Creator stress tests new retail storefrom @gracebeverley

Transcript

Officially three days until I open my second Central London store in five months. And today was the most surreal day yet because we got fake shoppers in to stress test the store, just like one big game of Sims. So let me give you some context. When we opened Carnaby Street, our first ever store that we opened in May, we didn't do this. We opened the doors and hoped for the best and probably learnt that queue management is not just about how many people fit in the tier, but also about things like what happens when everyone wants to pay at once and how long does it take before a boyfriend sitting in a fitting room chair starts audibly sighing. We need good vibes in there. We need encouragement. We don't need loud sighs. So this tier, we decided to do it properly. And by properly, I mean a full blown simulation. We called in the entire Tier HQ team to act as fake shoppers. Office team, warehouse, brand, finance, customer service, all of them. Each person has a different role to play from confused browser to determined bulk buyer. Some just needed to wander around aimlessly like they were lost in Westfield, which to be fair is very true to life. Others ended up in the queue for Rank Street, which is truly so fair enough. And it was chaos, but productive chaos and in the most organised way possible. So we practice everything. Where the queues would naturally form, how quickly people move through fitting rooms, whether the till area works efficiently, how loud the music should be when the store is actually full of people. At one point I worst standing behind the tier pretending to process transactions while our head of brand was a fake shoplifting behind a rail for training purposes, of worse. Honestly, back to worthy performance is all around. The biggest learning I'd say was how much needs adjusting once people are actually in the space. The flow that made sense on paper suddenly needs moving. And we even accidentally set off one of the alarms during tier exit test, which definitely wasn't part of the plan, but now actually counts as we checked the emergency systems. So, you know, just ticking things off the list as we go. The day was slightly unhinged, but it was also genuinely helpful. And we've updated the layout. We've ordered more till rolls than we thought we'd need. And we've worked out exactly how loud the unslumps can be to make it feel like a fun mooching shopping party better not the cheese floor of your local Tier Tiger. And now with just a few days to go, the mannequins officially have all their limbs, painters on the walls, and the to do list is slowly shrinking. We are nearly tier. And now at least we know what it looks like when the store is full, which if all goes to plan, it will be on Saturday and tomorrow with any luck, fingers and toes crossed, they'll be ready for me to take you through a proper tier. I'll see you back here tomorrow. And please pray that at this stage, nothing goes violently wrong. Because this is what happened last tier, and it nearly sent me over the edge. Thank you and good night.