Malaysian small retailers should take a leaf from the world's large retail companies, in terms of using systematic ways to sell products, said former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

He said one of the methods included arranging products, according to categories, such as in hypermarkets, making it easier for customers to look for what they needed.

He added that this was similar to a library where patrons knew where to look for materials based on a coding system.

"So, small retailers here in Malaysia should learn from big companies. They may set up a small outlet that uses a systematic way of selling products and grow the business from there," said Mahathir in his lecture entitled, 'Realising Vision 2020: The Strategic Role and Contributions of the Retail Sector', organised by Tesco Malaysia today.

He said companies should strengthen their marketing strategies to promote products, adding that packaging was an area which Malaysian producers well should look into.

"In Japan, they always create products that come with high-quality packaging that's colourful and very interesting. The price of the packaging material may be higher than that of the content itself," he said.

Nevertheless, Dr Mahathir was optimistic about the future of retailing in Malaysia against the backdrop of many inventive ways to sell products.

"Some brands show that delivery provides positive business growth," he said, citing the example of a pizza company that would deliver right to one's doorstep, even if that meant the 20th floor on an apartment building.

- Bernama