Second-hand business
Constantly, both in universities, institutions and schools, teachers request the reading of different books that in many cases or are exhausted in the loan in the libraries, are difficult to get or their price is very high, however the realization of the activity is a priority. A good way to solve this problem and create a profitable business is to open a book rental shop.
Art you can start your business, see all here
You can get different types of books, although usually the most requested are educational books, such as encyclopedias, dictionaries, etc., as well as literary classics and some other general interest books that people are willing to rent out for reading.
General operation – What does it consist of?
In a small place, it is not necessary that it is so big in principle, we will have a series of displays, shelves and tables that will have on display in order all the books provided by people close to us, friends and family who have decided to donate or sell them to our business. Surely at home we will also find books that we were asked for at school or university and that we no longer use but from which we can take great advantage.
Services: In general, the business is based on the rent of the books, however, you also have the option (which will be very helpful) for those who must have the book that they can photocopy in your business, for which the price would be higher than the rent of the book but not equal to the price of the book as if it were new or as if it were sold. This will be an alternative that will help many, because sometimes they must perform different activities where it could take much more than the estimated time to rent it.
What do you need to get started?
Having understood how our business works, let’s see what we’ll need to get it up and running.
Local: We don’t need such a big local, however, if you have the possibility to set up this business in a commercial area it would be ideal, as this way we will have good traffic. If it is within your possibilities, look for spaces near universities, schools, institutions and educational areas where the public you are looking for is concentrated.
Equipment: We must have exhibitors and shelves where we can display each of the books that will be part of the local book rental, in addition to one or two chairs for customers, a desk with its respective chair, a photocopier, sheets for photocopying.
Books: It’s crucial that you do a market study beforehand, as well as find out which book titles are being requested most these days at schools and universities so that you have the books that the public needs. In case you can’t find them in the area, we recommend you to attend book fairs, suppliers and some other areas where you can find them more easily to make the work easier for the students and parents who are going to rent them in your place.
Staff: This is a business that we can easily start on our own, this if the size of the premises is not too big, because on the contrary you will need at least another person who is in charge of cleaning the place and also of customer service. It is extremely important to know the availability of books in the premises to offer what the client needs, and in case you are not sure, what you can do is a list by title and be more sure of whether or not it is available.
Requirements to start at the Book Rental Location
This is a business whose profitability depends on what you rent out. In this case it is books and you have to be very smart and creative to expand the options to the customer.
The first thing to see is if there is a need for this business in the environment. Even though the appearance of e-books has ended with a great part of physical books, they still exist and this is even more known by university students who still make use of physical books.
Another requirement is organization because even if the business is simple, profitable and easy it does not mean that it should not be planned and established to achieve success.
Advantages of having Book Rental Location
This business is an alternative because prices can be offered according to the type of reader that subscribes, placing for example a rate of three for one price, up to a higher amount per month for a single price. Also, you can be flexible with the deadline for return.
This business is ideal when you do not have a library nearby and also supports the reader who would like to read certain titles without having to keep them at home.
On the other hand, if the user decides that he wants to keep a certain title, the rental centre and the same platform will get it for him at a reduced price, cheaper than in bookstores.
And if a reader wants to read a book that he or she cannot find in a catalogue, it is possible to buy it right away. This is an ideal service to access books that are difficult to find.
Success stories
One of the success stories is dosdoce.com which is a book rental system that opened in 2004, and over the years has produced more than 100 studies and computer graphics on the use of new technologies in different areas of the cultural sector.
Taking into consideration that book rental is a trend, and not only in the digital field. This also includes the rental of used printed books, driven by the cost of the books together with the already expensive university fees, which have favoured this type of initiative.
Promotion: One of the great advantages of this type of business is that it responds to a general need in which you can find a large number of target audiences, so flyers in the area will fall short, so we also recommend complementing the advertising campaign with social networks and a website where you can be contacted.
Inconveniences that may arise: It is extremely important that at the time of purchase of books, as well as in the rental service and the time of delivery, we look at the state of them to verify the state in which they are received and in which they are returned, because many people could have torn leaves, marked or any other activity that deteriorates the state of the book.
Final recommendation: With a good promotion and publicity of this type of business, the potential of this activity could be much greater than we imagine since it is required by all types of institutions. Remember to establish rates and deliveries according to the needs of your customers and the availability of the product.