Strategies_Spring_2025

RESET

how our store looks now. There isn’t an aisle in our store she didn’t touch.” Like any other store that has been around for decades, Ryerson says the Alva store needed the new reset. “Sometimes you have to refresh and present a new look to your customers,” he says. “People need to see something different. Change can be good. I think our old layout was stale.” Ryerson says Blish-Mize was a great partner during the redesign by helping the staff see what products on their shelves had been stagnant and sharing trending products in the industry that could be successful at the store. “If you look at every aisle, there are several products we would’ve sold a lot of 10 or 15 years ago but aren’t moving as much today,” he says. “This is where we partner with Blish-Mize to find out what they’re seeing move throughout their multi-state area.” Many of Ryerson’s customers have been shopping at his store for many years, and making a big change that would affect how they shopped was something he thought of throughout the renovation. Although they were already doing so, Ryerson made sure his employees were able to direct their customers to the redesigned areas in the store where their go-to products are located. “A lot of people liked the change, and they liked our refresh,” Ryerson says. “We understand that it can be frustrating for some people who are used to going to the same spot for the last 20 years to go through change, but we made sure our employees were a big help in helping them find what they needed in the new space.” Ryerson says the larger amount of products they can now stock will allow them to serve their customers more effectively. “We’re stocking more items people want and getting rid of old inventory, making the store look much cleaner,” Ryerson says. “Having a store that’s easy to shop is a key to customer satisfaction.” “Janet was very involved. She’s a very hands-on leader and she had a great deal to do with how our store looks now. There isn’t an aisle in our store she didn’t touch.” —John Ryerson, Starr Lumber

Starr Lumber’s store reset brought a new lighting aisle layout and products to the store to better serve customers.

Hardlines Strategies • Spring 2025 17