Excellent customer service keeps Burkett’s going strong

I was sitting here well after deadline Friday still stewing about what I’d write for today’s column when I came across the item in today’s FYI about Burkett’s celebrating its 25th anniversary in downtown Everett.

As soon as I saw that, I knew what I wanted to write about: How does a small retail business survive that long, especially in a declining downtown area like Everett’s?

So I picked up the phone and had a nice talk with Jo Ann Burkett, who recalled what she was thinking when she founded the women’s clothing store in 1978.

“I thought everything had totally bottomed out,” she said. “I thought this is as bad as its going to get, but that wasn’t the case.”

I’m also nearing my 25th anniversary at what one wag liked to call the Everett Whalewrapper, so I immediately knew what Burkett was talking about. For all of that time I’ve watched businesses – especially clothing stores like Burkett’s – close up shop and leave the downtown area. Even The Bon Marche (now Bon-Macy’s), with all its corporate clout, couldn’t keep things going downtown.

“I used to joke and say we’re like Motel 6 – the last ones with the light on,” said Burkett, who turned the store over to her daughter, Holly, several years ago.

So what’s Burkett’s secret?

Burkett credited the store’s loyal customers. But the reasons for that loyalty are really the foundation for the store’s success.

One of the biggest reasons is the personal attention lavished on customers.

“We were very service directed in the early days,” Burkett said. “We didn’t depend on off the street traffic. We were able to target our customers.”

Burkett said she did a lot of phoning to check in with customers and keep up with their needs. She said she also bought clothing with specific customers in mind and even did some special shopping from time to time.

Asked for an example, she told about a customer who needed a mother of the bride dress. Burkett got samples of the material for the bridesmaids gowns, then found her customer the perfect dress to complement what they were wearing.

“We do a lot of individual shopping,” she said. “I guess you’d call it custom shopping.”

Burkett said the store has always reached out to people who work downtown, but also to customers who live in outlying areas.

“I think our customers just like the convenience,” she said. “We still have a lot of professional women as customers. A lot of them live out in the county – Camano Island and Monroe – and they just don’t want to fight the traffic at the Alderwood Mall.”

Since taking over, Burkett said, her daughter has renovated the store, brought in some new clothing lines and uses a talent honed as a buyer for Nordstrom to ensure the shop has the latest styles.

“She’s an excellent buyer,” Burkett said. “She has a great mix that covers all the bases.”

But the store’s continued success is still based on customer service and extra effort.

“It’s very intensive,” Burkett said. “It’s hard work to keep it going.”

So there you have the secrets of success for a small business, which of course are no secret at all: