I've read articles on how to open your own skate shop and I will admit I came across a lot of good information, but what I didn't come across were the facts that needed to be stated. You can't walk away from reading any article on how to open a skate shop and be fully prepared. You can only walk away with an idea. As for this article you will walk away with an idea, but even more you have come across a guide. Learning from your mistakes is one of the most essential learning experiences and business experiences. At the age of fourteen I set out to open my own skate shop. By the age of fifteen I gained a store front, but never got the chance to open my doors to the public. Skateboarding is my passion and skateboarding is my love, but these factors weren't enough. I can tell you anything and everything about skateboarding, but at that time I could tell you nothing about business. Learn from my mistakes, learn what you truly need to know!
Opening your own skate shop is like opening any other business. It's true that the nature of the business is different from others, but it's also true that all laws and regulations for opening a business still apply. I say this because most skate shop owners began their journey with skateboarding as their hobby. While a hobby gives you knowledge in what you do, it doesn't educate you for the business world. In order to open up your own skate shop you must know more than what a skateboard is and how much you love it. Loving skateboarding is helpful, but what you will love even more is keeping the doors of your skate shop open longer than a month. In order to do this you must know how a business is run, operated, and how a business survives!
First and foremost, before you take on the project of opening your own skate shop, question yourself. You will need to ask yourself multiple questions, but the most important question is, "Do I have what it takes?" Do you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? This is a very important question, because becoming an entrepreneur changes a person's lifestyle. Starting a business transforms an average worker into an entrepreneur. Are you ready to handle all the work, tasks, and problems that will be thrown at you?
At this point most people would say, "write a business plan". Writing a business plan is one of the main tasks you complete first, but there's a couple of other smaller tasks you decide on first. As you may already know you must configure the idea/theme behind your business. Secondly and the most important concept of your business, is the name! When you are coming up with your name, be creative and somehow incorporate it with the idea/theme of your business. (SEE IRS.GOV AND COMPLY WITH ALL BUSINESS GUIDELINES AND REGULATIONS FOR OBTAINING LICENSE AND FILING YOUR BUSINESS NAME WITHIN YOUR STATE)
Now you're ready for your first main task, the business plan. Your business plan is the foundation of your business. It explains what your business is, what it offers, how it's operated, guidelines, etc. Basically your business plan explains it all and without it, you might as well say you have no business at all. If you don't know how to write a business plan you can hire someone to write for you, look up examples/tutorials online and you can even visit your local library for how to books. Starting a business means you're in start up phase, so understand that not every part of your business plan will be able to be completed. (YOUR BUSINESS PLAN CAN BE USED TO GAIN FUNDING, LOANS, ETC.)
Your business plan is now written, now it's time to have some fun. Finding the perfect location for your skate shop is a joyful process. When choosing where to set up shop, choose wisely. You want to find a location in a high-traffic area, a location that is well-known and a location that is appropriate. Think of your location as advertisement, you want your business known, seen, visible, etc. YOU WANT YOUR LOCATION TO BE IDENTIFIED! Keep in mind when picking your location that you want a space within reasonable size of what you offer as a service. This means you don't want to waste money on a space that is too large or get a space that is too small.
Now that you have found your spot, it's time to really set up shop. Assuming that you have gained the key to your shop, you can now start customizing, designing, etc., your store! It's helps to have a floor plan/blueprint of what you want your store to look like. It's unlikely that you will be able to handle the process yourself, you can hire a company, someone, etc., to bring your shop to reality. Next you will need to set your store up with fixtures as needed. Your floor plan/blueprint should actually include these fixtures, so it will be easier for you to set up your shop.
Last, but not least, it is important to know that this is truly the last thing you want to do; it's time to purchase merchandise. You will need to seek wholesale vendors for the products you wish to sell. You can visit their websites, call, etc. All vendors have guidelines, but certain vendors require different things. For example, some vendors don't allow online retail businesses as customers. Purchasing merchandise varies on a matter of things for different vendors, it's all about what you wish to sell, where, how, etc. Establish relationships with your vendors from day one, you will be working with these companies for quite some time. Some skateboard companies are direct vendors of their products, so there is no outside distribution company.
With any start up venture, it's important to know that it is an adventure. Throughout the process of opening up your own skate shop, think of it as a learning process. You can never know too much, but the more you know the better your company will be. Mistakes happen and that's ok, learn from your mistakes and never give up.
Additional information is stated as follows...
Seek advice if your new to the business world. You can form a partnership with someone who is trustworthy, experienced and holds credentials needed to operate a business. You can seek a mentor to teach you the ins and outs of the business world. You can take different business related classes to gain the knowledge that is needed. As I stated earlier, learn from your mistakes. Learning from your mistakes will help you and your business grow. Research anything and everything. When you don't know how to do or about something, you learn about it. Through this process you will have to research various/numerous amounts of things. Strategy is key for any business and business owner. Strategize selling methods, marketing and promotion methods, etc. Stay legal, comply with all state laws. Seek a business lawyer if needed and this is highly recommended. You will never know until you try, so get started, get your foot in the door and open up the door!