Effective Merchandising: A Key Component of Success
Effective merchandising is one of the most critical elements of successful retail management, especially in the competitive market of gas station networks. Standardizing product placement processes, managing assortments, and controlling inventory not only boosts sales but also creates an organized and efficient system. What benefits does standardization bring, and how can merchandising processes be properly organized? Let’s explore.

Product Placement Standards in Checkout Zones.
When discussing product placement standards in checkout zones, the question arises: is there a limit to how many products can be displayed? The answer is simple: the limit is defined by the customer’s capacity to process information.
If no products are displayed in this area, customers will not notice them, and sales will be lost. On the other hand, overwhelming the customer’s attention with too many items yields no results either. The goal is effective space management, ensuring profitability per meter—or even centimeter—of the retail zone. In some gas station networks, checkout zones resemble multi-layered pyramids of products towering on both sides of the cashier. This demonstrates the merchandiser’s desire to maximize product placement in a small area.

Unconventional Assortments: Experiments and Lessons Learned.
Ten years ago, I worked with a gas station network that sold knives, thermal underwear, plastic watches, and even seedlings and cacti. Despite the unusual assortment, customers were intrigued and sometimes even purchased these items.
Another example is a manager of a large gas station network who dreamed of customers shopping at his stations as if they were supermarkets. Over time, the Ukrainian gas station market has matured, placing players in their respective niches and proving that even small networks can thrive with a smart approach.

Why Standards Are Crucial for Gas Station Networks.
The pioneers in implementing merchandising standards were large global manufacturers, distributors, and pharmaceutical companies. They invest heavily in marketing, print promotional materials, launch media campaigns, and maintain active social media presences.
If a network has product placement standards, they can be managed, adjusted, improved, and enforced. Without such standards, improvisation by merchandisers or administrators prevails, leading to inconsistencies across stations. As a result, managers are forced to correct errors on-site instead of focusing on strategic management.

Procurement and Inventory Management.
Procurement standards are equally important in retail networks. Decisions based on sales analysis from previous periods help forecast seasonal demand and prevent warehouses from being overloaded with slow-moving goods.
A lack of unified standards leads to chaos: some stores are overstocked, while others face shortages. This also applies to standards for disposing of expired products, as mishandling can damage the network’s reputation.

How Standardized Processes Improve Gas Station Efficiency.
While working with a gas station network, I was tasked with analyzing standards for storing fast-food items and serving them to customers. Observing different practices across stations was enlightening.
At one station, ingredients for burgers were pre-thawed and assembled in front of the customer. At another, pre-assembled and thawed burgers with sauce were stored, while at a third, ingredients were thawed only after a customer placed an order. Which station do you think sold the most burgers per transaction?
Of course, the global fast-food giant with golden arches excels in standardizing storage and production processes, and we have much to learn from them. In essence, it is better to standardize everything possible. Document every detail that can be documented. Minimize the intellectual workload of store managers—not because employees lack the capability to match managers’ skills, but because employees tend to execute tasks slightly differently.

Standards as a Foundation for Success.
Standards are a tool for creating an efficient and manageable system. A network manager who understands the importance of standards builds a unified system that operates independently of human factors.
Standardization of product placement, procurement, and merchandising processes ensures stability and predictability of results. This makes the business not only more profitable but also easier to manage.

Andriy Kopylov
Head of the APEB standards committee