If the oft quoted figure is correct, a new customer will cost us all seven times as much to sell our goods and services in to as a repeat sale to a current customer. Twice as much would be enough to raise eyebrows. We all know this doesn't mean we don't want new customers it just means in our profit mix the retention of our current customers is paramount.

It's little over a year since we first learned that Woolworths would be closing down. To the man on the street this was the clearest indication that the world of retail was changing. The previous few months' news headlines had been dominated by dire forecasts and predictions about banking and the manufacturing industry but this was real and tangible. Other major changes followed as car manufacturing virtually stopped dead for the first three months of 2009 and businesses everywhere began to ready themselves for a tough year. Virtually everyone predicted life was about to get much tougher.