Seeking Advice For The Local B&M

[pruss]

It's like coffee shops, little money coming in, and the customers want to hang out and spend as little money as possible.

Give me a couple years, Cosmic, and I'll show you how to make money with a coffee shop. It's totally doable. But the business model has to match the customer need/want.
-- Pat

 

[warren]

Plenty of cash in the bank and a good business model. Do not let customer advice sway you from healthy business practices. Find dependable wholesalers and keep inventory as small as possible so that cash is not tied up. Cater to the customer base, bring in new inventory only if there is sufficient demand to insure recouping your investment. No credit! Be generous with samples and recover the costs in the retail price.
Try to remain sane and focused on the goal, profit! Profit really comes with return customers and a growing base.
Edit: Last person paid is the owner. Take out as few moneys as possible and shovel profits back into the business. Grow slowly and carefully.
The customer is not always right but, he should be made to think he is where possible. Your customer most likely knows very little about retail.

 

[carytobacco]

For a retail store just stick with the basics in terms of merchandise. Don't recommend obscure brands or unique blends that are hot among the 1% of hobbyists that are really into that kind of thing. And stick with bulk tobaccos that people can smell in a jar. Most customers want to smell the tobacco before they buy it.

 

[zitotczito]

Having worked in a large family owned retail sporting goods company that also sold clothing, you have to know who your customer base is and cater to that demographic. Are they affluent, middle class, what have you. As an example, when the owner's daughter came to work there, she was big into skiing, so she convinced her father to stock hundreds of $200.00 and up ski jackets and other high priced ski items. Now this was an inner-city business and ski apparel was to say the least a dumb move. We were selling the jackets for $50.00 or less at a big loss and I now work elsewhere since the business went bankrupt after many years of success.
Start small, I recommend bulks mainly and ARO's with some tins of the mainstay blends for the more informed. We all seem to move over time to VaPer's and VA flakes, but the newer and younger current and future pipe smoker's will go for the sweeter tobacco's first. I was just at Boswell's and while I picked up 4 different aged tins, I also bought 6 seperate 4oz. bags of their bulk blends. Nothing like the enticing smell of a good blend to make you pull the trigger. There is a reason Drew Estates sells tons of the ACID cigars, they are sweeter and the younger crowds love these.
So get to know the clientel, cater to them and again start small.

 

[instymp]

omit please

 

[carytobacco]

Sure you need to pay the bills but it doesn't have to be all about money. Or does it?

Yes :lol:

 

[martiniman]

Are you in PA? What shop?

 

[cortezattic]

SG/ Spring Time Flake (VaPer) and English Summer Flake (Va)

Brigham Hudson's Bay (Va ribbon), Acadian Blend (VaPer ribbon), and Klondike Gold (Va flake)

Savinelli Doblone d'Oro (a killer-good VaPer coin with Kenyan leaf)

...and just about the whole line of Peterson's -- especially University Flake, Irish Flake, and, strictly as a representative example of an ulta-ultra-light Lakeland, Hyde Park.
Oh, and what list can leave out Mac Baren ODF, Navy Flake, the Capstan(s), and Orlik Golden Sliced?!

 

[gregprince]

+1 carytobacco. Without the money first you just have another failed business. After the bills are paid you can think about having fun with pipes.