Case Study
“How can we lift retail sales performance and management capability?”
What They Needed
Blue Banana operate a nationwide chain of alternative fashion stores aimed at late teens and young adults. Their bold brand, energetic culture and strong online presence attract customers who expect personality, confidence and knowledgeable service.
Many of their young graduates moved quickly into supervisory and managerial roles, bringing enthusiasm but sometimes lacking the core retail sales skills, structured management behaviours and confidence needed to support consistent store performance.
They identified the need to:
- Strengthen retail sales capability across all stores
- Build management and supervisory skills in younger leaders
- Introduce consistent selling behaviours to improve conversion
- Deliver practical and relatable training suited to their unique culture
- Empower staff with models and techniques that could be used immediately
In short: How do we raise retail sales and management capability in a way that fits our people and drives consistent in store performance?
What We Did
Using our retail and commercial experience, we designed a tailored two day programme that focused on the specific behaviours, confidence and structure needed across Blue Banana’s stores.
The workshops combined practical retail models, communication techniques and management skills, delivered in a style that connected with the team’s energy and personality. Examples from our own experience helped bring the learning to life, while an agreed Expectation Regime supported practical application back in store.
Supported by:
- Practical retail skills sessions focused on customer engagement and sales behaviour
- Management capability development for supervisors and store managers
- Relevant models and techniques illustrated through real examples
- Interactive workshops to match the culture and energy of the teams
- Expectation Regime to support ongoing application and behaviour change
The programme was delivered in a way that challenged old habits, built confidence and created a more consistent performance mindset across the retail teams.
The Difference It Made
Quality of programme design
Confidence applying retail skills
Consistency across sales behaviours
Improvement of Manager capability
Impact on store performance
The programme generated outstanding results during a challenging retail climate, with clear improvements across sales behaviours, management confidence and in store performance.
- Quality of programme design: 3.7 out of 4 – viewed as highly relevant, practical and energising
- Confidence applying retail skills: 88% uplift – reflected in more confident customer interactions
- Consistency across sales behaviours: 79% – seen through better engagement and practical use of techniques
- Manager capability: 95% uplift – supporting stronger supervision and team development
- Impact on store performance: 86% – supported by double digit growth and stores reporting up to 25% increases
The training helped Blue Banana improve confidence, retail capability and store performance, enabling their expansion plans and lifting standards across the business.
