I can’t tell you how many times I just want to say “thank you” to the countless small business owners I am so fortunate to work with. Their 7 day work schedules, commitment to customers, , tireless local efforts and so m...

There are so many blogs and articles out there offering advice about time management that I sometimes feel people could really just save some time by not reading so many time management blogs. I actually read one recently that was spread over four ...

Designed uniquely for locally owned, indie store owners, SnapRetail is rolling out an educational, webinar program – appropriately titled “Summer School” – with a stellar line up of retail experts and retail di...

Boutique Boot Camp by the numbers: 8 students. 6 days. 3 credit hours. 1 colossal success. On Memorial Day, students from Columbia College Chicago’s Fashion Studies department hit the road, making the 6 hour journey to Northport, MI for a week-long...

Beyond your existing customers lies a very powerful crowd of potential customers. These are the folks that share the aisles with you at your local grocery store and the friends and neighbors of every customer you already have. These customers – des...

Every store has that something. Or at least ever store should. Not sure what that “something” is? It’s what consistently draws customers to your store. It’s what nearly always pays the majority of your bills. I...

Retail Minded Launches MINI MOO SHOP on RetailMinded.com: Supporting Indie Retail Print Needs  Geneva, IL (June 2, 2013) – Retail Minded is excited to introduce a new way for retailers and wholesalers to shop for all their print needs! Tog...

According to a 2012 Social Media report from Nielsen Media, Americans spent about 121 billion minutes on some form of social media.  Men spend an average of 6:44 (minutes:seconds) and women 9:43 a day.  That’s time they spend socializing and als...

Throwing an in-store event? Whether it’s for a small crowd of six or for an endless crowd of customers, don’t neglect the following: 1. Create and start promoting your event weeks in advance. Consider using promotional flyers tha...

In short… we did it! Thanks to our amazing sponsors, supporters, speakers and attendees, the second annual Independent Retailer Conference successfully came to life this past Monday, May 20, 2013. Next week I plan to share a full recap of t...

On Tuesday, May 28th, the Retail Alliance Loss Prevention Task Force met with a representative from the FBI Community Outreach Program. This program was established after 9/11 to de-mystify the FBI and to build relationships with the community. The 9...

What does home remodeling and running a retail business have in common? According to Lani & Change Davis,   you must “plan on twice the time and three times the money you thought you would need.” While still in the middle … Continue r...

In the fall of 2012, the Small Business Development Center of Hampton Roads (SBDC) was the recipient of one of six nationally awarded Portable Assistance Grants by the U.S. Small Business Administration.  The Portable Assistance Grant Program is des...

What metrics do you need to track? By Mark E. Gottfried, MBA CPA CGMA “Business Owners that tracked business metrics at least once per month earned 60% more and were 80% larger” Source: State of The Business Owner 2011survey by … Continue r...

Why did you decide to go on the trip? Since 2009, I’ve been involved with a group called “Virginians for High Speed Rail.” I am a light rail and a high speed rail advocate and enthusiast. I fondly remember riding … Continue reading →...

Please indulge me as I mix both personal and professional observations in this post.  Last month marked the one year anniversary of my appointment as President / CEO of Retail Alliance.  This past year has flown by, I sit here … Continue read...

Dan Schawblel, Personal Branding Expert, Millennial Branding It’s never been more critical to optimize your website for Google. Although Google’s algorithm changes from time to time, some of the basic search engine optimization (SEO) tricks are s...

Are you interested in sharing helpful tips and success stories with other business owners throughout Hampton Roads? Do you have educational information that would benefit retailers? If you are a Retail Alliance member and want to share your expertise...

Woohoo! It’s taken months to get everything in its place, but we are excited to finally be live with our new website....