Friendly First

Over the past few months I have read so much about the importance of reconnecting with customers in stores, authentic human connections and relationship building. These are all subjects I firmly support and believe in. However, the topic requires a deeper reflection and companies need to put much more emphasis on hiring the right people. From the start of my career in retail management to later on in director roles, one of the first characteristics I look for when hiring someone is genuine friendliness. We rarely see this as a skill be promoted on linkedin but from my experience, a friendly first approach is a winning approach. Friendly people are magnetic and make every encounter a lot more fun. Gone are the days of the snobby store clerk or too cool for smiles influencers. It feels extremely outdated and the younger generations aren’t impressed. Academia will also have to do its part in investing in character building, social skills, and likability. Perhaps, a little less tech focus and a lot more social strengths developing is worth investing in.

From when I started Retail 28 Trend & Theory in 2014, one of my core values was and continues to be Friendliness. From my own behaviour to whom I choose to partner with, or which clients we accept, this non-negotiable. Work is better friendly.