The Value of Omnichannel Retail Strategy

Oftentimes, the journey of a local community business demands the will of a thistle pushing through concrete. Establishments like these count on small business support from locals to break through obstacles and overcome the odds.

Thorny weeds, however, don’t exactly embody the warmth of a thriving community business nor its collaborative spirit, so that’s about where the "thistle metaphor" breaks down.

The Community Garden Effect

Whatever the plantae designation — perhaps your favorite local bakery is more of a blushing blueberry bush — every community business needs local involvement to reach its full growth potential. Local business is like a community garden, with success predicated on building a viable root network and drawing neighborhood support.

So, what if there were a way to expand that "neighborhood" reach while retaining the feel of that tight-knit community?

Developing a Personal Touch

Before we dive into how to expand a brick-and-mortar retail strategy, let's explore the link between local community and small business through a real life example.

Situated snugly inside a converted house in Downtown Powell, Ohio, Annie’s Wine Cottage (grapevine) is an example of a brick-and-mortar business with strong roots in its community. They also happen to see strong sale numbers from their online shop, but more on that in a minute.

Shop owner, Anne Gabriel, doesn't see community as a nebulous population to serve. Instead, her sense of community is individual... born of a philosophy that cultivates singular interactions with every person her company serves.

Explore the AWC events calendar, including their weekly “Share a Bottle Night.”

I was curious what Anne believes can set a local business apart, and the answer she offered fit her warm and outgoing reputation.

"The ability to connect directly with the local community," she told me. "[Being] able to form relationships with customers."

Which begs another question: how does one build community and create lasting relationships in the faceless environment of an online retail experience?

Creating an Omnichannel Retail Community

A winning retail strategy may blur the lines between online shop and brick-and-mortar establishment. In 2024, this sort of "hybrid retail" is very much a thing in the small business community.

Welcome to the world of omnichannel retail strategies.

Leveraging Ecommerce in 2024

In 2024, ecommerce makes up an increasingly massive percentage of global retail sales. Annie's Wine Cottage is an ecommerce shop that doesn't lack for strong roots in its physical community, but a powerful digital business presence is still critical. That's why we partnered with AWC to begin leveling up their online presence.

The goal was to create an ecommerce experience that would reflect the true community vibes of their brick-and-mortar shop. By adopting this omnichannel retail strategy, Annie’s Wine Cottage has been able to substantially expand its reach — pairing the shop's in-person presence with something that can be quite difficult to provide electronically... a personal touch.

Of course, a viable omnichannel commerce solution depends on maintaining both channels. Local growth is critical for a community business. For AWC, the local side is all about maintaining that individual interaction philosophy.

Tapping Into the Local Small Business Community

When a customer steps into Annie's Wine Cottage, a cute little blue building near the town's downtown intersection, Anne wants that person to feel cozy, "...as if they're in [her] home."

One effective way to enact this sort of community focus is by working with like-minded entrepreneurs and showing support for local businesses.

"It's important for us to partner with other small businesses," says Anne. She's looking for the same values she strives to embody in her own company. This boils down to her number one rule for business: "Do everything with integrity, first and foremost. Do what you say you're going to do and always follow up."

Need Help Building an Omnichannel Commerce Solution?

Chek Creative may be a web studio, but supporting local businesses and fostering community engagement is a big part of what we do. If you need a hand exploring omnichannel commerce solutions to take your retail strategy to the next level, we would love to chat.

"It's important to support the communities in which we live so that we continue to keep small business strong!"
— Anne Gabriel

Nurturing our community roots gives organizations access to greater growth potential and the level of support for local businesses from which we all benefit. Let us know if we can partner alongside you to develop a powerful omnichannel retail strategy for your community business to take that local support to the next level online.