Ever wish a retail expert would walk into your stockroom, pull up your numbers, and just tell you exactly what to do?

Hi, I'm Catherine Erdly.

This week on the Resilient Retail Game Plan, I’m tearing down the myths and fears behind a stock audit and showing why getting your inventory under control is the most powerful move a product-based business owner can make.

After 25 years in retail, I’ve seen it all: wasted cash in stagnant shelves, business owners drowning in data but starving for answers.

So I created Stock Doctor — a done-for-you service that cuts through overwhelm with actionable clarity.

Click play to hear real-world product business advice, cash flow for retailers, and inventory management tips that make strategy feel personal.

If you want independent retailer tips with zero judgement, this audit episode is your toolkit.

Why Listen

• Discover how to squeeze more margin from your current stockholding
• See why smart inventory management means better cash flow—and a healthier bank balance
• Get simple, practical techniques to clear excess stock without damaging your brand
• Learn demand forecasting tricks specifically for small product businesses
• Find out how to price products for wholesale, set minimum order quantities, and scale a product business confidently
• Hear success stories from real retailers who’ve used Stock Doctor to boost sales, decrease surplus, and claim more owner pay

DM your biggest takeaway or guest suggestions to @resilientretailclub on Instagram. Rate/follow the Resilient Retail Club Podcast in your favourite app to stay ahead.

If you’re tired of winging it with your retail sales, this episode of The Resilient Retail Game Plan is your turning point.

I'm Catherine Erdly, and in this episode I'm revealing how mapping out your sales year gives you more creativity, not less.

Plus, we're all about calmer launches, better cash flow, and loyal customers.

Learn how to replace last-minute panic with a confident plan that fits your life, not the other way around.

00:00 Planning Enhances Creativity

03:40 Avoid Reactive Selling Strategies

07:09 Predictive Marketing Example

10:57 Plan Themes, Fill Gaps

15:07 "Planning Ahead for Success"

18:14 Holiday Planning for Retail Success

Website: https://www.resilientretailclub.com

Invite: https://resilientretailclub.com/retailsales

Podcast: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcast

Tell me what landed for you—DM @resilientretailclub on Instagram with your biggest takeaway or guest wish list. Tap follow (and rate and review me while you're there) in your favourite app to keep updated on new episodes.

Resilient Retail Club member Petrina Reddy from "Saints at Sea" thought she was doing everything right — until the numbers told a different story.

In this episode, she joins me, Catherine Erdly, to share the moment she realised her retail business wasn’t actually working the way she thought it was.

We talk honestly about the emotional side of facing your figures, the hard decisions that come next, and how Petrina rebuilt her business with clarity and confidence.

If you’ve ever avoided looking too closely at your sales or stock levels, this is the wake-up call you didn’t know you needed.

00:00 "Balancing Creativity and Growth"

03:18 Multitasking Beyond Comfort Zones

06:40 "Business Growth Light Bulb Moments"

10:24 Seasonal Travel and Road Trips

15:22 "Promoting Portugal's Culture Creatively"

18:18 "Saints at Sea Spotlight"

Tell me what landed for you—DM @resilientretailclub on Instagram with your biggest takeaway or guest wish list. Tap follow (and rate and review me while you're there) in your favourite app to keep updated on new episodes.

Website: https://www.resilientretailclub.com

Invite: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/waitlist

Podcast: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcast

Sound familiar? Ever felt your sales rhythm drop from celebration to silence overnight?

Welcome to the Resilient Retail Game Plan podcast, where I, Catherine Erdly, cut through the feast-or-famine fog so many independent retailers face.

In this episode, I crack open the real reasons your product business swings from record months to radio silence and arm you with retail-savvy strategies that’ve worked for multi-billion pound chains—plus the lean, scrappy shops braving the UK high street right now.

Why listen?

• Ditch the rollercoaster: Learn why you’re stuck in boom-bust and how to end it
• Build calm, repeatable sales systems—no chasing your own tail at payday or peak season
• Squeeze more margin by syncing launches with simple, effective marketing
• Create a retail sales plan that powers up even on slow, confidence-testing days
• Spot the “cycle of doom” before it derails your cash flow for retailers
• Walk away with independent retailer tips you can action before opening hours

Tell me what landed for you—DM @resilientretailclub on Instagram with your biggest takeaway or guest wish list. Tap follow (and rate and review me while you're there) in your favourite app to keep updated on new episodes.

Ever wondered why your sales are stuck in first gear – and what you can actually do to shift them?

