Open a corner shop
Opening a corner store is a very profitable idea, since due to the practicality, comfort and personalized attention that corner stores offer, they are becoming more and more requested by customers who are tired of the endless lines to pay in the supermarkets and the cold and mechanical attention that their cashiers offer.
You can see the different and main local businesses here
Requirements for opening a corner shop
As far as the legal procedures are concerned, you will need the business licence, liability insurance, inspection and zoning permit. However, this documentation varies according to the country you are in.
Choice of premises: it is not necessary to choose premises located exclusively in a commercial area, as these businesses are especially located between neighbourhoods, so you can start them from home, if you wish, or rent a small premises. Remember that you will be selling groceries, so the place must be ventilated, dry, fresh and with a warehouse to store the goods in stock.
Hiring personnel: according to the different areas (administrative, customer service, cleaning, etc.) you will need different types of personnel to cover all the areas, but you can start with another person and distribute the work since the dimensions of the premises are short.
Suppliers: you will need to contact and negotiate with various suppliers. You can ask them, especially at the beginning, when you decide to open a neighbourhood shop, to allow you to pay after 60 days, so that you have time to invoice for two months and then pay for the goods.
Opening a corner shop – what products to offer
The corner shop is a smaller, more personalized alternative to the supermarket. So you will offer the same, with the difference that you will not have as much stock of goods nor will you offer all the brands that the supermarket, for a matter of space, can offer. So you will choose the brands most consumed by the public in the area where you are installed.
The goods you will sell will cover the food and hygiene area. Within the first group are perishable and non-perishable foods. Just to cite a few examples: cheese, ham, sausages, sugar, flour, noodles, sauces, canned goods, rice, bread, milk, water, chocolate, among many others of mass consumption.
The importance of the market study to open a neighborhood store
In any business, preparing a market study is one of the first and unavoidable steps to start it. When you are opening a neighborhood store, market research, more than an important step, can result in tipping the balance for the success or failure of your business. As we said before, a corner store is a business that sells groceries and toiletries, that is, the same products that every supermarket offers. In order to make a difference and move the queue from the supermarket to your store, you must research what people in the area consume most and what they would like to consume that they have not yet found at the supermarket.
Once the market research is done, you will need to find the right suppliers to supply the goods that people in the area consume or want to consume. You may need to import some type of merchandise, for which you can do it directly, or otherwise contact an importer.
Advantages of having a neighborhood store
A neighborhood store is one of the best ideas for places where there are suburbs that are often too far away from large stores, so this type of business becomes vital for many families, ensuring a constant flow of customers who will come to do their weekly or daily home market.
Working with basic necessities and consumables can be a great advantage for the business, because if you have well supplied the store will always be visited by customers, to have the food on the table, which brings profit and prestige.
Tips to start in this business
Research the market to determine which products sell faster, so that inventory can be moved quickly and problems with perishing products can be avoided.
In addition to knowing your business, it is advisable to carry out advertising campaigns, organize offers to attract preferred customers, offer products that are of first necessity and easy to sell. With these criteria it will be easier to achieve success with your neighborhood business.
Problems that can arise in a corner shop
Care must be taken where to locate this business, so that it is far from large supermarkets or businesses offering the same service, otherwise you will have a lot of competition, affecting the flow
of customers to the business.
When you work with consumer products that contain expiration dates you should seek to sell only products that have a high probability of being preferred and liked by the customer, so that your inventory moves before it expires otherwise, you can generate significant losses due to the disposal of the goods for lack of sale.
Success stories
El Rastro, is an open-air street market with a very particular name, held on Sundays and public holidays in Calle Ribera de Curtidores and nearby, in the area of Lavapiés-La Latina-Embajadores. It is considered a success because you can find all kinds of merchandise, curious objects, antiques and in the surroundings, taverns and bars.
Another successful store is Modernario, which is one of the most well cared for decoration stores in the neighborhood, full of antique shops and galleries. It was created to host self-published artists and today is a perfect place to find an original gift, especially for movie lovers. It also has objects belonging to young designers, where innovation reigns, for example, Franjul’s handmade shoes.
Inconveniences that can appear: One of the most common mistakes when starting this type of business, is that the entrepreneur focuses only on one type of product or buys more than one in a sector, so that this does not happen to you, the best thing will be to make a list of basic products, you can do it if you go to the nearest store and see how the merchandise is distributed and how they have a variety of articles for the public.
Final recommendation: Investigate well the type of products you are going to sell and the suppliers that offer them. When selecting suppliers, it is important to take into account aspects such as: experience in the market, delivery times and fulfillment, prices and attention, this way you can ensure that your business is supplied on time.