Locations that are part of shopping or tourist centres can hitch an advertising ride on the generic promotion of the complex. Stand-alone outlets do not have this opportunity and need to make their own promotional waves. 

Staff and customers can make or break a retail enterprise. Sales assistants who are knowledgeable about their product, and have the ability to be attentive – but not invasive - when dealing with customers are invaluable.

My casual cruising of olive outlets has experienced the whole spectrum of customer service – or in some cases – disservice. The latter is manifested in over-attentive, space-invading hard selling that makes you want to escape as quickly as possible, or the bored salesperson reading a book or talking on a mobile phone – there is nothing worse than being ignored.

Somewhere in the middle there is balance, accessibility of staff to ask questions and pay for the product, with enough information available, like prices, nutritional and product information, to satisfy the more reticent customer.

Don’t treat your customer like a fool. There was the sales assistant at a reputable Melbourne providore who insisted that a very rancid, over-priced imported extra virgin olive oil was her favourite, fantastic value and used by leading chefs – what rubbish – and I haven’t been back since. Honesty pays. 

The olive industry needs successful boutique olive shops and market stands to sell its products.

It is the producers’ responsibility to provide quality products which retailers can sell profitably. Too often we hear of producers complaining about being ripped off by distributors and retailers.

The retailer, in turn, has the responsibility of presenting a credible, attractive shopfront to the consumer with affordable quality products that represent all that is good about the olive industry.

Appreciation that everyone needs to make a profit will go a long way to establishing profitable boutique and other retail olive shops that have a reliable and consistent supply of locally produced olive products. This will lead to increased market share and profitable olive enterprises.