Business Proposition
 

For any of you business majors out there, I need some help.

A friend of mine works at a GameStop near my house. The salon next door to it is going out of business and so far doesn't have any takers for the property. The town is one of the richest towns in the state and the location is prime, the middle of a shopping strip off a semi-major highway. This friend of mine came to me with an idea, that we buy the place up and make it a comic/manga/movie shop.

I've always wanted my own little hole in the wall business, I'm just hoping this isn't us getting in over our heads. On it's face it sounds logical. The nearest comic outlet, now that the two nearest us closed down, is almost 50 miles away. There are none in the immediate vicinity, and I think being connected to a GameStop would be appropriate and improve traffic flow.

I'm thinking I could convince my dad to front us a loan for the place. We wouldn't have to pay for plumbing, since GameStop would let us use their bathrooms, and internet I could hijack. And we have two wholesalers in mind for the comics.

The question I have is, how do we do this? I've never even considered seriously starting a business before. What are the steps we should take if this is really going to happen? And more importantly, what should we name the place? :)

I'm also thinking of dropping Geek Squad and maybe working out of the back of our shop doing freelance work. My friend could also support the place through his freelance photography. I'm thinking we could also exploit the Connecticon event next year to advertise. I mean, anything short of a cheezy local ad.

Alright, first off, do you have a model of business? Going in there guns blazing will ensure that you don't do as well as you should. You should know what you'll be stocking, the total costs involved with the business, and how much revenue you will need to make.

Don't just "guesstimeate" these, actively figure them out. If the numbers are wrong, you could end up flopping.


Secondly, why did the other comic book store go out of business? Are there enough clientelle in the area who would buy your product?

Thirdly, be prepared for stress and sleepless nights as you try to figure this all out. You probably won't want to turn the keys over to someone else for awhile, before you know your employees are trustworthy, so you will be working long shifts.

Fourthly: How about setting up a web front for this, too? Wouldn't be too hard, and you could theoretically earn more money off of it, considering the low costs of domain registration/web hosting these days. I'd suggest Bluehost as a decent service for both web hosting and registration. If you need a site built, hit me up.

Fifthly: Don't be afraid to expand what you sell if things are going well. Could move from comics to general geekery, if business allows it. See what your customers want, and do your best to fulfill their needs and desires, and they'll come back.

I could hire a girl I know who has an accounting degree and works at a bank to do the figures for me. Maybe my dad's accountant can double check just so we don't dig ourselves into a pit. Don't worry, neither of us want to just rush into something so complicated.

The comic store went out of business because of it's location on a desolate stretch of route 46. It was situated in a corner that isn't readily seen from the road. As for the demand, the reason we got the idea in the first place is every day people come in to Gamestop and ask where the nearest comic shop is, and they are always forced to tell them it is 50 miles north.

As for your third point, I've had stress and sleepless nights all year. I think I can handle one more massive life altering decision.

Well, to put it this way, running a business is complicated. There's a reason most of them fail within the first year and almost all within five. What you need to do is find an investor of some sort, because start-up costs are going to be killer. Converting a salon is going to cost money.

The FIRST thing you should do, though, is some market research. There is a reason the two local shops failed, I assure you. You need to find out why. Is there interest in a comic shop? How much? Enough to keep you afloat? What else will you need to stock to keep cash flowing in? GameStop, for example, isn't really big on table-based games, at least not in my area. You may need to delve into board games and cards to bring in an audience. In that case, it might be a good idea to set aside time and space for people to play so you can establish them as a loyal customer base. But then you have to consider whether that's the direction you want the business to take.

Also, you can probably expect to lose out a ton on unsold merchandise. If comics don't get sold, there's only so much you can do with them, and if it's anything like the book industry, you're going to be taking the hit.

Then you have to establish hours, staff the place, and provide an atmosphere. Your customers are going to want your staff to know comics, but more importantly, they're going to expect them to be helpful and provide great service. You're going to need to hire carefully. Knowing comics off the bat isn't going to be as important as hiring people who are willing to learn as they go, often from the customers, and do it quickly and with a smile. You'll have some leeway when you open on the knowledge base, but if your staff doesn't have a good base by the end of the first month, you're going to lose business.


This is just stuff I can think of off the top of my head after one business class, mind you. I'm just saying that it's going to be complicated and giving basic examples.

I don't know about the legal shiznanigans when setting up a business in the US, only one thing: Don't quit your job hastily. You'll have to invest a lot of time into a new business, but keep your current job, no matter how much you hate it, as long as possible. And when you think extra dollars aren't necessary anymore you can call your boss' mom a whore and be out there in no time.

And DO expect to invest a lot of time, don't think you can do some extra work from the back of your store just like that.

Do you have lots and lots of finances? Because the majority of new businesses fail and those that don't usually don't see a profit for the first 3 years or so. Unless you can live of the money you have now for a long time, it risky as shit.
Also there is a gigantic ton of paperwork involved in setting up a business so you'll need to be ready for that.
Also as rpg said, work out your figures very well. And get people to look over them- preferably someone who has set up their own business/knows the industry.

Ahh wtf? I used to work for Harper Collins and if books go unsold they send them back to the publisher. That was most of my job actually, was reshelving returns.
In this way the book industry is actually different from pretty much every other industry where the shops can't return unsold products.

Alright, cool! Sounds like you're on the right track!

I think you honestly can do very well with this, which is why I'm angling so early for a slice of the pie. It seems like the -basis- a successful venture, which should end well, run by the right people.

Once again though, make sure you put thought and such into this, since it would be a horrible shame if it was rushed and flopped.

(Also, don't wait too long and miss out on buying the store. That's counter-advice, right there, I know. I just said not to rush, and now I'm saying hurry up a bit. Just do it at a pace that you know will work.)

Sorry. Had a brain fart. The distributors in the book industry absorb the costs. I was mistaking one middle-man for another.

I really hope my brain recovers from my mess of a summer before my classes get real. :sweatdrop

Man IM me some of this stuff. I wanna know.