Open an Auto Parts Store
Cars and other vehicles, such as vans, trucks, motorcycles, etc., have become a commodity. Even before having their own home, people tend to acquire a means of transport, which have advantages of very high value in our times: time saving, independence, marking the status, among others. However, the main disadvantage of this good, is that from time to time they break and can leave us stranded in the middle of nowhere and without notice. We propose that you open an Auto Parts store and put an end to this problem while you develop your profitable business.
Keywords: car parts.
The reasons to set up an Auto Parts store are simple and very profitable: mechanics are not in the business of importing and marketing auto parts, but they need them and they need them badly. So you would come to act as an intermediary between the factory and the mechanic.
Where to install a Car Parts House
These houses are usually many together in one place, which makes it easier for the mechanics to visit several, compare prices, promotions, qualities and check what they need. If you set up in an area far from the complex, you run the risk of not being visited unless they know specifically that you have the part you need, which lowers your chances of visiting by a really significant percentage.
Requirements to open an Auto Parts store
The first thing you have to do is carry out the legal procedures that the opening of any company requires. To do this, go to the government offices that deal with this area and complete the forms they will give you and comply with all the requirements and steps to follow.
The second thing is to get a place with a good deposit. The shop window is not important in this type of business, since you do not work with visual impact, but with a functional item. What is important is that your store is identified as an Auto Parts store and that you have competitive prices on top quality items. As we said, the warehouse is essential, since your stock will be found there.
A fundamental aspect is to become an importer. Contact a Customs Broker, who will make the corresponding procedures for each import and will solve your life in paperwork that requires the services of a professional in the area.
Routine activities of a Car Parts House
As in any company, in the Auto Parts House there are daily and weekly routines to be followed. We tell you about them below:
Inventory: it is essential that you take it weekly. Having an order in it will prevent you from running out of stock and, therefore, missing out on sales.
Price update: it is very likely that you will have to buy in dollars, but at the moment of selling it is convenient for you to do it in your country’s currency, so you need to update the price list weekly.
Other tasks such as cleaning, updating the customer database and putting together promotions and offers, are also part of the routine of a car parts store.
Advantages of having a Car Parts House
Setting up an auto parts business is an advantage because you can offer various options for vans, trucks, motorcycles, because transportation has become a commodity.
Even people before having a home of their own, acquire a means of transportation, which has a high value in time savings, independence, status, among other reasons.
Another advantage is that, by studying the market, one can find a need that has not been completely covered and that almost nobody takes care of. They may be products that competitors do not sell, and another advantage is the internet sales, the price range, the suppliers that supply the car parts. All these aspects mark advantages to be in the spare parts market and to be competitive.
Costs required to open an auto parts store
The costs that you should take into consideration when you are going to open your car parts store are the legal procedures, getting the store with an adequate deposit. You require the glass shelf for the samples of the spare parts, all the setting with the required visual impact. In addition, you must foresee the investment in spare parts, which is high at the beginning and must be made with a reliable supplier, in order to have the stock of demand of your customers.
Problems that can arise with this type of spare parts business
It can happen that your clients ask you for a spare part and you don’t have it on hand. If so, this inconvenience can drive customers away. It may also be the case that you have not advertised your car parts store enough, so sales will be very slow.
making you very little profit. It may also be that you have a staff that can steal parts without your consent and by not having the inventory with the proper identification numbers, you may have considerable losses from this.
Another problem that can arise is competition
You may have a number of competitors that subtract your sales, among them could be: other parts companies, which are establishments that are dedicated, like you, to the sale of all types of auto parts. Likewise, spare parts manufacturers, which are businesses whose activity consists of manufacturing and marketing some type of spare parts such as electronics, air conditioning, tires, parts and pieces. Likewise, your competitors can be second-hand shops, since it is more and more frequent to find this type of shops, where a great variety of used items are sold at a much lower price than that offered by a conventional shop. Similarly, scrapyards are other places of competition because these places take old or damaged cars to get rid of parts or accessories that may be negotiable. Likewise, you have as competitors the hypermarkets and department stores, which are large businesses that sell all kinds of products, including car accessories. In the same way, you have the competition of Internet Sales, in which both new and second-hand items are promoted, causing certain shops that are not in our area or even in our city, to become potential competitors.
Final recommendations for your accessories store to succeed
We recommend you to study the market very well in order to detect your potential clients and avoid the series of competitors that this business has. The idea here would be to find a need that has not been fully covered and that almost nobody takes care of. The details you can study would be: the products your competitors sell, the type of customers they have, how their stores are set up, if they also have internet sales, the price range, the suppliers that supply them with car parts. All these aspects will allow you to know what is needed to cover this need with your car parts sales house.