Open the Doors

All Together Now

With the excitement of the opening day behind us, we set to work on the day-to-day running of our community shop.

Backed by a well-organised Management Committee, what our volunteers lacked in experience, they made up for in good will and enthusiasm. We all learnt quickly and the committee managed the back-office and operations.

Of course, we had teething problems, however the CFCS community felt a sense of ownership and forgave any minor mishaps in favour of the greater mission. A feeling of loyalty and belonging deepens with every day we continue to open our doors.

To paraphrase the philosopher Voltaire: "Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good"

At first the routines and processes involved in the actual running of a shop may seem overwhelming, especially if many of your team have no retail experience. However we have all experienced being a CUSTOMER at some point, and know what we would like our own experience to be when entering a community shop.

There are SO many different aspects to consider when allocating roles, but the old adage ‘Horses for Courses’ comes into play again when you start communicating with your team as everyone has different skills to offer.

If you are considering paid staff, or at the very least at Shop Manager, some of the duties that need to be carried out will overlap and be condensed into one role. As CFCS operates a volunteer only model, here is an oversight into the roles we needed to cover.

Running the Shop

Overall 'management'

There is no single ‘manager’, as the day-to-day decisions are handled by the CFCS Management Committee who are themselves all volunteers.

There is no nomination or voting process to join the Management Committee – it is made up of a small group of around 8 or 12 dedicated volunteers. Should any volunteer wish to join the committee, all they have to do is ask! There is no age or experience prerequisite.

However, it is expected that they attend any Management Meetings (held approximately once a month) and contribute to any decisions that need to be made with measured and coherent input that is valid to the overall ethos of CFCS. Members of the Management Committee can also ‘resign’ at any time from the group should they wish to do so for whatever reason.

With consensus management in place, no decisions are made without consultation of all Management Committee members, either during meetings, or on an ad-hoc basis during the day-to-day running of the shop.

The following roles, in general, have been allocated to the CFCS Management Committee members simply due to the skillset immediately available within its core:

VAT returns, annual accounts, management of bank accounts and settlement of supplier accounts
Stock management and stocktaking
Decisions to invest in new equipment/services and business expansion
Social media & press releases
H&S aspects, security measures & compliance
Management of volunteer/staff rotas where necessary

If you decide to employ paid members of staff, the financial running of the business (including PAYE and Pension Contributions), staff contracts and training need to be factored into this list of roles.

Daily responsibilities

At CFCS the next ‘level’ of responsibilities to be carried out on a daily basis are allocated between both the Management Committee and willing volunteers:

Stock ordering, control, rotation and display
Newspaper orders & management of supply
Checking invoices/delivery notes
Organising the collection of goods from wholesalers
Promotion of goods and services to maximise sales (reduced goods or special offers)
End of day cashing up/preparation of floats
Opening and closing procedures

For those volunteers/staff members who prefer to have a role with less ‘responsibility’ or a more back of house contribution (yet which are equally as important!) here just a few of the multitude of tasks involved in running a successful and busy community shop:

Serving customers!
Taking payment and preparing orders
Answering the phone and orders for delivery to vulnerable customers
Delivering groceries, newspapers and prescription medication
Shelf stacking & stock rotation
Daily, weekly, and deep cleaning as required
Waste paper & cardboard recycling
Gardening including pots, tubs & hanging baskets
General Maintenance & DIY
Noticeboard upkeep and rotation of notices
Admin & office duties (filing / photocopying / printing)
Research into new products & ideas
Volunteer/staff welfare and social activities
Crafts to sell on your regional ‘wall’
Home baking (with ingredients/allergens displayed) to sell in the shop

It takes 'all sorts'

Don’t worry if roles and responsibilities change – it is all part of the process of learning and adapting!
No role is too small – every contribution is valued and necessary to the ongoing success of your shop.
Try to be aware of any volunteer (or staff member) who may be in danger of taking on too many roles or responsibilities – they may feel overwhelmed but reluctant to speak up in case they are ‘letting the side down’. If possible, spread roles across a wide group or suggest roles are shared between two volunteers to ease the load.
Be open to any new ideas, start a suggestion box, and make a point to thank each other for any shift worked, task completed or act of kindness, however small. It goes a long way...and further cements your ethos for the community and your shop as a whole.