Three store managers trade places and ideas

Though many attendees say that getting to swap ideas with others is one of the biggest benefits of attending industry conferences or regional meetings of the Church Bookstore Network, three Florida church bookstore managers decided they wanted to take their networking to the next level.

Having spent hours sharing issues and ideas from their stores at The Gathering in Louisville, Ky., earlier this year, Martha Brangenberg, Donna Duckhorn and Rachel Savage agreed it would be helpful not only to hear about the other operations but also to see them in action.

Their late-night talks while rooming together at The Gathering have led to an informal small group that sees them in regular contact and visiting each others’ stores to offer and receive hands-on help and encouragement.

The first on-site get-together took Brangenberg and Savage to Northland: A Church Distributed in Longwood, where Duckhorn took over managing The Northland Bookstore this year after several years as co-manager.

‘ENERGIZING’

The trio spent nine hours together—“a long day, but very energizing,” Duckhorn said. “We all have Bookstore Manager, so it was great to stand at a station and ask questions and follow through right there to try and learn new things that the P.O.S. can do. We could have talked and trained all day on the P.O.S. and never have exhausted our questions,” she added.

“We moved shelves, put up signage, reworked our card area. They helped me set up DaySpring cards in the system the way they were designed to be.”

For Savage, in her 10th year as manager of The Chapel Store at Calvary Chapel of Melbourne in West Melbourne, Fla., it was “great to see how everyone utilized things differently” on their P.O.S. systems. “I think we all took notes. Both Donna and Martha had a better way of tracking event sales than I did,” she said. “I have already made the change in my system.”

As a result of her time at Northland, Brangenberg—manager of Charis Christian Bookstore at  First Baptist Church of Indian Rocks in Largo, Fla.—was “challenged to somehow reduce the amount of paper that I work with and keep my focus on items ‘of’ the store,” she said. “It’s easy to get caught up in my office and not even be in the store sometimes. Donna’s office is nowhere near her store—which just made me realize that I need to keep my priorities straight.

“I also learned about a couple of new products I had not seen, some new shortcuts in Bookstore Manager, as well as taking photos of some great display ideas.”

‘COACHING’

As host, Duckhorn “wanted to be able to share ideas that would help specifically with my store, which is why it was so important for them to physically be there and see it.” Among the suggestions she got were using UV protective film for the windows to preserve products, inventory management and sales promos. “We also moved furniture.”

Another tip that came from the shared day at Northland was Savage’s idea for using some carpet strip in small pieces to create price signage for wall art on slatwall.  “She sent us each a sample of what she uses in her store, and I am in the process of converting over to this great idea,” said Brangenberg. “ It seems like such a simple item—price tags—but it can make a world of difference in presentation in the store.”

Duckhorn has decided to adopt the technique, too. She has also started a Facebook page for her store, advertised in the church newspaper for a free movie screening  at the church and organized an in-store drawing in association with the event. “Martha gave a us a good coaching page to use in our staff individual meetings to encourage and strengthen our staff,” she added.

Though there is a four-hour drive involved in getting together, the three have planned follow-up visits at the other two stores before the end of the year and also keep in touch regularly by e-mail.

“We e-mail everyday practically, asking questions, telling each other what we got accomplished and sharing our ups and downs in the day,” said Duckhorn. “These girls are my sisters, and we share with each other what goes on in our day. We share a common goal, to provide our customers with faith- based products that will encourage them in their walk with the Lord and lead them to spiritual maturity in Christ.

“Their encouragement and support is priceless.”

The informal contact has brought up problems and solutions, too—anything “from receiving a package from UPS/FedEx to working with staff in the store and the church to how product is entered into the system, arranging the store, profit margins, coupons, advertising, promotional ideas, inventory management, purchasing and returns,” Brangenberg said.

“Just one thing that we learn from each other may help us to become a better resource for our congregation and community,” she said. “I may learn a more efficient way to accomplish a task that saves time, money and energy.”

‘LEARNING’

Since their time at The Gathering and Northland, Savage has started a frequent buyer program, The Chapel Store Customer Care Program. She has also “slightly eased the workload on our accounting department by changing the way I track event sales.” And she is “working towards a way to better communicate with my staff through ‘coachings’ and ‘conversations’—neat things that Martha and Donna do with their staff.”

Savage encouraged others to look for similar connections in their area. “We can all learn from each other, and isn’t this really what we wanted to get out of The Gathering and regional events?” she said. “It’s so nice to know that we are not in this alone. We are all working toward the same goal—bringing people to Christ through the products that we sell and the way that we serve. We are not competitors, we are partners.

“I have come to think of these great ladies as sisters in such a short amount of time. I feel like they have helped take a lot of pressure off my shoulders. Since we do the same thing, we can share our struggles and pray for one another. It’s nice to be able to have someone to talk to.”

Brangenberg recommended keeping the numbers of such a group small. “It could easily become overwhelming and then there would be a temptation to not participate,” she said. Though distance was a challenge, it had been worth the effort, she said. “Even though we span the width of our state—it is worth it to spend time together learning and encouraging each other.  Their impact on me is priceless.”

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