The retail stores back in the 80s did not have any competition hence it kept growing and competition was minimal. Back then you could buy like crazy, load up your stores with a vast variety of inventory, do a fair job with merchandising, and customers of all ages and sizes would come flocking in to buy and buy. Those were the days, but times are different now. As a business grows and changes, so does its customer base. As I speak with business owners in my audiences from across the world, I am constantly amazed that many cannot articulate to me who their core customer is. Some have been successful for years, but they are wondering why they are now losing their edge and, even worse, losing customers to the growing competition. These businesses are oblivious to change. They continue to do things the same old way instead of adjusting their marketing efforts to keep up with changes in the industry and, more importantly, the needs of their customers.

A retail store I recently consulted with was throwing lots of money away by advertising in the same newspapers with the same ineffective ads they had been using for years. When we focused on rediscovering their customer base, it was clear why the advertising campaign was no longer working. Over the years customers had aged and had different needs and concerns. The store redirected their advertising and marketing efforts to target the customer. These new marketing efforts afforded almost immediate results and turned the business in a much more focused direction. Tom Peters, author and management guru, said in Design and Display magazine: