5 Sept 2025 · 2 min
Sarah from the Boutique Hub breaks down why sales and promotions aren't the same thing in retail. A sale cuts your price. A promotion drives traffic and builds loyalty. Know the difference to run smarter discounts.
Hey guys, it's Sarah with the Boutique Hub. And I'm here today to answer yet again another one of our frequently asked questions. No, this is not a dumb question. We get asked this all the time. And you know, if you're above and beyond this in your point of retail, great. But getting started, one of the biggest things that people get confused about is what is a sale and what's a promotion. Easily said, right? So a sale is something that you are dropping the price of your inventory and the result is you want it gone, you don't ever want to see it again. That thing that might have been $40 is now going to be $20 and it's not going back to 40. You price it to move, you price it to get it out of your store. You're putting it on sale. Hopefully it's going to generate movement immediately. Right? You don't want to like kill the discount by slashing that $40 item to 35, down to 30, down to 25, down to 20. No, you want to take a discount on it right away. That's going to result in a sale. The less time that it takes you to move it, the more profitable you are. The less time your employees touch it and move it, re merchandise it, re photograph it, the more profitable you are. So if you're going to do a sale, and I'm not a fan of blanket sales, right, I'm a fan of individual type sales classifications, products, vendors, seasons, things like that, price things to make a move. So on the turn of that, let's talk about promotions. What is a promotion? Well, a promotion is something that you usually don't run sales on to generate excitement, to get people to flood into your store, onto your site to take action and get something while it is at a discount. So the thing about promotions is that $40 top that you've put on promo price at say $30, it can go back to 40. It doesn't have to live at that $30 price point forever. That's a promotion. You think about department stores, they might run specials or promotions on fragrances or beauty supplies. They don't last long, right? It's a get it or it's gone type situation. So basically that's the difference between sales and promotions. Never a dumb question. If you have more questions, please leave them below. Let us know what else we can help you with. We're here at the Boutique Hub to always educate. Talk to you later.
That's it for five minute Friday, you guys, I hope you found some quick, actionable steps you can put into play in your business right away. As always, if you're not yet a member of the Boutique Hub, I would love to personally invite you to join us. It's where all of the daily conversations happen. The up to date what is working now in the industry conversations, the latest trainings, trend reports, discounts, resources and of course access to thousands of wholesale brands that you also know and love. So please take a minute, follow the link in the show notes and we would love to invite you to join us inside of the Boutique Hub.
