Experience counts. Just ask Maggie Zuckerman of Skyway Feed and Pet Supply of Paradise, Ca. With 30 years in the retail trade behind her, she is now putting all her knowledge to work in making this Northern California store a mandatory destination for local pet owners.
After closing her home furnishing store a few years ago, she began a wonderful relationship with owners Fred and Rosalie Colgrave. Since then, she's never looked back. The store is now a Heritage Farms Purina Store.
"I had a 3-1/2 hour interview with Fred," Maggie said, who was familiar with the store because she had shopped there for her 5 dogs. Fred hired her on in receiving and inventory control, and things took off from there. Fred's steady hand,coupled with Maggie's enthusiasm, have caused sales to rise every year since Maggie joined the store. She is now the general manager of the business.
She explained Skyway's success in that it's all about making a great shopping experience, one that corporate big box retailers can't hope to duplicate.
She insists on making the store a place where customers are always delighted with product selection, clever merchandising and interesting store layout.
"I want our customers to see something different every time they come in," she said.
Skyway associates are constantly rotating end cap displays, switching them out as quickly as every two weeks. "We get customers who come in here 2-3 times a week and we want to keep it looking fresh for them."
Many times they are built around solution selling concepts-"We'll have an end cap devoted to E collars, or doggie diapers, or flea and tick products," she explained. Other end caps have been devoted to dog food, wild bird food, and items for small animals.
"Skyway's goal is not just to sell you something," she said, "we want to help you solve your problems." She adds that each employee tries to engage the customer, and strives to insure that they have a memorable time in the store.
Customers (as well as Maggie) look forward to the Holiday Season, where she puts up a 9' tree stuffed with dog toys. Under the tree, she places buckets filled with all manner of treats, toys and accessories. The result is so special that customers often bring a camera with them and take snapshots.
"It's the best part of my job-it's my playtime," she said of her creative promotions, adding that she does the majority of the work and sometimes doesn't use other employees simply because she loves the work.
Maggie describes her typical customer as a professional woman in her 40's. But she also gets a lot of elderly women customers into their 70's.
The store has a huge wild bird section that carries a little of everything. It has a TV in the area that plays a loop showcasing products.
"Catfish Maggie" Visits Coastal
Maggie recently traveled to Alliance, Ohio to be part of Coastal Pet's Authorized Dealer Board, where she joined 4 other store owners to discuss ways to develop and strengthen their partnership with Coastal. It was also a way to exchange ideas on best practices for independent pet retailers.