Yeah, I've only spoke to one and he's ready to retire soon so no worries. Plus he's 3 states away from me. Sounds like you are gonna have to find a way to outdo her. Maybe tell everybody when you last ate at her restaraunt, a roach crawled off your plate lol. Just kidding.

Haha! That bad huh? I'd take it a step further though. You can transfer photos to fabric. So since women are usually sentimental, you could do quilts with pictures of peoples kids on em. Kinda like a photo album on a blanket. Hell, you could go as far as putting pieces of baby clothes and stuff on em too. I still have most if my sons baby clothes and blankets. That way for the ones like me that are really sentimental, they could put most of it into a quilt and free up some space lol.

Wow, this was just 5 weeks ago???  No wonder I'm nearly exhausted!

My shop is just about ready. I've set up my wholesale accounts with the distributors, had all my supplies delivered, priced and displayed, have been running an ad in the paper every Friday for three weeks, picked up my yard sign this morning and, according to schedule, plan on opening on Jan. 3. Woo-hoo. I'm scared to death!  My biggest fear is, that no one will come - how humiliating, like planning a big party, fixing all the food and ending up eating it all yourself because no one shows.

I'm still excited, though.

Any entrepreneurs or retail business owners here who can offer advice or, words of encouragement? Please?

PS: the Etsy thing was a complete waste of time...I listed 15 items and haven't sold a one.

Wow, this was just 5 weeks ago???  No wonder I'm nearly exhausted!

My shop is just about ready. I've set up my wholesale accounts with the distributors, had all my supplies delivered, priced and displayed, have been running an ad in the paper every Friday for three weeks, picked up my yard sign this morning and, according to schedule, plan on opening on Jan. 3. Woo-hoo. I'm scared to death!  My biggest fear is, that no one will come - how humiliating, like planning a big party, fixing all the food and ending up eating it all yourself because no one shows.

I'm still excited, though.

Any entrepreneurs or retail business owners here who can offer advice or, words of encouragement? Please?

PS: the Etsy thing was a complete waste of time...I listed 15 items and haven't sold a one.

  And you are 100% right about the big corporations. I remember when Wal-Mart built the new Super Center here about, I don't know, 9 years ago? They put a lot of Mom & Pops out of business with they're low prices...and now that they are about the only game in town, they can jack those prices as high as they want.

What is on my side though, is the fact that a year or so ago, WalMart decided to close out their fabric/craft departments in most of their stores - ours included. I remember reading about several large fabric manufacturers who were forced to go bankrupt because Walmart was their main or only customer.

While they still have one short isle with a small bit of notions, thread and yarn, there isn't much competition there anymore. Right now, with my initial investment, I have more thread and yarn than they do! The nearest place to buy yarn now, besides WalMart is about 40 miles from here. The fabric store I mentioned earlier has a huge selection, reasonable prices but, I'm sure her overhead is killing her right now... with the economy as it is, even crafters are cutting back somewhat (though not altogether).

I found a fabric distributor in NY who sells cotton @ .45-.69 cents per yard! I am waiting for him to get back to me on the shipping charges for a box (sounds like a HUGE box is required for an order). They are 'clean seconds' but, hell, that's what WalMart sold - that's why they were able to sell fabric at $1.50/yard when everywhere else, good quality fabric sells between $6-14/yard... and people are looking for bargains now.

I was able to buy everything I needed for under what I estimated and put it on my credit card - there was NO WAY I was going to use my home as collateral on an operating loan.

I figured, since I am unemployed anyway, I might as well try to run my own business as opposed to someone else's. Nothing ventured, nothing gained...and then there's always Plan B: filling out job applications and trying to get a job working for someone else.

I'm excited about it but, now that all the busy ground work is done, I'm getting nervous as hell about it.

 

Confession time - we found a black Harley Davidson stretch T-shirt for our dog.  We bought it.  It wasn't no fifty bucks, though.

 

Wal Mart did get alot of the smaller businesses I do agree. I'd say that is a major accomplishment to have more yarn than Wal-Mart, hehehe.

A friend of mine that happens to enjoy Japanese Anime (I made the mistake of calling them cartoons)  and drug me along to an independent store that recently opened here that sells nothing but Japanese Anime. The fact that it is the only store in this area is probably what keeps it open.

This started a major conversation about how rare that really was in today's world and about how many different types of businesses have been absorbed by the corporate giants and even more recently the internet.

My grandfather was a blacksmith, who worked in ornamental iron for most of his life. As he got much older, he was mainly just doing automobile welding and small repair work, as the demand for ornamental iron doors that were hand crafted had all but disappeared. Who was going to pay a blacksmith to forge an iron gate or door or decoration when such things could be ordered at Wal-Mart, you know ? I have heard both pro/anti Walmart stuff and can't really say where I stand on that one. Some things about Walmart I dislike but that doesn't stop me from occasionally slipping in there to buy something that is a little less expensive than other places. Heck. I have got to where I won't even shop at some of the Harley Davidson dealerships here because they are so expensive and commercial. Hehe, last time I was in there I saw Harley Davidson boxer shorts for fifty bucks. Um, nope I don't need Harley Davidson underwear and if I did, I am not paying that when I can go to Walmart or K-mart, even if I don't like Wal-Mart of K-mart.

Anyway, hope the yarn keeps rolling. Have you thought about possibly building a website and maybe doing online orders ?

