. Making responsible financial decisions is the first step in managing your gift shop well, and ensuring that you are making the most of what you have!

When getting ready to start spending, it is first important to approximate how much you anticipate selling within each category. For example, some of the things that I budgeted for were flowers, helium, candy, and sundries. These are pretty fixed costs for our gift shop, and will always be purchased during a given month. Having a rough idea of how much you spend on your more fixed costs will allow you to better prepare the other numbers that aren’t quite as easy to identify. 

Once you have taken out an approximation of certain costs, you can then move to parceling out the rest of your categories. For my gift shop we have to think about Valentine’s Day, Easter, 4th of July, Halloween, Christmas, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, baby, jewelry, clothing, and everyday. These are a general breakdown of the categories that I buy in for the year, and these cannot be budgeted for equally. Halloween, Christmas, and everyday will get the bulk of the budget as we expect to sell more items in these categories. In my personal situation, I am testing the waters to see how the baby items do, so I budgeted slightly more in that category than I might usually do. Breaking down categories is one of the first steps in successful budgeting, whether your personal expenses or those of your store!

Another important part in budgeting is making sure that items are marked up correctly. When you are purchasing goods at wholesale, you are getting them for a discount. It is important during this step that you are constantly asking yourself if the people who will shop in your store will buy that item when it is marked up to its full price. While you might really love a piece of merchandise, it might not do well at MSRP, or the manufacturer’s suggested retail price. For most companies, MSRP is double the wholesale cost, minus a cent. This is where you get the $9.99 for a blanket at Walmart or $18,999.99 for a new car. While some industries mark their merchandise up well over the wholesale price, all items should be at the very minimum doubled from wholesale to make sure that with any seasonal sales you are not risking losing money when that 20% off dips into the wholesale amount you paid to have that product.

My current manager who occasionally helps me in the gift shop was over the TOSH gift shop in Murray for 20 years. She has a bad habit of not marking things up all the way, and then when items are not selling and are discounted, there is a significant loss in money. Selling items for less than you paid for them is going to negatively impact you and will hurt your budget tremendously. Marking items up properly for your store is vital for the well being of your budget!

1. Location

Your online presence needs to be exciting, through social media, your website, and any online communication. Make sure that your business is current, relevant, and that you are using hashtags to make sure you are in the right place for your potential customers to see you – on their Discovery page on Instagram, at the top of the list on Twitter, or the first option when a key phrase is Googled.

2. Location

There is only so much you can control on where you are located with your store front, whether that is in a hospital, museum, zoo, or mall. Don’t let bad positioning get you down, though. Utilize all windows, doorways, and counter tops to display the best of the best, as far as your products go! Make sure that new items are the first thing a customer sees as they walk in, and make it exciting enough to draw them in to see the rest. Creating signs to put outside that tease new items or lights to draw attention will go a long way in making your location a little more inviting for all your customers.

3. Location

It is probably getting a bit repetitive, but location… Again! It is absolutely vital that you are right in front of your customer, whether that is online, through the use of grand displays or signs, and lastly, through making sure that you are targeting the right audience. You might be in the front of the mall, but if you aren’t bringing people in with relevant ads, targeted branding, and special sales, it won’t matter. The location of where your brand sits in the industry is just as important as its physical location. 

4. Involve your customers

One thing that has really brought people in is contests. Filling a new mug with Hershey’s kisses and asking people to guess how many are in the mug, with the winner keeping the container as a prize. Little things that ask the customer to be apart of the store, like a simple survey using marbles to indicate a preference on a question or something as silly as putting it out to your social media followers to name your store mascot. We all enjoy having our opinions heard, so make sure to include your customers and watch them feel more included in the mission and goals of your store. 

5. Keep it fresh and fun!

No one likes boring, and let’s be honest, it just doesn’t sell. Mixing up displays monthly, creating new signs as merchandise comes in, creating fun sales (like a Sweetheart’s 14% off sale for Valentine’s day), and using things like music, scents, and lights will all keep people wondering what you will do next. In the best kind of way! One of the easiest ways to include your customers in the excitement of new product is to highlight it. Once a month pick a product that is engaging, different, and special. Put together a small display and place it where everyone will see it: Right next to the register. Not only will it become an awesome impulse buy, it will also be seen by every person who comes in, whether they buy a pack of gum or the whole store.

When you make sure that your location – online, in the store, and targeting your markets, combined with the inclusion of customers and constant fun and excitement, you are sure to create raving fans of your business to a whole new level!