on the market - Omni Capital Retail Finance Ltd

ON THE MARKET
On The Market
Business
Services
With the face of retailing changing apace, how do you know you’re offering the
right business services to your clients? After all, getting it right can make a real
difference to your bottom line…
M
odern business
requires a
change in
thinking
because more
and more services are available to
help you reach more customers,
expand your offerings and,
crucially, realise better profits.
Can your customers buy that
yearned for rifle or fishing rod
on a retail credit agreement or
purchase your goods or services
efficiently online? Is your website
showcasing your business in the
best light? And is your marketing
and PR hitting the mark?
Not only do all of these
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factors contribute to the success
of a retailer in today’s highly
competitive economic and
business scenario but they can
make the difference between a
business that bumps along the
bottom of the sector to one that
turns a healthy profit year-onyear.
Selling itself
Retail finance can be key to
making a sale or losing it
altogether and is one of the most
powerful sales tools for retailers
by enabling customers to buy the
products they want when they
want them.
If you’re not currently offering
finance, you are likely to be
missing out on customers with
the urge to splurge but who
haven’t yet saved up the cash to
do so. Moreover, you will also
be missing out on additional
sales opportunities and potential
repeat business from that client.
Omni Capital Retail Finance
is the UK’s leading provider of
point-of-sale retail finance to the
field-sports industry and works
in association with both the
British Association for Shooting
and Conservation (BASC) and
the Angling Trades Association
(ATA).
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FEATURE
It offers consumers a quick
and convenient way of borrowing
money via interest-free and
interest-bearing credit facilities
with finance able to be used
on one expensive item, or,
alternatively, for a mixture of
items that cost anywhere between
£250 and £25,000.
The company offers an
attractive no-cost proposition to
retailers with no initial sign-up
fee, no ongoing processing costs
and no ‘third party’ subscription
costs, such as a trade association
membership.
Retailers can benefit from
increased sales, enhanced order
values, improved cash flow,
attracting previously out-of-reach
customers and competing more
effectively with bigger brands.
ActSmart, a business support
organisation for specialist
retailers, their supply partners
and trade associations, has some
4,000 subscribers and offers
business support services worth
Increase your turnover with
professional business services.
£300m per annum designed to
enhance specialist retailer profits
and increase sales.
Natasha Murray, who works in
marketing and communications
for the company, explains: “We
deliver a range of business
support and services to
independent retailers in the
outdoor and field-sports sectors,
from bespoke business insurance
to our most popular scheme,
‘Take it outdoors retail finance’.
“This allows customers to
spread the cost of the products,
clothes and accessories they want
with as little as zero per cent
interest. It is also a proven sales
tool for turning browsers into
buyers, particularly on big-ticket
items they wouldn’t usually
be able to afford in a one-off
purchase and for boosting profits
by upselling.”
ActSmart’s retail finance
programme, which was launched
at the Tackle & Guns Trade Show
in 2014, is already used by 900
retailers and offers an average
sales value per store of over
£78,000.
Retailers can start offering
finance without the need for
FCA authorisation (formerly
CCL), no minimum finance
turnover requirement, no set-up
fee and no monthly fees.”
’Net gains
A well-designed, easy-to-use
and up-to-date website is key to
the success of any business and
those who don’t recognise this are
losing out on what is effectively
a shopping window to the world.
For retailers in the shooting
and fishing industries, using a
company that understands the
sector is key.
Morphsites offer e-commerce
solutions to these trades by
conducting specific customer
and user research to develop a
bespoke specification. It is also
able to integrate a website and
any e-commerce platform with
Retail finance is a great way to
encourage customers to spend more.
other IT systems the business
may use, such as accounting
packages like Sage, EPOS/Stock
Control and Courier Despatch
Systems, as Pete Fairburn,
managing director of the
company, explains.
“Within the trade this would
also include systems such as an
electronic gun register (which we
could also develop on a bespoke
basis) or sites like Gunseller. This
reduces IT and administrative
overheads, as well as errors from
rekeying information manually.
