Challenges of Transforming a Traditional Brick-and-Mortar Store into a Bricks-and-Clicks Model: A Small Business Case Study

This article addresses some of the unique challenges faced as small businesses try to establish a presence in the fiercely competitive online marketplace. Specifically, a small fragrance/ aromatherapy boutique (named The Scent Network) is the organization examined. This brickand-mortar retailer evolved into a bricks-and-clicks model while the business owner had little IT experience, a small budget, and little time to devote to the Web site. More failures were experienced than successes, resulting in numerous “lessons learned”. By sharing these experiences, it is hoped that small business owners find success as a “dot.com” and avoid becoming a “dot.gone”.