Ravalli County voters last week repealed restrictive zoning rules intended to prevent Wal-Mart and other so-called “big box” stores from doing business in the Bitterroot Valley. This may be troubling to some local merchants - and not without reason. While free enterprise is, in theory, all about competition, the reality is no business truly welcomes competition. Competition is something businesses preach for others, not themselves.
That doesn't mean competition is bad. It's not. It's actually what best ensures a viable future for businesses. Local businesses may not desire competition from large national chains, but such competition is a fact of life in the 21st century. It's a challenge best met because it can't really be avoided - not even with clever zoning.
What's more, keeping large retailers out of a local market works only if there aren't the same or similar stores in a nearby city. Ravalli County merchants can't insulate themselves from big-store competition because Missoula beckons.
Ravalli County merchants should take advantage of lessons learned in thousands of other communities as they brace for greater competition.
Some suggestions:
Exploit a niche. If you can't beat the competition on price, offer products and services they can't. Some consumers care only about price. You're already losing those customers to the Internet and out-of-town stores. Many customers, however, care more about value. They're the ones to focus on.
Offer better service. There's a cliché in business that small, locally owned businesses always offer better service. It isn't necessarily true. Large retailers sometimes provide excellent service. Don't assume your service is better - make sure it is. This will add great value in the minds of many customers, who'll reward you with their loyalty.
Treat your employees well. The rap on large retailers is that they don't pay well and are miserly about benefits. In fact, however, some of them pay their employees better and offer better benefits than small local merchants. The first step for any merchant worried about big box stores coming to town should make certain pay and benefits are competitive and - this should be the easier part - working conditions are good. Employees working for local merchants can aid their employers' survival and improve their own situations by finding ways to become more productive. Higher productivity makes higher pay possible.
Be optimistic. We can recall when Costco first announced plans to open in Missoula. Some of our merchants went nuts. We worried a bit ourselves. Looking back nearly two decades later, we see that the local economy grew tremendously and most local businesses adapted. Those that didn't have been replaced by others that saw niches to exploit. You might say that business has become more competitive, but you'd also have to say the local economy has become more vibrant. In Ravalli County, merchants who fear the arrival of large new retailers might be surprised to find fewer local customers taking their money to Missoula on weekends and more people from Salmon, Idaho, and elsewhere stopping short in Hamilton to shop, rather than continuing on to Missoula.
Commerce takes place in an environment of intense economic Darwinism. It really is survival of the fittest. That's “fittest,” not “biggest.” Businesses that adapt best to the environment will prosper. You can't adapt to conditions if you pretend they don't exist. The message to merchants from last week's vote in Ravalli County is face reality and adapt. We, and most of your neighbors, are pulling for you.
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