Starting a business can be one of the most rewarding experiences of someone’s life, and the satisfaction that comes with owning a successful business can be life-changing. It isn’t all easy, but seeing your labor bear fruit can be worth the effort.
Starting a retail business, in particular, is one of the most popular small business concepts and can be highly profitable if done correctly. Fashions and trends change, markets shift, but one thing remains true: people will always want or need to buy products, and a customer-focused retail operation can empower people to find the products that are going to improve their lives regardless of the current trends.
Simply put, a retail business is one that sources, aggregates, and then sells goods or services directly to consumers. The specific goods or services are what make your retail business unique and can include anything from products in a small convenience store to a major department store, high fashion boutique, or an online business. The goal of the business, whatever the product, is to generate profit from selling the products and services offered. Retailers are rewarded with growth, profit, and repeat business if they are able to provide their customers with what they are looking for — whether or not they realize it at the start of their shopping journey.
The Benefits of Starting a Retail Business
Starting, growing, and operating a successful business is rewarding in itself, but there are countless other benefits that come with this endeavor: first, you are in control of your own destiny. Your hard work pays dividends directly back to you instead of earning your boss another vacation or a fancy car. Additionally, there is potential for growth that simply doesn’t exist along a career track. You can expand into new markets as you grow, and by managing your business correctly, you can generate a healthy income to provide for yourself, your family, and your employees.
You also have the freedom to be creative and express your ideas without arbitrary constraints. Your vision is your own to execute. Retailers have the opportunity to create unique storefronts — whether digital or physical — with displays, sales strategies, and other tactics that can draw in customers and generate more profits.
Finally, by owning a retail business, you are in control of your schedule, and can allocate your time as you see fit. If time with your family or friends is more important than growth, then you can strive to develop a “lifestyle” company that generates a steady but capped income with priority given to your freedom. If wealth and financial security are your goal, then you can allocate your time to researching, planning, and executing on growth strategies that will help you bring your retail operation into new markets and in front of new customers.
No matter your goals, starting a retail business can be an incredibly rewarding career — and with the right planning, dedication, and hard work, it can be financially successful.
The team at RangeMe has partnered with many successful retailers to help simplify and streamline their sourcing efforts — and we’re proud to be a part of so many success stories. We wish you luck in your retail business journey — and hope to work with you soon!
To get started, read our guide on how to open a retail store. It covers everything from choosing the right software and equipment, registering with suppliers, and finding the right location for your storefront (or launching an online store). It’s just a matter of time until you’ll need to open your doors and be ready for business.
First Steps
Starting a retail business isn’t easy — but it also doesn’t have to be complicated. By following a few simple steps you can get your store off the ground and start providing your customers with the products they love. From there, the sky is the limit!
Decide What and How You Want to Sell
The first step in starting a retail business is deciding what you want to sell. Think about which products or services make sense for your business, your values, what you want to be providing to your customers, and how they will fit into your overall vision. Are you selling clothing, electronics, toys, or something else?
Equally important is the location question: digital or brick-and-mortar? Many retail operations are starting to realize the value of a mixed approach, maintaining both a digital storefront and a brick-and-mortar shop. However, at this step, you will want to answer the question of where you want to start. While brick-and-mortar has a much higher investment cost and physical roadblocks to scalability, it can allow you to have direct contact with your customers and create a real, tangible experience for them. Digital stores can allow you to reach a larger audience, but there are complexities and costs associated with operating a digital store as well.
Once you have a high-level idea of the location and product or service segments you want to provide your target audience, you can start developing a business plan based on this general direction. Don’t worry — you’ll have plenty of time to think about specific products and suppliers later in the process. It’s important not to get too bogged down with details this early.
Develop Your Business Plan
A thorough and thoughtful business plan is a key component of any successful retail business. It should include details on how you plan to source products or services, finance your operations, market and sell your brand and wares, and flesh out issues related to staffing, regulations, and taxes.
Here are the key components of a successful business plan:
Executive Summary
This section is an overview of your business’s vision, including your mission statement, the products or services you plan to offer, and how you will reach your target customers. If you need to finance your business, which is a reality for most entrepreneurs, this will be the first thing that people will see during your conversation about securing funding.
Market Analysis
This section outlines the current market conditions, the competition in your industry, and the potential opportunities that exist. It will also define your target customers and discuss why you believe that you will appeal to them over the existing options. It’s important during this step to stay honest with yourself — recognizing roadblocks here will help you adjust your plan and avoid pitfalls in the future.
Operational Plan
Here you will want to lay out the structure of your business operations, including things like how and where you will source your products from, the number of employees you will need and the roles they will play, partnerships that you will be entering, and anything else pertaining to the actual structure and operation of the business.
Financial Plan
This section outlines your expenses, income projections, and any other financial information. It should also list any funding you may need to get your business up and running, such as start-up or operational costs. Again, it’s important to stay realistic and confront uncomfortable questions that may arise before you have launched. Many hopeful entrepreneurs find themselves completely out of runway (the number of months you can operate before running out of money) much earlier than they anticipated, simply because they did not take the time to develop a comprehensive financial projection.
