The walk
Six stores in a single afternoon, from the northeast to the southwest. Same category, same six brands, wildly different execution.
Where the planogram was followed, the imported brands sat at ankle height behind a domestic wall. Where a store manager had improvised, they were at eye level and moving.
What it means
- Distribution is not placement, and placement is not visibility
- A national listing without a store-level check is a guess
- The cheapest research available is a Saturday afternoon and a notebook
Nobody at head office has ever seen your product the way a shopper in Calgary sees it.