Specialty Equals Special - Always

By: Larry Galler
Submitted: 2007-01-17 15:05:16
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Not long ago the owner of a small, niche-type business, whose business was declining because of increased competition from much larger and better funded “big-box” companies told me with a discouraged sigh that, “I wonder if there is a place for specialty stores any more.”

My replay was, “Yes!”

There is plenty of room for specialty stores if that business owner understands that the word “specialty” means: “the state of being special.” In other words there is room for a specialty store if you are, in fact, “special.” That means the owner must be always seeking to be special in any number of ways to her customers. To constantly give them better depth of choice, better quality, more convenience, better service, faster fulfillment, more creative design, better packaging, better value, a more enjoyable experience… special in every way.

All too often a company starts out being outstanding. They are at the cutting edge of their marketplace. Customers flock to them as they profit from their “specialness.” But they remain set in that particular “specialness” until the competition, who has lost customers to the new competitor, evolves, catches up, then surpasses them. Customers then defect and go to the company that best meets their needs, wants, and desires.

As consumers, we all seek to purchase from companies that provide the greatest level of satisfaction. Companies that remain “special” in our minds are continually working to figure out what we will want tomorrow, next year, and in the next decade. Companies that become mired in “today’s specialness” become “tomorrow’s out-of-fashion has-been” unless they continually work at being special both today and tomorrow.

So there is a place, and always will be a place, for a specialty store, a specialty service, and a specialty product, a specialty company. But it has to always be special. That means constantly being focused on discovering what the current customers will want tomorrow. It requires that the successful specialty company have the ability to change and the ability to manage the risk associated with the changes required to always be special. It isn’t easy, but when you do it you are… special!

Larry Galler coaches and consults with high-performance executives, professionals, and small businesses since 1993. He is the writer of the long-running (every Sunday since November 2001) business column, "Front Lines with Larry Galler" For a free coaching session, email Larry for an appointment - Larry@larrygaller.com. Sign up for his free newsletter at http://www.larrygaller.com

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