Risk Analysis
This section of your business plan outlines the potential risks associated with starting a retail business, including legal issues, competition, market conditions, and anything else that could potentially threaten your success. While it isn’t fun to think about the downsides, it’s important to be aware of these potential risks and develop strategies to mitigate or manage them.
Once you have all the necessary components of a business plan in place, you’ll be well on your way to starting up your own retail business. A thorough plan will give you clarity about the direction of your business, and will be the first thing anyone asks about during financing conversations. If you are meeting with a loan officer and don’t have a business plan, they won’t even entertain the conversation. Proper planning is the hallmark of a good businessperson and can mitigate failure before it even starts. Good luck — you’ve got this!
Design Your Business
Throughout the process of developing a clear and comprehensive business plan, the actual shape and form of your business begins to take place. Visualize the actual space where your business will exist — whether it’s a store, online shop, or something else entirely. Think about what makes you unique and how that helps differentiate you from other retail businesses in your area. Consider how you will engage with customers through branding, marketing, and customer service.
Whether a brick-and-mortar or an e-commerce site, your branding, design, and aesthetic will be key to communicating with your target audience, and people can tell a lot about a business from these three elements. You want to ensure that the design and layout of your store or website clearly demonstrate your brand values, message, and product offering, all while giving a unique customer experience. All the elements of your business should work together in harmony to create a unified customer journey that is consistent throughout the process.
Once you have established your design and branding, it’s important to remember that this will not be static — as trends change and customers evolve, so too must your offerings. Stay on top of business news, customer feedback, and industry trends to stay ahead of the competition. Adjusting your plan as needed helps you stay competitive and on track for success. Keeping an eye on potential pitfalls and red flags in your analysis and making sure you address them before they become a problem is also key.
Establishing Sourcing
Having the right products in stock is essential for a successful retail business. You need to make sure that you have the necessary supplies to deliver quality goods and services, both for your brick-and-mortar store and your online shop. If only there was a company that could help you with sourcing your materials… Don’t worry, RangeMe has you covered.
Sourcing products can be one of the trickiest and riskiest parts of operating a retail business, especially at the start, because you need to ensure that the products you are selling are safe, meet your quality expectations, and most importantly, represent your brand.
RangeMe is here to help. With our powerful search engine and supplier directory, you can easily find the right suppliers for your needs in no time. Plus, we provide detailed product descriptions, so you can quickly compare products and make sure that they are the right fit for your business.
RangeMe is a great tool to help ensure success for your retail business, as it allows you to access thousands of qualified suppliers with ease. RangeMe will save you time and headaches. It’s fun to search on RangeMe! (Click here to learn how Astoria Beauty Bar, a beauty salon based in Astoria, N.Y. that launched in September 2022, used RangeMe to source products that aligned with the salon’s brand and values.)
Developing a Marketing Strategy
Now you need to start thinking about how you will actually reach your target customers. What is the most effective way to spread the word about your retail business? Do you need to invest in digital marketing or advertising, or can you rely on word of mouth and local networking? Depending on the type of retail business you are launching, there may be different strategies that work best.
For example, if you are a brick-and-mortar store with minimal online presence, then relying heavily on traditional marketing to reach the local community is likely the best approach. If you are an e-commerce store, then digital marketing and social media could be your key to success. A mixed approach can help reach a wider audience, and as your business grows, you will be able to start developing real insights into the most effective ways to reach your ideal customers.
No matter what type of retail business you are launching, understanding how customers discover and interact with your business is essential. Defining a clear marketing strategy and allocating a budget is part of the overall business plan and will help you stay on track as you move towards your goals.
Fund Your Business
You have a comprehensive business plan, initial marketing strategy, and clear direction on where you want to take your business — now it’s time to fund it. Depending on the size of your business and the type of financing you need, there may be a few different options available. Traditional methods include banks and financial institutions, but there are also alternative sources such as venture capitalists and crowdfunding.
It is important to do thorough research into all your possible options before committing to any one path. Depending on the route you take, there will be different legal requirements and tax implications (and lots of paperwork to fill out). Make sure to read all the fine print and understand exactly what you are signing up for before making any decisions, especially if it involves relinquishing any control.
Welcome Your Customers!
You have your funding, you’ve built out your storefront, you’ve stocked your shelves (physical or digital) with products that you can’t wait to share with your customers, and you have the business plan to guide you — now it’s time to start selling.
Starting a retail business can be both exciting and daunting. With a thoroughly designed business plan, a clear vision for your brand, and the help of RangeMe to source and purchase quality products, it doesn’t need to be a scary process. Take your time with the planning stages, and make sure that you are addressing all the necessary steps before jumping into sales. When you are ready, welcome your customers with open arms and start building relationships that will last for years to come.