If you have always been a fan of comic books, you may have thought of opening a comic book store at some point. This is definitely a feasible option for those who have an entrepreneurial spirit. Here are some things you may want to consider before trying to have your grand opening too soon.
Learning to Run A Business
This isn’t something that just happens overnight. In fact, a sobering fact is that you may want to pursue a business degree before you make any solid plans of opening a store. There is definitely a lot more to it than simply putting comic books on the shelves and making sure your back-issue section is well-stocked. Don’t worry about the financial burden of paying for college, as you have multiple options. The first thing you need to do is consult with your financial aid department and see what options you have for grants and scholarships. These consist of free money that you will not have to pay back. After those options are exhausted, search for a private lender to take out a student loan instead of the usual government-backed options. One of the biggest benefits of this is you can choose your terms for repayment in many cases.
Make A Plan
After you graduate, then it is time to form a business plan. You will almost certainly need a loan from a financial institution to initially fund this venture and they will not give you money if you do not have a formal business plan in place. Make sure to decide what kind of legal business entity you want to form. You may want to consult with a business lawyer to make sure you are doing everything correctly.
Do Your Research
When looking for a building to lease, make sure that it gets foot traffic. This will be crucial in your quest to run a successful comic book store. You’ll have to measure everything inside so you know what types of shelving to install as well as the size of the counters and spinner racks.
Determine Your Customer Base
You’ll want to know what type of customer you are trying to attract. Some stores only stock new issues and garden variety back issues while other stores focus on customers who are interested in higher-end collectible books from the Golden Age. Other stores combine comics with other offerings such as pop culture collectibles or role-playing games. No matter what you choose, make sure your store caters to the customer you are trying to attract.
Stocking the Inventory
Now comes the time to stock the store with everything you have dreamed of. If you are opening a traditional comic book store, you will want to have a good mix of new issues, back issues, as well as things like action figures, posters, and even shirts. Stay up on what comic-based movies are coming out as these always drive spikes in sales of the particular characters involved. You also may want to develop a website so that you can reach a much broader base of customers.
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