The battle to thrive as an independent kitchen retailer is only becoming more intense.
One of the key contributing factors? The big boys.
The Nationals continue to play the discounting game and fling money around on marketing, infiltrating your prospects’ minds and filling them with all sorts of preconceived ideas - some of which are pretty darn difficult to shake.
One of them is the notion that Independents are expensive, and that if you want a good deal you must go to one of the nationals.
You’ve probably experienced that horror story - where you’re talking to someone who would have been an ideal prospect for your business, only to discover that they’d overlooked you because they thought you’d be too expensive. Instead, they’d proceeded to head to Wren or B&Q and drop £30,000 on a kitchen with them instead…!
The problem with countering that objection in your marketing is that it’s very easy to come across like you’re competing on price, or cheap as well; which isn’t something that’ll appeal to your valuable middle-upper market buyers who want quality and are willing to pay a reasonable price for it.
So, what DO you do?
Well, there’s no easy answer, but there is an approach which could be the foundation of what you do - it’s detailed in a brilliant piece written recently by Luke Wedgbury.
Luke and his wife Kate are clients of ours, they own and operate Coalville Kitchens in Leicestershire.
Luke’s article in Kitchens & Bathrooms News this month, gives you his exact strategy for competing with the big boys - educating prospects and winning business that otherwise would have gone to those big national brands.
I think you’ll find it really useful - click on the image below to read the piece now:
