4 Tips to Make Selling Fitness Retail Less Scary

Retail. 

You either jump for joy at the sound of this word or roll your eyes at the presumed headache that comes with it. You’re busy focusing on teaching classes, managing staff—the list goes on. Why add one more thing to your already busy schedule? 

Here’s why. When done right, retail can be a low-maintenance, high-profit revenue stream—especially if you incorporate the right fitness software in your gym or studio. Fortunately, we’ve done a lot of the legwork for you and gathered our four most-profitable (and easy-to-implement) tips for growing your retail sales at your fitness business.

1. Create an authentic approach

What brands do you actually believe in? More importantly, what brands would you actually wear? Are there certain brands you see your customers wearing on a regular basis? If you aren’t crazy about it, chances are your customers won’t be either. In the eyes of your customers, every product you sell comes with an endorsement from you. 

If you are introducing retail to your space for this first time, narrow your choices to a handful of brands. Product diversity can come from within these brands, instead of having a small number of items from multiple places. This will help reinforce your belief in the brand, which in turn will increase your customers’ belief in it as well.

2. The more you know, the more you sell

A little bit of effort goes a long way with this one. It’s a lot easier to sell a customer a product if you can tell them about the fabric or benefits, help them find their favorite accessory, or know which sports bras offer the most support. Most brands offer some form of brand guidelines, made to educate you and your staff on all of the great features their products have. Want to take it a step further? Ask if a representative of the brand can come in and give your staff a training session. 

Another great way to expose your customers to product is to have your instructors wear it. There’s no better follow up to “I love your outfit!” than “thank you, we actually carry it in our store right over here!”

3. Don’t forget the essentials

What items do your customers need every time they step into your space? Or what type of products do you see customers forgetting frequently? Things like socks, hair ties, towels, water bottles, mats, and supplements are considered essentials for most, and having them readily available will mean a lot if a customer forgets something at home. These items are also great impulse purchases and often come at a very low cost to you, making them a simple and inexpensive way to round out your retail.

4. Keep a full-size run

This is one of our favorite tips. You have people of all ages, shapes, and sizes wanting to better the health by coming to your studio—and by having a full-size run of each item will increase your likelihood of selling this item. Even if it is just one piece in each size, having options available will make it accessible to all your customers. It only takes one time of a customer thinking “they only carry one or two sizes” to turn them off from searching through your retail racks again. Companies like Glyder have no order minimums, so you can replenish individual sizes and items as needed.

Ready to stock your shelves and racks with apparel your clients will love? Glyder has a special deal for all Mindbody customers. Check it out!