A Beginner’s Guide To Starting a New Retail Business

Setting up a new retail business is a far from easy task and takes a great deal of hard work and dedication. In the UK, less than 50% of new UK businesses survive the first five years, so to help you understand what it takes to be successful we’ve put together some useful tips and advice for you to consider.

Is starting a business the right path for you?

According to a recent survey, some of the main reasons why business start-ups fail are because the owners:

• Went into business for the wrong reasons
• Underestimated the time and financial requirements
• Underestimated the pressure that running a business puts on family commitments

So, before you begin to think about running a business, you need to consider whether you have the right reasons for starting one and whether you are prepared to make the necessary commitments and sacrifices it takes.

Have you got a business plan?

Once you know you’ve got what it takes to succeed, you need to know whether the business you have in mind can succeed too. The best way to do this is to produce a detailed business plan.

Whilst putting together your business plan you’ll be required to research and analyse every aspect of your business, including:

• A description of your company and why it is different to competitors
• A market analysis that examines the market you’re trying to enter and your competitors
• An overview of the skills and experience needed and how this relates to the skills and experience you actually have
• A marketing strategy
• A SWOT analysis (your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats)
• A financial analysis, including a cash flow forecast and revenue projections

Once you have produced the plan, you’ll have a much better understanding of what you need to do to make the business succeed and know what your long and short term business goals will be.

Have you found the right location?

If you run a retail business, you will need to have a place to sell your stock. This can be a physical building, a website, a stall which you take from place to place or even a van.

Wherever you choose to sell, make sure it is in the right location. Putting a high class retail outlet in a rundown back street means it’s unlikely that the customers you want to attract will walk past your shop. It’s different with a website, of course, but using the wrong keywords and meta-descriptions can mean that your company isn’t visible on the internet.

Do you understand your legal and financial obligations?

Legal and financial obligations can be a minefield for new business owners. Make sure you get the right advice and that you take time to learn about them.

Things that you will need to know about include: company registration, health and safety laws, public liability, corporation tax, VAT, PAYE and National Insurance. If you start to employ people, you will also need to have an understanding of employment law. Failure to comply with legal and financial requirements can lead to prosecution, so always make sure you leave adequate time to deal with them and seek professional advice.

Do you know the best places to buy your stock?

As a retailer, you will need to find the right products to sell to your customers.

If you are looking to purchase high quality products from a top wholesaler like Harrisons Direct, there are a number of questions you need to ask. Do they stock the range of products your customers want? Are the products you want always in stock? Can they deliver on time? Will they supply at a price that will allow you to make a reasonable profit? Do they have excellent customer service? Make sure that you find the wholesaler that best suits the needs of your business.

Are you still interested in starting a retail business?

As you can see, starting a retail business requires a great deal of hard work and there is a lot you have to think about.

Hopefully, the information and advice we’ve given here will help you move forward with your business proposal. If you’ve recently set up a new business or you plan on doing so in the future let us know your story on Facebook or Twitter.