Posting on Instagram can feel exhausting and overwhelming, especially as a retail store owner with a million other things on your plate. That’s why I’m sharing a metric for you to track that can make your social media efforts feel worth it—and that no one else is talking about! Listen in to learn about this hidden metric, plus get a brand-new free resource to help you audit and optimize your Instagram account. For show notes, visit www.savvyshopkeeper.com/episode217. Kathy Cruz is an Independent Retail Coach who helps store owners work smarter, profit more, and grow their brick and mortar ..read more

Between an upcoming leadership month in Master Shopkeepers and wanting to share how I’m learning to lead the Savvy Shopkeeper team, leadership has been top of mind for me. That’s why I was so excited to chat with Shelli Warren, the founder of Stacking Your Team. After a 25-year stint at Proctor & Gamble, Shelli ventured into leadership coaching for small business owners. She’s got a knack for stacking a team—aka, curating a dynamic, talented, and collaborative group that works together seamlessly.  Part of stacking a team is figuring out what motivates each team member. When working w ..read more

From plugging your retail profit leaks to scaling your indie retail business, this year’s Savvy Shopkeeper survey covered a bit of everything.  I’m excited to share the results with you, especially because it might show you what’s possible for your store.  I’m also sharing how you can attend my upcoming masterclass, Stop The Drip. In this two-hour class, you’ll learn how to identify and plug the retail profit leaks you’re experiencing in your indie retail business using my Retail Profit Pie tool. There are just 50 spots available, so be sure to grab yours ASAP if you want to attend ..read more

If you’re an Aspiring Shopkeeper, figuring out how and where to buy wholesale inventory is a crucial step towards opening your store’s doors. Luckily, there’s a program that makes it super easy to curate, order, and buy inventory for a retail store: Open With Faire.  Built by one of the most reliable online wholesale platforms around, Open With Faire gives new retail store owners the education, tools, and buying power they need to kickstart their inventory.  Listen in to learn how to buy inventory for a retail store using Open With Faire and all the reasons why I highly recommend thi ..read more

As indie retail store owners, it’s all too easy to focus on the negative. We’re always thinking about which stores are closing, what’s to blame for industry-wide difficulties, and how each new hurdle might lead to our store failing.  And while our glass-half-empty view isn’t surprising (we’re only human, after all!), we can and SHOULD try to change our mindset. Celebrating our successes gives us proof that we can accomplish even bigger goals in the future.  It can be hard to celebrate our accomplishments though, especially when we’re stuck in a negative mindset. That’s why I’m sharin ..read more

Kate Simpson, owner of Cerulean of Cape Cod, was always a maker and a nurturer. She created her own jewelry, sold it at weekend markets, and even had a spot at a vendor-based retail store, all while working full-time as a nurse. Eventually, though, she wanted to take the entrepreneurial leap into nurturing a retail store of her own. That’s when Cerulean was born. Listen in as Kate shares how Cerulean has evolved through several locations, what she’s learned over the past five years, how she’s adapting to a new customer base at her latest storefront, and why she loves being the group ambassador ..read more

Bookkeeping is crucial for any business, and indie retailers are no exception! It's the key to understanding your finances, making smart choices, and pushing your biz forward.  Today, I’m sharing six bookkeeping tips from a recent live lesson I taught to Master Shopkeepers. Listen in to learn what you need to do to keep your books in order so you can work smarter, profit more, and grow.  For show notes, visit www.savvyshopkeeper.com/episode211.  Kathy Cruz is an Independent Retail Coach who helps store owners work smarter, profit more, and grow their brick and mortar businesses ..read more

Hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, and other natural disasters are on the rise. Thankfully, Heart on Main Street is there to support independent retail businesses when disaster strikes.  After growing up on the wholesale side of retail, Patrick Keiser founded Heart on Main Street to provide indie retailers with the resources, tools, and educational opportunities they need to reinvest in their businesses.  One of those resources is Heart on Main Street’s Jumpstart Program. Heart on Main Street provides retailers affected by natural disasters with thousands of dollars worth of coupons to ..read more

Our laptops are not only an extension of our physical workspace, but often an extension of our minds. Digital clutter in the form of tons of too many tabs and multiple windows can bog us down.  But there are ways to increase your web browser efficiency—and just as with other key systems for independent retailers, I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve to help you get the most out of your time on the web.  Listen in to learn what other shopkeepers struggle with when it comes to using their browsers efficiently, along with my top tips for creating a useful system to help you work smarte ..read more

After many years of attending AmericasMart as a buyer, this year was my first time attending as an observer.  It was fascinating to chat with members of the Savvy Shopkeeper community, spot market trends, and be a fly on the wall at showrooms! In today’s episode, I’m sharing my five key takeaways from AmericasMart 2024.  Listen in to learn what trends we’ll be seeing later this year, how showroom dynamics can affect your market orders, why large minimum order values aren’t the issue you think they are, and more. For show notes, visit www.savvyshopkeeper.com/episode208. Kathy Cru ..read more