I'm Catherine Erdly and this episode of the Resilient Retail Game Plan drills into three mistakes I see again and again with small product businesses. If you’re posting on Instagram, trying in-person markets, running the odd promotion yet still seeing stubbornly flat sales month after month, you’re not alone. I draw on 25 years in retail, from big business stockrooms to indie brands, to break down what’s really holding back your growth – and what needs to change if you want momentum, not just busy work.

Why listen?

• Diagnose the hidden traps behind sales plateaus – and get clarity on what to fix first
• Craft a retail planning mindset that supports creative not cookie-cutter growth
• Pinpoint how to build a product strategy rooted in data (not guesswork or feast/famine launches)
• Sift fact from feeling so your decisions support cash flow for retailers
• Walk away with indie retailer tips to create your own resilient retail game plan

Let’s turn product business advice into action: DM me your thoughts or episode ideas on Instagram @resilientretailclub. If you’re finding the retail podcast UK series useful, hit follow and leave a rating – it’s the best way to help more makers and shop owners discover the Resilient Retail Club podcast.

Black Friday isn’t designed for indies, so why do so many small retail business owners still feel pressure to play?

In this episode of the Resilient Retail Game Plan, I pull you behind the screens and into the real numbers; sharing where the opportunities actually lie for UK product businesses come November, what the headlines miss, and how you can plan Black Friday on your own terms.

No boss babe myths.

No one-size-fits-all answers.

Just straight-talking product business advice from 25 years in the retail trenches.

I’ll help you squeeze more margin, build customer loyalty, and avoid the stress spiral—whatever you decide about Black Friday.

Why listen?

• Flip mainstream Black Friday thinking and capture the month’s biggest wins—for your bottom line and your values
• Squeeze more profit from your Q4, not just turnover
• Tame your promotions calendar, reduce customer “discount fatigue”
• Reward loyal customers in a way that fits your brand
• Use cash flow for retailers and inventory management podcast tactics to plan stock (not just hope for the best)
• Hear exactly how successful indie retailers choose, pace, and communicate their Black Friday offers—without losing themselves in the noise

DM me @resilientretailclub on Instagram with your Black Friday takeaways or guest ideas for the podcast. If this episode clears the fog, rate and follow the show in your favourite retail podcast UK app.

Mentioned in this episode:

Stock doctor

Loyalty in retail isn’t just about discounts anymore — it’s about creating experiences customers remember. In this episode, Catherine Erdly talks with Charlie Casey, CEO of LoyaltyLion, about what loyalty means in 2025.

You’ll learn:

Why discounts alone don’t drive loyalty

How experiences like VIP drops & events keep customers coming back

Real examples from brands using loyalty to boost sales

Why loyal customers spend 4× more in tough economies

How to balance short-term sales with long-term trust

Companies mentioned in this episode:

• Loyalty Lion
• Never Fully Dressed
• Represent Clothing
• The Inkey List
• John's Crazy Socks

Links referenced in this episode:

• loyaltylion.com
• resilientretailclub.com

Mentioned in this episode:

Stock doctor

Teetering bank balance, shelves groaning with unsold stock, and a to-do list that rustles louder than tissue wrap? Lean in—this festive crunch is survival mode for indie retailers.

Christmas is coming, and with it, that age-old retail cash flow pinch. I’m Catherine Erdly—host of the Resilient Retail Game Plan and twenty-five years deep in this glorious, gritty industry.

In this episode, I break down why September and October send even the most seasoned retailers’ stomachs flipping and how you can manage cash flow during seasonal peaks without losing sleep or profit. From real talk about why “big guys” don’t have it any easier to practical advice for negotiating terms, avoiding stock pile-ups, and clearing out that dreaded dead stock (think: cash stuck in hibernation), this conversation is your no-nonsense lifeline. [cash-register-ding]

Why listen?

• Get honest, human product business advice for weathering the Christmas crunch
• Squeeze more margin from your range (and finally pay yourself as a product-based business owner)
• Learn how to use a retail cash flow template (grab the free download)
• Discover negotiation strategies for small retailers and indie retailer tips only a retail podcast UK like ours digs into
• Find out how to clear excess stock without damaging your brand—or losing your mind

Prefer to watch?

https://youtu.be/Xox17sgis_Q

Have takeaways, sticky situations or guest ideas?

DM @resilientretailclub on Instagram—I read every message.

Don’t miss future episodes of the Resilient Retail Club podcast: rate and follow in your favourite app. For more scaling a product business insight, catch my latest Forbes feature on funding options for indie retailers UK.

Mentioned in this episode:

Cashflow Planner Freebie

Download your Cash Flow Planner at https://resilientretailclub.com/cashflow