32 | Orgill Case Study Testing a New Checkout The redesigned checkout area at Germantown Hardware features a queue system. Customers line up along an aisle filled with impulse displays while waiting their turn for the next available checkout. For several years, retailers have had success generating impulse sales with the queue system while at the same time improving the customer experience. At Germantown Hardware, the merchandising team took the opportunity to continue to refine this system. “We’ve created impulse queues in various store builds, but it’s always been difficult to get good metrics as to the effectiveness of the impulse displays. We never had good data as to which assortments were working and which ones weren’t,” Burdick says. As part of the process of refining the checkout line, the Orgill team is experimenting with a new assortment tactic. In impulse areas, retailers typically include items repeated in other areas of the store. For example, batteries may be displayed at the front checkout, on a clipstrip by the batteries and on an endcap. At Germantown Hardware, products in the checkout queue will only be displayed at that single location. There will not be duplicate items merchandised elsewhere in the store, which will allow for more effective tracking of sales. “Whatever is in the queue is unique to the queue. We can have raw data and track what’s moving and what’s not. This will help us to determine the productivity of the queue system and how it’s driving sales,” Burdick says. A Floor Plan that Makes Sense Another aspect of the remodel was analyzing adjacencies throughout the store to determine if category placement was efficient and how they could maximize product exposure. Once again, Burdick and his team used best practices gleaned from other store remodels. For example, they’ve learned that when paint is the lead department in a store, there are other departments that naturally follow. In the revised floor plan at Germantown Hardware, housewares adjoin paint, followed by plumbing and electrical. Customers who are painting may be looking for other home decor items, such as new switch plate covers or plumbing fixtures. Burdick and his team are also using Germantown Hardware to experiment with new ideas within individual categories. For example, the plumbing repair subcategory typically leads into the plumbing department off the main aisle. How would it impact sales to lead in with a different subcategory? “We are going to use the opportunity at Germantown Hardware to experiment with different adjacencies to see how much they impact sales,” Walker says. “Maybe there’s a combination we haven’t tried yet that does well that we can put out there as a new best practice to recommend.” Before - Checkout After - Checkout
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