Congratulations on deciding to set up your own country store. Small retail opportunities are especially important for rural communities where local residents must sometimes commute for miles to secure needed merchandise. By carefully planning your approach for starting your country store, you can improve the chances that the venture will be a successful one.
Do not overbuild! One of the benefits to locating in a rural community is that the expectations for a state-of-the-art facility aren't present. This allows you to use a feasible, well-maintained, and pleasing storefront without having to lay out a massive amount of facilities-related costs. Remember, the mortgage payment is probably the last bill you want to worry about reducing, should times get tough. Lowering mortgage payments can be a complicated process. Not overspending for a storefront is a vital component of your success.
Carefully review any proposed relationships with product distributors. There are any number of distributors that you can contract with to provide you with products. Don't lock into a long-term commitment until you're absolutely sure you'll be receiving the best products and customer service for the investment. Don't assume that you must sign a contract with a distributor. You may save money by commuting to the nearest large city and purchasing your inventory at a big box retailer.
One of the most expensive costs for any retailer is personnel. Develop a long-range employee plan that will allow you to expand your work force as income allows. It will be important to maintain a careful balance by structuring working hours in a way that doesn't result in prohibitive labor costs but also doesn't require you and your family to shoulder a work load that will cause too much stress.
An important first step is to select an appropriate location for your store. When you build a store in a small rural community, it's especially important to supplement the limited number of local customers with out-of-town visitors. If your store will be in a community that is served by a state highway, it will be vital to locate your store where it is visible from the highway.
In a rural area the best advertising is free. One of the challenges about living in a small community is that there aren't many places a person can go or many things they can do. Residents, especially local farmers, enjoy meeting with each other and talking about the latest happenings in the town. Consider providing space for these individuals for socializing. They will tend to buy products while they're visiting. By being the one place to go in the community, your store will keep a high profile in the minds of local residents and save you from having to spend money on advertising.
Carefully price your insurance options. Remember, while the terms of your mortgage will mandate maintaining property insurance coverage, it will also be important to consider purchasing insurance coverage on your inventory and for general liability purposes. One option for reducing insurance costs would be installing a security system. This could be especially important in a remote area that is a significant distance from a police presence.
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