This guide covers retail merchandise management which involves:

* What merchandise to carry in stock

* How much to buy and stock of each item

* How much selling space to give each item

* What price to charge for each item

* How to display, advertise and promote each item

Merchandise management is sometimes mistaken with merchandising. Merchandising refers to good in-store display and promotion of merchandise. Merchandise management, as described above, is much more, as will be seen in the discussion to follow in this guide.

Here are some of the topics discussed:

Selection of merchandise

Gross profit

Profit per square foot

Allocation of space based on profit per square foot

Gross profit on investment

Stockturn

Implementing a merchandise improvement program

Gradual replacement of undesirable merchandise

Checklist for improving the merchandise mix in your store

Retail pricing, sales and markdowns

Retail advertising and promotion

...and much more.

My name is Meir Liraz and I'm the author of this book. According to Dun & Bradstreet, 90% of all business failures analyzed can be traced to poor management. This is backed up by my own experience. In my 31 years as a business coach and consultant to businesses, I've seen practically dozens of business owners fail and go under - not because they weren't talented or smart enough - but because they were trying to re-invent the wheel rather than rely on proven, tested methods that work. And that is where this book can help, it will teach you how to avoid the common traps and mistakes and do everything right the first time.