One thing
for sure is that there is a lot of sentiment out there at the moment.
And given
the really poor current trading that's going on for many that understandably leads to finger pointing, anger and venting.
To Traders
the unshakeable reality is that Management have always been almost totally
disconnected with the day to day reality of the trading floor (that was seen as
a 'Trader issue'). When the going was good that suited most Traders perfectly.
Now that trading is in truly dire straits and most attempts to make adjustments
and improve sales by many if not most traders either simply doesn’t work or
produces negligible results, only a few Traders continue to hold to that view.
Like many
issues at the market this is a multifaceted and complex issue, this one goes to
the core issue of defining the specific role of management and the role of
traders and how those roles are linked and measured by the retail performance
of the Market.
Let's start
off by saying that there is no question in most Traders minds that Traders must
accept responsibility for their businesses, and before looking at others need
to ensure that they have done everything they reasonably can to address any
downturns and challenges.
But, and
this is a big but, most Traders don’t think it's incorrect to state that
Management has not wanted to acknowledge any real share or role in the retail
aspect of the Market, evidenced by its unwillingness or reluctance to capture,
record and analyse accurate footfall, receiving sales data, having a
professionally run and structured trader ‘recruitment’ team., running anything
like a serious business incubation program etc. etc. etc.
Until very
recently Management role has been essentially one of 'property management' as
opposed to any serious attempt at Retail Market Management. That is, to collect
the rents, keep the place in order, make sure the Pty Ltd company runs
profitably and don’t concern yourselves with too much else with any serious
intent ( interestingly this same issue and tendency has been identified in the
UK and their publicly owned and run markets ). Fundamentally whilst the retail
world around us was changing, generally Markets failed to react, or changed
minimally. Now with the frantic changes constantly challenging even the larger
and most robust retail organisations it's no wonder that our Trader run tiny
independent businesses just can't meet the challenges and as a result are now
going through the 5 stages of grief as we see our businesses wither and die
right before our eyes ( I would say we’re currently locked in at the ‘anger’
stage, which is very common for anyone who perceives themselves as being a
victim).
As mentioned
above, when times were good Traders in general where more than happy with that
‘hands off’ approach, and indeed those of us who still see our businesses as
healthy and vigorous continue to insist that this is the 'right' role of
management. But for most traders, now that times are dire and the future bleak,
with sales dwindling or dying, we are shaken from our initial stage of denial
and anger well and truly takes hold.
The reality
however is that as with most situations the responsibility needs to be borne by
all participating parties and the solutions worked through together by all said
parties.
And I
suppose a significant contributor to the frustration and current negative
sentiment of Traders is that the responsibility of turning around a business
downturn has always almost exclusively been seen as the sole responsibility of
Traders. The fact is that the challenges introduced by the 'new' globalised
retail world and changing customer expectations were always going to be too
complex and confounding for our small, fragile businesses to deal with alone.
Unfortunately
the ‘Renewal’ process has not assisted any shift of intent and purpose on the
part of Management, as was evidenced in the leaked email in the Herald Sun
where at least from early 2012 the Pty Ltd that runs the Market needed to ensure
that it limited its exposure and risk brought on it by a third party and
largely outside their control and management.
By Ivano Guseli
Have Your Say - click here.
COMMENTS:
COMMENTS:
26/02/2018
13:42:23 Ivano article "Ivano what you say is correct.
As stall holders we are responsible
For our
product etc however if you are trying to sell and promote a product in an area
that is crumbling in infrastructure...... empty space, dirty, lack of toilets,
birds pooping, signs broken, poles with signage bent and in j shedthe mess left
from grease and lack of general cleaning on the slats what would you think if
you were a customer? These are issues any good management would have taken care
of they are basic. We pay rent and I do believe we are not getting a fair share
in return. I as a trader feel let down,I am prepared to do my share please
reply ."
Keeping the
market clean and in good state is an essential part of good housekeeping and it
should not even need any discussion, it should simply be done.
In my years
as a Traders Rep I found that the day to day operational concerns such as you
mention were best handled ( and resolved* ) separately so as not to dominate
Trader/Management discussions and thus risk not focussing the discussion around
the much more critical existential threat and challenges Public Retail Markets
like ours are facing. It is essential that we don't get distracted by day to
day irritations to the point that we don't see and discuss the bigger picture,
because if we don't find a solution to the current continuing decline the reality
is the only thing remaining at the market may be the "empty space, dirt…
bird poop" etc.
*P.S. If you
want to know more about how the issues you mentioned were resolved feel free to
come and speak to me. - Ivano