A symbol in tune with the local desires
Winner: Day-Today Bankton
Symbol Store of the Year (single store) – supported by Barr Soft Drinks
Interview with store manager Kushnood Mahmood
WHEN it comes to the convenience channel in Scotland, retailers have a wide breadth of considerations to make before they can even get around to opening a store.
Not only do hopeful store owners need to factor in things like location or store size, but there’s also the question of which symbol do you want to work with.
There are factors to consider such as what kind of symbol store would best suit local shoppers and being able to work effectively with the fascia’s wholesaler.
However, when it came to their Livingston store, there was no doubt for Kushnood Mahmood on who to work with.
Building a strong relationship with wholesaler United Wholesale Scotland (UWS) from their previous store in Armadale, Kushnood and her husband knew they wanted to continue working with the Day-Today symbol.
With a strong knowledge of the local area and what its customers were looking for, the pair opened up Day-Today Bankton in Livingston and have demonstrated not only a strong working relationship with UWS but a well-stocked selection that is perfectly catered to the local area.
Kushnood said: “We already had 14 years of a great relationship with UWS from our previous store and the continued support we’ve had from them since opening this store has helped to keep us right.
“We especially thank Jason MacLeod and his team, who came in and worked with us with shopfitting, merchandising, built knowledge of new products and categories and just with everything that we needed to know.
“While we had the last store, things change constantly in convenience, like with vaping, so UWS has helped to keep us up to date.
“But, ultimately, they remain very approachable, there’s always someone you can phone up if you have an issue or need additional stock – it makes working with them so easy.”
A keen knowledge of customers as well as being able to maintain a strong working relationship with UWS has ensured that Kushnood and her team have been able to meet the demands from the local Livingston area as well as commuters from the train station, which is just around the corner from the store.
Along with this, the team has a never-ending dedication to store improvement across all aspects, with help from UWS, something that impressed judges and saw Day-Today Bankton pick up the Symbol Store of the Year Award (Single) at the Scottish Grocer Awards 2023.
Undoubtedly an impressive store, ensuring that Day-Today Bankton remains well-stocked is clearly an important matter for Kushnood, whether this be for larger stock orders or bringing in that one product that a customer is looking for.
And nothing could be more useful for this task than the UWS ordering app, according to Kushnood.
She said: “We order most of our stock through the UWS app now, which is just fantastic and so simple to use.
“Every time you open it up, it automatically updates to make sure the right information is all there and it immediately shows you UWS’s latest promotions.
“So anything new in the market is shown to you right away but the app is so well organised it makes it much easier to use.
“You can look at depot-exclusive offers, symbol offers or just a browse one if you want, which is good for when you know you’re running low on certain stock. Say you’re down on pet food, then all you need to do is search for it on the app and it shows you the whole category and you can pick from there.
“But there’s also a scanner feature that lets you use your phone’s camera to scan products in your store to add straight on to you order.
“And it makes finding certain items for customers much easier, as well. I had a customer asking for Tayto Prawn Cocktail crisps, so I looked it up on the app’s browser and added it to the order.
“It means the customer will be delighted and knows she can come back to our store for what she’s looking for.”
Catering to customers in this way can help to improve store loyalty for plenty of shoppers, too, something that Kushnood isn’t one to underestimate the importance of when it comes to convincing more people to shop in the store.
Particularly useful for older generation shoppers, Kushnood said it has helped to make them less set in their ways when it comes to picking up their messages.
She said: “Bringing around the older generation, it can be quite a challenge because they are so set in their ways.
“I do the same myself – why do I always go to Morrisons for the weekly shop? Because it’s where I have always gone for my big shop, there’s no rhyme or reason.
“And it’s not a personal thing, it’s just what’s easiest for you. So, as a retailer, you need to be able to take this into consideration and see how you can offer an extra edge in your store.
“With me, it’s always about being engaged with the customer, always listening to what they’re saying or if they’re looking for a particular thing – you always need to go that extra mile.”
And when it comes to the younger consumers, then it’s down to the social media order of the day that counts as the team looks to places like TikTok or asking younger family members to find out what’s popular on the shelves this week.
Kushnood said: “We brought in the new Juicy Drops Gummy Dipperz not too long ago and we’ve sold absolute mammoth amounts of them since.
“Those and the American pickles – we had Chris Gallacher, from UWS, in the store and he brought them to us and everybody went mad for them.
“We’re seeing this more and more often as well, so it’s something we constantly keep on top of now. If you want your store to be one of the best in Scotland, then you need to make sure you are on-trend.”
These qualities and more have proven Day-Today Bankton to be an award-winning store, and this isn’t just exclusive to the Scottish Grocer Awards, either, as the team also picked up a gong at the UWS Tradeshow dinner with the store picking up the Best Symbol Store on the evening last year.
Speaking on the win, Kushnood said: “It was so unexpected but really good. We know there are so many strong stores under the Day-Today fascia, so to have received this accolade just went to show we were ticking all the right boxes.
“This one, as well as the Scottish Grocer win, were both so unexpected for us with the tough competition – so it showed us we have been doing everything right.”
