Welcome to Brittani Chirichella and Aaron Luck's weekly blog! We've been learning a lot during this first week, meeting a lot of people, and becoming consistently more familiar with the Polo Ralph Lauren brand image. Our orientation in Greensboro was a great experience and opportunity for us to meet our supervisor, tour the distribution center, and build on our still incomplete knowledge of Polo Ralph Lauren activities and history. We got a better idea of our responsibilities as Retail Development Interns at orientation allowing us to be more prepared for our first week, which was both busy and exciting.
On our first day at Phipps Plaza, we became acquainted with Belk's Polo Ralph Lauren Shop-In-Shop and toured the neighboring Macy's and Saks Fifth Avenue Shop-In-Shops. Touring the different shops gave us a better understanding of the differences between competing stores. We learned that major competition for market share exists between Belk and Macy's in particular. Toward the end of the day, we reviewed the Weekly Recap paper work, specifically for the week ending on June 4th, 2011. Based on the data for the week we were able to determine what zones need improvement and what is doing well.
On Wednesday and Thursday we visited Athens and Town Center shops. The experience showed us how stores in different locations have different demographics and varying sales. The Athens store had an exceptional week in swimwear, while the Town Center store did better in other areas. In Athens, we changed the display of the shorts hoping to improve fashion and BSR short sales. Our main goal in Town Center was to get stock on the floor, and we prioritized with outposts to prepare for the Friends and Family Sale.
Friday we went back to Phipps Plaza to prepare for the Friends and Family Sale there. We changed dress forms and moved displays, continuing to develop and build on our merchandising skills. Because it was expected to be a busy weekend with Father's day coming next weekend and the Friends and Family Sale ending at the end of the day, we helped on the sales floor at Phipps. We also went over the BSR Penetration sheet for May 2011. We were able to see what stores and divisions are doing well in their BSR sales and what needs improvement.
Overall, this week was a great opportunity for us to learn about the changing dynamic of stores in different locations, build merchandising skills, and use the weekly recaps and BSR Presentation sheets to change the floor setup to improve sales. We had a great first week of working and are looking forward to next week, when we will be visiting more stores and preparing for Father's Day.
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