Opening a consignment store is an exciting time, but it also involves an incredible amount of stress.
After all…
You’re starting a consignment business – there’s a lot on the line!
In a perfect world, everyone would have plenty of time to prepare their store, taking great pains to create a beautiful inventory and a picture-ready presentation. Sadly, though, that’s rarely the case.
Today, most new store owners are trying to juggle commitments to day jobs and family while opening their new consignment business. This means time is limited and stress is high.
If you leave them unattended long enough, these factors will leave you exhausted. In fact, they can even detract from the excitement and anticipation of opening your new store.
Fortunately, there’s a way out.
Read on to learn more.
3 Steps to Slash Stress as You Open Your Store
Don’t let stress get you down. Use these excellent tips to feel happier and more balanced as you prepare your store for its big launch:
1. Prioritize Expenses
One of the best parts of opening a consignment business is that you probably don’t need a colossal startup fund to get it going. Consigning inventory means you don’t have to spend hundreds purchasing stock to fill your shelves.
Regardless, many stores still try to open on a shoestring budget to limit their risk. While this is a smart move, it can add stress. After all, trying to cut down on necessities to save money is never comfortable.
Instead, prioritize your expenses by identifying what you need and what you can wait to purchase until you start making money.
2. Know Your Schedule
Many store owners don’t have the luxury of being able to focus solely on opening their business. Many still have obligations like family or other jobs. Over time, these obligations will take priority over over your store.
To make sure that you are giving yourself the time you need to open your business you must maintain a high level of structure with your current responsibilities.
Keeping a well-organized schedule will allow you to identify pockets of time you can utilize to write your business plan, research software, and create a marketing strategy. If you’ve never been a schedule-keeper, invest in a large planner to help you keep track of your work and personal responsibilities, and eek out time for each.
3. Start Showcasing Your Inventory ASAP
Building and showcasing your inventory is a priority. Unfortunately, many consignment stores make the mistake of waiting to showcase their stock until they get closer to opening day.
Thinking that you can just spend a weekend tagging all your inventory may make sense in the short run but can create more significant mistakes and problems down the road. With this in mind, start building and showcasing your inventory ASAP.
Even if you can start by adding items to an excel sheet and penning tags by hand, you’ll be closer to setting yourself up for long-term success.
Open a Consignment Store The Low-Stress Way
While opening a consignment store can be stressful, a little bit of advance planning and prioritization can go a long way. To keep yourself sane and stay happy as you launch your store, be sure to employ these three tips from start to finish. Not only will you thrive as you open your store, but your consignment store will have a better chance at success, right off the bat.
Have additional questions about launching your store or want to install software to streamline the entire process? Contact Ricochet today!
