mercredi 8 novembre 2017

A Guide On Starting A Leading Building Materials Store Like The Orchard Supply Company

By Stephanie Allen


A good hardware business should provide both contractors and residents with a reliable place to get their building materials from. If you want to start such a venture, you need to be passionate about it and consider several factors too. Here are important tips on starting a successful store like the Orchard Supply Company.

Conduct various feasibility studies. This involves conducting extensive research on the viability of your business idea. Failing to do your research will only mean jumping into what you do not understand. Therefore, seek to find out more about your target market. Look into their buying habits, income and demographics. You also want to ascertain the strengths and weaknesses of the existing competition at this stage.

Developing a comprehensive business plan is the next things that you need to do. There are a lot of components that any successful hardware store needs to have. You should therefore plan on how to go about every aspect of the startup. The plan you come up with will also act as your guide in running and expanding your venture. Some of the things that you need to include in the document include your sales and marketing strategies.

Raise the capital you need. You will require money to rent space, buy stock and even hire employees. The amount you require will depend upon the size of your proposed venture. Ideally, you should avoid starting on a very large scale as there are a lot of things you need to learn along the way. You can raise capital through asset liquidation, borrowing from friends or seeking bank loan.

Decide on where to locate your startup. It is important to carefully think about the right place to locate your store. This is because the place you choose will greatly determine whether you succeed or fail. Before making a decision here, it is therefore important to take certain factors into account. First, asses the kind of potential that an area offers in terms of growth.

Another important factor to take into account when deciding on a location is accessibility. You need to choose a place that is easily accessible. This will make it easier for your suppliers to make deliveries and your customers to pick up their orders. Additionally, you should consider the existing competition within the area.

Before opening your hardware, you also decide on where you to get your supplies from. In general, you can buy stock from three main sources. First, you can source for supplies directly from manufactures. Secondly, you buy from wholesalers that are located around your city. Lastly, you can get your products from specialty distributors. Before deciding to choose a supplier, you have to consider pricing, quality and reliability among other things.

Market your venture. For the people around to know about your business, you have to market it aggressively. This requires choosing your marketing strategy and methods carefully. Luckily for you, there are cheaper and very effective ways to conduct marketing available for startups. These include the use of various social media platforms.




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