About Benchsmart
Busy isn't the same as profitable.
Plenty of Kiwi shops, salons, workshops and clinics are flat out every day and still not sure where the money's going. We help you see what your numbers are really saying, compare them with businesses like yours, and act on what matters.
Hi, I'm James
30 years on the shop floor and in the boardroom.
I've spent three decades in retail, automotive, fashion and professional services. Most recently I was Country Director of Luxottica New Zealand, running 58 OPSM stores and overseeing Sunglass Hut stores, with 380 people and around $150 million in sales from OPSM alone, built on solid appointment books and partnership agreements.
What I learned is simple: it's rarely budget or location that separates the businesses that thrive from the ones just getting by. It's knowing your numbers, and acting on them every month.
Why Benchsmart exists
Big-business thinking, sized for you.
Large retail groups have analysts, benchmarks and monthly reviews. Most small and medium businesses don't, and start-ups rarely have the time. Benchsmart gives independent Kiwi retailers and appointment-based businesses that same advantage, in plain English and at a price that makes sense.
Our mission: help small, medium and start-up New Zealand businesses find the profit that's already there, and keep growing.
How we work
Numbers, conversations and follow-through.
We're not here to hand you a report and disappear. We work alongside you every month, so the good ideas actually get done and you can see the difference.
Numbers first
We start with your real sales, booking and wage data, not gut feel. Twelve months of history tells us where you're strong and where profit is slipping away.
Benchmarked against businesses like yours
Wages %, sales per labour hour, average sale, conversion or booking rate, rebooking, margin and stock turn, all compared with similar businesses so you know what good looks like.
Real conversations
Plain English, no jargon. We talk with you and your team about what the numbers mean on the floor, and agree on what to do about it together.
Regular check-ins
A monthly catch-up to review progress, agree 3 to 5 actions and follow up on last month's. Small steady steps, kept on track.
Benchmarked goals
Targets set from what comparable businesses actually achieve: realistic enough to hit, ambitious enough to matter. Every goal has a number and an owner.
A quarterly look at the bigger picture
Every three months we step back: what's working, what's changed and the priorities for the next quarter. Partners also get an on-site visit.
Your own performance dashboard
One set of numbers. Working on growth together.
We build and run a performance dashboard for your business, updated every month. You and your team see exactly how you're tracking against your goals and against businesses like yours, and we see the same thing.
- Your key numbers on one page, site by site
- Traffic lights against your benchmarked goals
- Trends over time, so progress is easy to see
- The agreed actions for the month, with an owner for each
Getting started
Four simple steps.
A trusted network behind us
The right people when you need them.
Growing a business raises questions beyond the numbers. We work with a close-knit network of trusted advisers, so when you need specialist help we can introduce you to people we know and rate.
Let's find the money hiding in your business.
Start with the free online Health Check, or book a free 20-minute call and we'll point you the right way. No pressure, no jargon.