Steve Bailey
RetailKPI Consulting

Group Service Provider – Financial Management & Analysis

Recent articles by Steve

With 40 years in the garden center industry, Steve became the Financial Tracking Officer for The Group after selling his own garden center which he and his wife Bonnie started in 1983. His main area of interest has always been focused on the financial side of the business which he has developed into a number of systems and programs aimed at helping garden centers in The Group get a better grasp on how money moves through their business.

One of Steve's main roles is the management of the Weekly Department Review Report (WDR Report) which tracks the weekly sales of participating Group centers in 25 categories. This open peer, industry exclusive allows garden centers to compare their weekly sales, average sale and transaction counts and communicate with reporting centers. Nowhere else in the garden center industry is this service available. The WDR includes a weekly sales analysis – a wrap-up of sales, promotions and weather impact that is used by Group centers to keep their employees in touch with more than just their immediate surroundings.

Steve also manages The Group's Annual P&L Study, another industry exclusive and the most comprehensive profit and loss study of its kind. While the WDR Report focuses on sales and margins by category and transactions on a weekly basis, the Annual P&L Study includes sales and expenses and compares percent of sales for the garden center to both Best Practices/High Achievers Group – and reporting centers as a whole. This study also includes inventory turns, margin targets by category and the resulting Gross Margin Return On Inventory Investment (GMROII).

An additional financial service from Steve, available to Group centers, compiles gross margins and inventory turns by category into an easy to follow report that identifies areas of financial concern. The Financial Ratio Analysis Report quickly and accurately shows which products / departments / categories need attention in order for them to contribute to the company's financial success. Pricing, inventory levels, display space and labor needs can then be changed if necessary, which could yield a dramatic improvement in the company's end-of-year profit results. This Group exclusive takes the guesswork out of product line and department's true value, can be performed through phone/fax/email and does not require a company to have a POS system.

Steve is a regular presenter at Group workshops on topics dealing with a variety of financial issues and is available to assist garden centers in The Group with their individual financial tracking needs. He is the creator of the Financial Basics of Garden Center Retailing Workshops Series, presented by The Garden Center Group and RetailKPI Consulting.