Think big. Act local.
Win results.

District and store managers must juggle customer service, team performance, inventory, compliance, and margin - all at once, and in highly volatile trading conditions. Yet many lack the commercial visibility and tools to link their daily decisions with bottom-line performance.

How does it work

Retail Run gives retail leaders the space to explore, experiment, and learn in a risk-free but high-pressure environment. Participants compete in teams in the role of a District Manager, tasked with improving a portfolio of stores. They'll face real-world trade-offs and decisions around pricing, staffing, inventory, shrinkage, cusotmer experience, and competiton - all while trying to outperform their peers. Through facilitated rounds, data-rich dashboards, and reflection tools, Retail Run brings to life the commercial realities of retail leadership. It turns passive understanding into confident action.

Key outcomes

• Financial literacy
• Commercial acumen
• Strategic decision making

Business Benefit

• Increased efficiency and profitability
• Enhanced employee engagement
• Happier, more loyal customers

Companies who are playing this game

This game launched in 2025 in partnership with CircleK. It is now ready for customisation and application for other retail organisations!

Who is it for

Retail Run is designed for:
• Store, area, district or regional managers
• Retail leaders with multi-site oversight
• High-potential retail professionals

Guide price

£80

per participant
per hour

Game Modules

Module 1

Driving
Revenue

Topics & Tasks
1) Overview of key financial and non-financial KPIs
2) Basics of store operations: pricing, labour planning, inventory, promotions
3) External factors: cost fluctuations, customer feedback, product quality issues

Learning Objectives
• Understand the link between store-level decisions and P&L impact

Module 2

Prioritisation for
Performance

Topics & Tasks
1) Deeper dive into cost management: shrinkage, supplier price volatility, expired stock
2) Customer service quality and complaint trends
3) Balancing long-term investments vs. short-term targets

Learning Objectives
• Identify and prioritise the right levers to pull when resources are constrained
• Develop the confidence to make difficult trade-offs
• Align commercial decisions with long-term business impact

Module 3

Impactful Actions
and Strategy

Topics & Tasks
1) Full P&L and KPI ownership across the district
2) Coordinating cross-score initiatives

Learning Objectives
• Build and execute a district-level strategy that balances cost, people and customer metrics
• Demonstrate leadership under pressure by aligning team decisions and actions
• Reflect on learning and connect simulation insights to real-world leadership behaviours

Feedback

This is what participants have to say about this game

Kelly Cummins

District Manager, CircleK

"It was so valuable to gain understanding of the bigger picture alongside narrowing down my priorities"

Robert Stroupe

Regional District Manager, Circle K

"This experience helped me refocus my action plan and build confidence we will achieve our goals"

Craig Holmes

Regional District Manager, CircleK

"I loved the overall provess of tying strategic and tactical priorities back to P&L understanding"

Who it involves

Normally between 12 to 24 participants in each session (but this is flexible), competing in smaller teams against each other.

They are led at all times by a facilitator either from PBS or the client.

How long it lasts

Most games are 2-8 hours. Some classroom courses last up to 4 days. We tend to avoid playing online for more than half a day in one go.

There is normally some brief pre-work for participants to complete and we suggest a short follow-up workshop to embed the learning.

Where it happens

Almost all of our games can be played face-to-face, virtually or a combination of both.

Increasingly, we are seeing demand for digital games to be played face-to-face in the classroom.

Think big. Act local.Win results.