Over the last few weeks, I have been travelling around the country visiting some independent dealers.

As editor of ERT, I feel it is important to get out of the office and talk to retailers to find out the issues that are affecting them.

I have been very impressed by some of the dealers that I met – you can read the first Dealer Profile, which is Music Matters in Stratford-upon-Avon, in the current issue of ERT (August 20).

The dealers I visited are very proactive and operate in the hi-tech arena – selling mostly premium consumer electronics brands.

One of the recurring themes of my meetings has been the importance of home networking – in particular, setting up wireless – or wired – entertainment solutions for customers, as well as setting them up for demonstration purposes in-store.

At the Loewe Galerie shop in Manchester, manager and owner David Coldwell gave me a superb demo of the brand’s Mediacenter – I was largely won over because he played me some of my favourite music during the dem – always a smart move.

Mr Coldwell told me that he was very glad to be at the premium end of the electrical retailing market – he believes that in this day and age, no-one can survive by solely shifting boxes.

I completely agree with him. It’s all about embracing the latest technologies and offering demonstrations, home set-up and installation.

More and more ‘switched on’ dealers are telling me that music streaming - for example internet radio - is one of the most important areas of their business and is really growing in popularity.

The potential is massive. Only last week, radio manufacturer Pure unveiled its innovative and exciting new FlowSongs service, which allows users to identify - or ‘tag’- tracks playing on any radio station and buy them directly from any Pure internet-connected radio with Flow technology. Users can also stream the songs from their radio.

This service, if properly demonstrated in-store, could be a great opportunity for independents to sell internet digital radios – a product area that I’d argue has been slow to take off, due to a lack of understanding and demonstration.

There are some dealers, however, that are really getting behind this technology and reaping the rewards.

On that note, if you’re a proactive independent dealer who’s doing something interesting and innovative when it comes to selling electricals, then why not get in contact with me? I’d love to come along to your store, have a chat and find out what you’re up to.

It’s a good chance to let your fellow retailers know what you’re doing – dealers love to read about other dealers.

Drop me a line – I look forward to hearing from you soon.

seanhannam@ERTgroup.co.uk