“We also provide services such
as digital marketing to drive
traffic to your website, as well
as developing a visual identity
presenting a recognisable look
and brand that customers can
relate to and be reassured by.”
Expanding your reach
Marketing and PR is key,
especially in today’s crowded
market, and involves far more
than designing a sales brochure,
Online offerings are key to most
retailers but have you got the best one?
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ON THE MARKET
Becoming a member of a trade organisation
like BASC offers a host of benefits.
flyer or press advert.
The UK public relations
industry is the most highly
developed in Europe and second
only to the US globally. In its
simplest form, PR is about
reputation. It is used to gain trust
and understanding between an
organisation and the public.
Specialist PR and marketing
agency Tweed Media works
solely within the international
hunting sector, providing not
only PR services, but also press
events, content generation,
social media management and
corporate partnerships.
Its clients include Edgar
Brothers, Hornady ammunition,
JP Sauer & Sohn, John Rigby &
Co and Leica Sport Optics.
Managing director Simon K
Barr said: “We ensure ambitious
brands are seen in the right
magazines, featured by influential
bloggers and on the right social
media channels. Our philosophy
is to get brands where they
want to be and keep them there
and to offer our clients the
opportunity to outmanoeuvre
their competition.
“By investing in PR and
marketing, we can propel brands
to the fore and make sure their
products or services are the most
talked about by end users.”
Making it count
Joining a trade organisation can
also be of great benefit to retailers
thanks to the many business
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There are plenty of options
for retailers to consider
to improve or hone their
business strategy.
benefits they offer.
The Angling Trades
Association represents angling
manufacturers, wholesalers,
retailers, fisheries, publishers
and distributors and promotes
and delivers initiatives aimed at
increasing angling participation.
ATA membership enables a
company to support the sport’s
largest and most successful
drive to recruit more customers
and also provides a range of
membership benefits.
Among them are the delivery
of a special, annual trade summit
meeting, a business support
helpline covering tax, VAT,
PAYE, payroll, employment
and personnel, health and safety
and commercial legal advice,
participation in the Omni
Capital Retail Finance service;
and an influential voice for the
angling trade in discussions with
decision makers, politicians and
non-government organisations
(NGOs).
The Gun Trade Association
(GTA), which represents
more than 700 companies in
the sporting, recreational and
professional gun trade, offers
a number of useful services to
members, including specialist
insurance schemes provided
by Bluefin and BESSO,
preferential currency rates with
CROSSBARfx and transport of
firearms.
Its specialist contract with
TNT offers significant discounts
on standard rates and the GTA
also has an exclusive contract
with TNT for the transport of
dangerous goods (explosives).
Joining BASC’s 1,000-strong
trade members also has numerous
benefits. These include an
exclusive website design offer for
as little as £220 plus VAT, BASC
credit cards with competitive
rates, specialist business finance
that can help you expand your
business or offer customers credit
terms on purchase, delivery
services and business insurance.
Busy registered firearms
dealers (RFDs) can also make use
of BASC’s specialist gun trade
software, which enables you to
keep track of firearms coming
in and going out, track sales and
purchase and easily run an online
shop. The software can be tailormade to suit the needs of sole
traders or retail chains.
Many RFDs use Gun Trader’s
dedicated software, which is
renowned for being easy to use
and secure. The software was
developed by an RFD and, since
its launch, Gun Trader has added
features suggested by users or
those required in response to
changes in legislation.
Gun Trader’s is the only
software package that allows
retailers to advertise their guns
on their own website as well as
guntrader.co.uk, which currently
receives more than 400,000 visits
every month, while handling
the whole process from issuing
sales receipts to stock control and
calculating VAT.
As can be seen, there are plenty
of options for retailers in the gun
trade to consider when thinking
about how to improve or hone
their business strategy.
Whichever you choose, it
is important to bear in mind
the cost, the services offered
and to identify your return on
investment and the impact this
will have on your bottom line.
However, it goes without
saying that neglecting to take
advantage of the range of
services on offer will mean
your company is likely to be
overtaken by your competition
– something no business owner
or manager can afford to allow
to happen.
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