card or store non-essential items. The retail application here would include both merchandise and fixtures. How many fitting rooms have you seen chock-a-block with old fixtures and fittings? Straightening (or streamlining) – This means having in place physical and business processes that make it easy for staff to do their jobs without duplicated effort. Systematic cleaning – Keep the store (warehouse) clean and tidy and organised. This also applies to offices. I know of one organisation that insists that every desk at head office is cleared every evening before people leave work. Standardise – This refers to ensuring that processes and procedures throughout the company are standard so that there is a common understanding. It also means that people can be moved around and be familiar with their environment. Sustain – This is pretty much a no brainer. It basically means a disciplined adherence to the rules, and in retail, the discipline word doesn’t rate highly. I am constantly harassing clients in the nicest possible manner in this regard. There are a couple of extra S’ that have crept in over the years. Safety – Pretty straightforward. Security – When we think of security in retail, we often think of pilferage, but it goes far deeper. It includes fixed assets, materials, human capital, branding, intellectual property (including IT), the supply chain, and more. The 5S’ therefore can indeed be adapted and applied to retail. We have heard buzz phrases over the years such as ‘Retail is Detail’ and ‘Retail is not Detail’ or ‘Stick to your knitting’ and ‘Don’t stick to your knitting’.  These fads come and go but the 5S’ are here to stay. After all they have survived since 1574. Yes, it is boring stuff and not the glamour end of retailing, but it needs to be part of the culture. I recently came across a store manager who was doing a fabulous job sales wise, but he had let certain things slip. I explained to him that yes, sales are critical, but once you have slippage on the basic business and housekeeping rules, you are on a slippery slope and it becomes harder and harder to claw your way back. Morale suffers and people stop taking new processes and procedures seriously because they know that given a bit of time, they will no longer be required to adhere to them. Retail is unquestionably detail. Stuart Bennie is a retail consultant at Impact Retailing www.impactretailing.com.au and can be contacted at stuart@impactretailing.com.au or 0414 631 702.