OUR SERVICES

BUSINESS COACHING & MENTORING

Strategic guidance to grow your business.

Running a small business is a constant balancing act. You're the visionary, the manager, and often the one on the shop floor. While you have the passion and expertise for your product or service, it can be challenging to step back and see the bigger picture. Our Coaching & Mentoring option gives you an expert in retail and small business to meet with regularly and touch base with whenever you need that bit of extra guidance. This is the program you choose when you want that extra level of clarity and perspective over a longer period of time.

Through one-on-one, remote sessions, we'll work together to define your business goals and create a clear plan to achieve them and then we will be beside you for as long as you need to bring them to fruition. This isn't a one-size-fits-all program. Whether you're a new entrepreneur looking for guidance or an established business owner wanting to scale or pivot, we can tailor the frequency and focus of our sessions to fit your specific needs.

Here are some of the challenges we can tackle together:

  • Refine your business strategy to ensure you're on the right track for growth and profitability.

  • Improve operational efficiency to save time, money and resources.

  • Develop your leadership skills to better manage, train and motivate your team.

  • Identify new opportunities for growth and revenue.

  • Craft a marketing strategy that effectively reaches your target audience.

Throughout this program you will be working with me, Kath Stonehouse, the founder of The Retail Toolkit and business consultant. Think of me as a trusted partner, a sounding board and your cheerleader. My role is to help you overcome hurdles, give you the knowledge you need to make the right decisions, and guide you to keep moving forward as you build a more resilient and profitable business. You and I will work together to transform your vision into tangible results.

I’ve been fortunate throughout my career to have had a number of incredible mentors and coaches. Some for a short time to help kick start a project or prepare a strategic plan, and others for longer, helping me develop my own personal business and leadership skills.

Throughout my business career, I’ve sought consultants, mentors and coaches with different skills and styles, depending on my needs or that of my business at the time. I’ve always thought that was one of the tricks to being successful in business - knowing what you don’t know and then finding the right person who does.

Often, the thing that I valued the most when working with these experts was that having them to talk with invariably sped up my planning process but also gave me the confidence to keep moving forward, even if I felt a bit daunted.

Every mentor and coach brings different things to your journey. It’s quite common for business people to have a few that they call on, each with a different knowledge-base or perspective. One of my favourite mentors was not just someone I valued the opinion of but was my ‘cheer squad’. Just being able to call her up and vent, laugh, debate and strategise was something that I truly treasured.

I continue to touch base with a few of my advisers even now, particularly when I want to clear my head because my brain has turned to ‘mashed potato’. I bet you know that feeling too. It slows you down and it’s frustrating because it stops you from getting your business to the next level. At these times, I find talking it through with someone with a business brain helps to clear my head and get things going, often quicker than if I did it on my own.

Engaging with a business adviser is a strategic choice to accelerate your learning and growth and to keep your business moving forward. It’s an investment in yourself and your business that pays dividends in both knowledge and confidence. It's about having the self-awareness to recognise what you don't know and then having the courage to seek out the right person to teach you.

The lessons and wisdom I've gathered from my mentors and coaches have woven themselves into the fabric of my own experience. They are not just isolated facts or pieces of advice, they have become part of my own rich tapestry of business knowledge. It’s this blend of hands-on experience and the insights from those who have guided me that I now bring to my own coaching and mentoring.

- Kath Stonehouse

Working with a business coach gives you a fresh perspective. It’s a strategic choice to accelerate your learning, build confidence, and keep your business moving forward.

How does Business Coaching & Mentoring work?

Prior to deciding if I’m the right person for you, we will:

  • Have a 30 minute discovery call. There is no obligation for you to proceed.

  • We'll begin by discussing your business's biggest challenges and opportunities, your priorities, and what you hope to achieve with a coach/consultant.

  • I will tell you about my skills, knowledge and experience and you can ask me the questions that help you make a decision.

  • Without making any commitments, we discuss what business coaching would look like based on your needs. This depends a lot on what your own goals and objectives are - it could be several meetings in fast procession if you’re wanting to get going on a project, or it could be monthly meetings over a longer period of time. Flexibility is the key to working with a business coach, in my opinion.

  • If you would like to proceed, we agree on the scope of work and I provide a quote. If that suits you then we both sign, you pay the deposit and we get started!

Our first meeting:

  • Our first meeting is all about setting the tone for our work together. Based on our discovery call and my prior research into your business and market, we'll start by creating a clear and measurable Strategic Action Plan based on your objectives. This will serve as our roadmap, whether we're focusing on a specific project or developing personal skills like leadership and team development.

Our subsequent meetings:

  • With our Strategic Action Plan always front of mind, we will focus on working through those strategies to achieve your goals. This is a working roadmap, so we’'ll review it regularly and make adjustments as need to ensure it stays relevant.

  • For us to build a good working relationship and get the best outcomes for your business, it’s important that we stay in touch in between our planned meetings. I'm always available by email if you have questions, need some guidance, or just want to run something by me and if needed, we can pick up the phone and have a chat.

Our last meeting:

  • You won’t be surprised when I say that this final meeting involves a review of the objectives we set at the start, celebrating your achievements, and then mapping out your next steps. At this point, you might be ready to move forward on your own, or we can create a new scope of work to continue our collaboration and build on the growth you've already achieved.

  • It’s worth noting here that I always think it’s wise to set an end date for programs such as this. Check out the FAQ’s below - that will explain my reasoning.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • I believe longer term coaching and consulting programs should have a clear purpose and a defined endpoint. My preference is to work within a specific scope, with an end date or number of meetings in mind. In doing this, we factor in enough time to make significant progress, complete the key projects, or successfully launch a new initiative. By then building in that end date and working in a ‘series’, we have an inbuilt timeframe in which to reassess.

    Our work together is designed to be a strategic engagement, not a never-ending commitment.

    At the end of each series, we review our progress and determine the best next steps. At that point, you might be ready to continue on your own or the goals might be achieved. Or, if you still need my input, we can discuss a new, focused scope of work.

    The goal is always to empower you and your business to achieve continuous improvement and maximum return on your investment from my services. And importantly, it helps you budget.

  • Absolutely! Prior to beginning, we will both sign a confidentiality document.

    By signing this document, I agree to keep all discussions, data, initiatives and results confidential and will not share with any other party unless you give me permission or request it.

    At the same time, you will agree to not share any of the documents, templates or specific stategies that I give you with other third parties outside your company or business advisors. I’m sure you will understand that what I provide is the intellectual property of The Retail Toolkit and we like to keep that for those that we work with, such as yourself.

    Please see our Privacy Policy for more information.

  • This will be outlined in the scope of work however, in general:

    • A 20% deposit is paid at the time when you sign the Service Agreement and agreed to the scope of work.

    • The remaining amount is paid in equal installments throughout our time working together.

    • Please see our Terms & Conditions for more information.

READY TO FIND OUT MORE?