Prepare for Natural Disasters

Not that long ago, millions of homes in America were without electrical power because of a severe heat wave. This followed a series of thunderstorms and hurricane-force winds which downed power lines across a broad swath of the U.S.
     Whatever the season and the location, disasters can cut communities down. That includes the retailing communities in the area. It was not only homes which were without power, but also the shops. Yet, talking about a prior tornado which significantly damaged almost every small to midsize retail business in Joplin, Missouri, Lori Rivera, Senior Outreach Manager for the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), told a National Retail Federation conference, “Without retail, there was going to be no recovery.”
     Prepare for natural disasters:

• Rehearse your store’s crisis management program. Recognize that consumers whose homes are destroyed or family members injured can suffer grief which leads to desperate actions. Along with gearing up to sell to your community members as much of what they desire with as few restrictions as possible, you’ll be needing to protect against hoarding and looting. 
• While it’s fair weather times, develop good working relationships with the people you’ll depend on for information, supplies, and enforcement during a disaster. Recognize that the information will flow both ways. During 2011 North Carolina hurricanes, FEMA used what they called a “Waffle House Index” to judge the damage from the storm and the progress of recovery. The WHI measured whether the restaurant in the area was open and, if open, whether a partial or full menu was being served. Waffle House restaurants planned the limited menus in advance and set rounded prices to include tax so that change for cash purchases could be made more easily. 
• Know in advance what shoppers will want during and just after a natural disaster, and then be ready to put it front and center. It should be easy to predict most of the list of products and services. But there can be some surprises. Some years back, Wal-Mart found that in anticipation of violent weather, sales of Strawberry Pop-Tarts grew more than did sales of batteries, and the best-selling product of all was beer. Researchers at University of Pennsylvania found that the anxiety accompanying natural disasters leads consumers to prefer postcards with thick borders around the edges to similar postcards without a thick border. They also preferred orderly shelves, uncluttered aisles, and unambiguous instructions. 

For your profitability: Sell Well: What Really Moves Your Shoppers

Click below for more: 
Adjust Merchandising to News Events 
Flash Mob Scenarios Before Staff Eyes 
Fence In Consumer Anxiety