Top 100 Retailer of the Year 2024 featured SKUs .
Top 100 Retailer of the Year 2024 featured SKUs .
“ I ’ m looking at each supplier and distributor and seeing what they recommend , what the key volumes are ,” Gildehaus says . “ As for the featured items , that depends on the market . Missouri is month to month . Nebraska and other states we ’ re in are ‘ deal buy ’ states .”
In these markets , if a key item is not on sale when the store opens , Gildehaus will still stock it ( of course ), but recommends the new owner wait to feature the product until the deal is better .
“ Don ’ t put it on feature display yet because it ’ s not on its lowest price ,” he says . “ I ’ m always looking out for the franchisee .”
Additional areas where Gildehaus has the franchisee ’ s best interests at heart are architecture and construction . He has the same architect firm design all the stores , and suggests that new owners use his preferred builder out of Kansas .
“ He has built many of my stores before ,” Gildehaus explains . “ He builds them twice as fast . I always tell franchisees , ‘ Time is money ’.”
If franchisees choose his builder , Gildehaus estimates that the total time from expressing first interest to opening a new Macadoodles store is about nine to ten months .
THE MACADOODLES PROGRAM
Gildehaus personally assists with the opening , staying in that new location for several weeks as he helps the business begin right . Afterwards , Gildehaus or a member of his team will return to that store every four to six weeks , spending several days with the management team . These interactions include pointing out aspects of the store that are not up to standard .
That standard is the Macadoodles program . The set of rules and principles that have helped propel this beverage alcohol retail brand to best-in-class status .
Example : corporate Macadoodles employees visiting franchises will perform competitive price checks to make sure that the store prices are not too high compared with competitors .
Also : The Macadoodles layout itself . “ I don ’ t want franchises to make dramatic changes to our layout ,” Gildehaus says . “ We have stores in tourist markets . When people get used to the
Macadoodles store in their hometown and then they walk into another one while on vacation , and it ’ s all laid out the same way as in the hometown , that ’ s what we ’ re going for .”
“ Now I ’ m not saying that all stores have to look exactly the same ,” he adds , “ but the categories should be in the same place from store to store .”
From there , “ it ’ s up to each store to judge their rate of sales ,” Gildehaus explains . “ If they see something that the market is telling you everyone wants , jump on that . When an item is on a deal buy , promote it heavily .”
The Macadoodles program permeates into the atmosphere . “ We own our own music playlist , about 450 songs , created by my daughter and me ,” Gildehaus says . “ There ’ s no rap , no heavy metal . When a customer walks in , they ’ re greeted by the corner cashiers , who say , ‘ Welcome to Macadoodles ’, in a friendly voice . And I want the music to sound like customers are going to a party . We play music louder , and lively .”
As customers proceed into the wine room , however , the music becomes more subdued . “ It ’ s an upscale look in there ,” Gildehaus says . “ And the music isn ’ t as loud because there ’ s more one-on-ones , with employees handselling bottles .”
Customers can taste wines seven days a week at all Macadoodles . The stores also offer free coffee and popcorn every day . Buyers of beer receive a complimentary bag of ice to keep their purchase cold on the ride home .
“ That ’ s so important ,” Gildehaus says of all these Macadoodles perks . “ We want people to be comfortable while shopping in the store .”
A few years ago , Macadoodles rolled out a new loyalty program . The result has been impressive . “ One store , in the first 90 days , had 10,000 customers sign up ,” Gildehaus recalls .
Why ? Everything bought generates points that can later go towards discounts on future purchases . “ Whatever you want ,” Gildehaus says . “ I don ’ t know any other store in the country running a loyalty program like this .”
DIGITAL IMPROVEMENTS
A new Macadoodles website launched several months ago to similar success . The goal was to make the site more user www . beveragedynamics . com 2024 Top 100 Issue • Beverage Dynamics 9