 I have an alaskan malamute as well, the dog is in charge, see the way I view it, with the girlfriend at least I get sex, so I do get something out of it, and in reality she has to give something up in order for me to do anything, however the dog just comes over to my side of the bed and just howls until I get up and let him out or take him for a walk (last few days has just been letting out because at 5 am I am not going for a walk in -26 degree weather)

 now the question is are you talking about celcius or farenheit? for me it's -26 celcius with the windchill, and at night and early morning it's been that freaking cold, although I still just wear cordoy pants, a sweater and my work coat, thinsulate wool mittens, and my trusty toque. However I am not walking the dog at 5 am, once the sun comes up I do, however he gets short walks (arthritis in the hips so the doc wants him on a block to 2 blocks maximum walks for now) My house is a balmy 72 farenheit (stupid thermometer they have in this house only does farenheit) but my house is old, well 80 years old and the walls are plaster with no insulation between the walls, not exactly warm all the time, but the dog likes it.

Wow, this was just 5 weeks ago???  No wonder I'm nearly exhausted!

My shop is just about ready. I've set up my wholesale accounts with the distributors, had all my supplies delivered, priced and displayed, have been running an ad in the paper every Friday for three weeks, picked up my yard sign this morning and, according to schedule, plan on opening on Jan. 3. Woo-hoo. I'm scared to death!  My biggest fear is, that no one will come - how humiliating, like planning a big party, fixing all the food and ending up eating it all yourself because no one shows.

I'm still excited, though.

Any entrepreneurs or retail business owners here who can offer advice or, words of encouragement? Please?

PS: the Etsy thing was a complete waste of time...I listed 15 items and haven't sold a one.

I have invested in a handful of retail businesses and my advice is don't be discouraged if the initial turnout isn't what you hope for. The cardinal rule of retail is that people buy things on their schedule, not yours. Your customer traffic is likely to start out slow and grow over time. I would HIGHLY recommend that you create a mailing list with peoples addresses and e-mails so you can stay in contact with them. Sending out regular e-mails and/or mailings to customers can go a long way to keeping them coming back. Usually with a small local shop people are willing to give you their contact info, especially for a specialty shop like yours where the majority of people coming in are going to have a high level of interest and likely be repeat customers. And if you haven't already, look into setting up a website customers can order from.

 

The first couple of months will be discouraging. Even if many people come through the door, many will leave without buying anything. But if you make their visit pleasant and your prices are competitive they might come back 3 or 4 months down the road, especially if you stay in contact with them. Also, it might be a good idea to implement some kind of marketing plan the day you open. Sending a friend or a kid you pay a few bucks to with flyers announcing your opening and handing them out to people on the sidewalk can be very helpful.

 

Also, when you own any local oriented business it is crucial that you be very active at all community events and make sure everyone knows about your store. Driving a car with a big sign through the holiday parade is boring as hell but can be rewarding. Your goal should be to make sure that everyone you meet knows about your store and where it is located. It is a lot like work, so hope you are not as lazy as me.   

 

 

What kind of retail stores were you involved with?

Participating in community events is a great idea too... I need to investigate that more.

Sandycane wrote:

What kind of retail stores were you involved with?

I set up a retail internet site that made a few bucks when I was a kid but I got lazy a let it go (damn me I could have been Amazon). One of my first investments was in an established florist that was going under. I wasn't too involved in the decision making but watched it like a hawk because it was a lot of money to me at the time. I have since sold ownership back to the operator. I invested in an outdoor store that failed miserably. And I invested in a wine shop at startup that has been quite successful and I maintain a small percentage ownership. That is probably the one I have been the most involved in but mostly I just rubber stamp the decisions of my business partner because she is smarter than me. 

 

Sandycane wrote:

Participating in community events is a great idea too... I need to investigate that more.

Your local chamber of commerce should have lots of resources for you on anything that occurs in your local area. You might also want to consider joining together with the other related businesses in your area and setting up an event. Maybe a craft show or something where people could come to sell their crafts flea market style. If you do it in the summer it can be outside and you can probably get a place pretty cheap. Charge a small amount for booths (just to cover the costs) and get the chamber to advertise it. Do a little competition with a reward ceremony where crafts are judged and the winner gets a ribbon and a gift certificate. It will bring all the craft people in the area to one place for you to mingle with and the added benefit is that all the craft makers need to come to your store to get more supplies . People eat that stuff up and it will attract people who might otherwise not drive that far. Remember, your success at selling the fabrics and yarn will be exponentially increased if people are encouraged to make stuff with fabrics and yarn.  

Wow, this was just 5 weeks ago???  No wonder I'm nearly exhausted!

My shop is just about ready. I've set up my wholesale accounts with the distributors, had all my supplies delivered, priced and displayed, have been running an ad in the paper every Friday for three weeks, picked up my yard sign this morning and, according to schedule, plan on opening on Jan. 3. Woo-hoo. I'm scared to death!  My biggest fear is, that no one will come - how humiliating, like planning a big party, fixing all the food and ending up eating it all yourself because no one shows.

I'm still excited, though.

Any entrepreneurs or retail business owners here who can offer advice or, words of encouragement? Please?

PS: the Etsy thing was a complete waste of time...I listed 15 items and haven't sold a one.

 

Cool bird. I had an Indian Ring neck once and he was turquoise with a purple ring around his neck which was rare. He was beautiful! He knew the entire morning view album by Incubus. He was fuckin awesome!