10 keys for every entrepreneur to consider before opening a store to open a store

A few years ago, in 2005, I had to start a new business’was going to open a store dedicated to one of my passions: Cinema. Arte Transition, it’The name of the shop was his and it was going to be a store specializing in the sale of films of all kinds’You can also buy products such as books, soundtracks, t-shirts, posters, figurines, official products, etc. Fortunately, I don't have to pay for them’I did not open ! Despite a plan of’optimistic business, my real knowledge of the market is very limited’My business was very limited and I know that today I have a lot of experience’today that this project is not’would hardly have been successful.

Make those right choices to open a store

When an entrepreneur tells me about his idea of’If I want to open a store, I usually tell it about my own experience and how I can help’I found out later that I didn’was not on the right track as I thought. The mistakes are often similar, c’that's why I'm here’attracts the’attention on some of the most important keys that’an entrepreneur must consider before deciding to trade’to open a store.

L’experience is important. If you don’have never worked in a store before, a good way to start thinking about your own business is to work in a store. You will learn the ins and outs of business management, observe good and best practices that will help you decide on the best way to manage your business’approach you want to give your store. And most importantly, you will find out if a store is right for you or not; I know of cases of entrepreneurial traders who have taken their hands on their heads to see the reality of the business: hours, weekends, low margins, excessive competition everywhere, difficulties in dealing with customers, lack of’a certain business sense…

Study realistic niches.

Every city in the world has a store’There is no room for all business initiatives, no matter how brilliant they are. Thorough and realistic market research is essential to determine which business may be the most interesting and its prospects for success. We must be wary of recommendations from friends and family, such as "because you've never worked in a store before, you can't afford it’it was not’There are no stores on this subject and that’It would be a success," because’it does not stop’What we need now are objective and real data that allow us to clarify which business opportunity is better for us.

The No. 1 Store’It's not for you, it's for you’is for your customers. Would you like to have a store specializing in warships, just like I wanted to start a movie store, but are there potential customers to make a living from it ? And be careful when you make the accounts of what will be sold, paper supports everything, even sales forecasts made more with the heart and the’illusion that’with reason.

Focus on what is important for your business

It is easy to get distracted by the logo, the name or the name of the company’appearance of the web, but the’important is to find the best possible location and to make the most of it’establish a good business policy: what I'm going to sell, how I'm going to sell it and who I'm going to sell it to. Although’It is surprising to see how the vast majority of stores are not focused on the basics’They may have the best intentions in the world, but they can't answer these questions accurately and rigorously. And not just the small stores, but also the big chains and operators who come to think that all places are the same "and we sell because we are known"… And then when you don't sell you find out that you don't.

Location: Where will you open ?

Whether it is an expensive and well located place or a cheaper place in a small commercial street, where the customer passes with a target profile ? Often the’Often, the location is chosen based on what can be paid and the budget said, but the thought should be: How much will I sell if I have to sell?’place is here ? You have to look beyond the cost, you have to look at the value of the business’opportunity’business presented by the’one or the’other local.

You must be the biggest specialist.

If in the end the store is on your favorite theme, you will surely be a real specialist. But if you have paid attention to a market study and that the specialty of the store is foreign to your knowledge… Everything of’first, you must become an expert in the field at a forced pace. Second, the staff you need to hire, who are specialists and from whom you can learn.

Pay attention to family and friends.

Everyone will want to work in your store and it is difficult to say no. Well, you have to say no if it doesn't suit you. They may have the best intentions in the world, but s’they are not the right profiles, they are better than’them, despite the personal problems that this may entail.

You have to rely on people who add, not subtract.