Retail sector
Retail runs on labour cost per store, not labour cost in total.
Retail is the sector where workforce decisions show up fastest in margin. We analyse labour cost, rostering and productivity at store level, so the decisions you take are the ones that actually move the trading result.
What we see in this sector
The problems that keep recurring
Labour cost varies wildly by store and nobody knows why
Group-level labour ratios hide the variation that matters. We break the cost down to store and shift level, then test which differences are explained by footfall, format and trading hours, and which are simply drift.
The roster is built on habit, not on demand
Where the roster follows precedent instead of trading patterns, you pay for hours that generate nothing and run short in the hours that would. Matching the two usually releases cost without touching headcount.
High turnover is treated as a cost of doing business
Retail turnover is higher than most sectors, which is precisely why it stops getting examined. We put a number on what it costs you in recruitment, induction and the productivity gap while a new starter comes up to speed, so there is an investment case to argue from.
Store managers are measured on things they cannot control
Hold a store manager to a measure driven by pricing or supply decisions taken at head office and you generate resentment, not performance. We rebuild the measure tree down to what a store can genuinely influence.
FAQ
Retail questions we get asked
What does workforce analytics look like for a retailer?
It starts with joining payroll and rostering data to trading data at store level. That single join answers most of the questions retailers actually have: which stores are over-resourced against their trade, where overtime is structural rather than exceptional, and what a percentage point of labour cost is worth across the estate.
We have many stores and inconsistent data. Is this feasible?
Yes. In our experience the inconsistency is usually the finding, not the obstacle. Where store-level data is patchy we work with what reconciles and are explicit about how much confidence sits behind the rest.
How quickly would we see something useful?
A store-level breakdown of labour cost is normally ready within four to six weeks of getting access to the data. That is usually the point at which the conversation changes.
Talk to us about retail.
If you suspect the cost is going somewhere you cannot see, that is usually enough to start from. Tell us what you are looking at.
Call us
+263 78 151 0571Email us
blessing.zhou@mightyexcelpro.co.zwFind us
97 West Road, Avondale West, Harare