How to open a candy store? What are the key nuances that aspiring entrepreneurs need to keep in mind? What determines the profitability of the outlet and business prospects?
Sweet shop: nuances
How to open a retail outlet selling sweet products? By and large, this procedure is no different from the process of launching any other type of business in the field of food retail. The only important nuance is the storage conditions of the goods.
Some types of sweets (chocolate or, for example, jam) may require the purchase of special types of refrigerators. Therefore, the business plan of a candy store in some cases should include an item of expenses for the purchase of special types of equipment for storing products.
People buy sweets, cakes and cookies to pamper themselves or to create a positive atmosphere at the table at home. Therefore, a store that sells sweets must comply with the spirit of positive emotions.
The effect can be achieved, for example, due to the bright, positive interior with original drawings. Buyers, acquiring goodies in a retail outlet that can instill a good mood, remember such places well and come back here with joy.
Location factor
It is very important to properly position the sweets store. The business plan of this institution should include a small analytical report on the area where the outlet will be located. Some marketers believe that a candy store is best opened near markets, leisure parks, shopping or entertainment centers. As an alternative - accommodation in an area built up with apartment buildings of the "sleeping" type. In general, you need to open a store where there is a lot of consumer traffic.
However, in addition to this rule, which is typical for most types of business, there is another factor that stands out, and it is specific for the sale of sweets: in the area where the outlet is located, the target audience of buyers should live. It is unlikely that high sales of cookies and sweets will be observed in the industrial quarters of the city. In turn, areas where there are many schools, night clubs, kindergartens are optimal for such a business.
Scale factor
The business plan of the sweets store will include such a parameter as the area of the store. There are several marketing strategies regarding him. Firstly, you can open a retail outlet of a small area and bear minimal costs for its maintenance.
The profit will be relatively small due to low sales volumes. Secondly, you can open a store with large resources in terms of area, with a variegated assortment, and extract large revenues, however, the costs of maintaining such a outlet will be high.
An entrepreneur, therefore, will have to look for a “middle ground”: either he has a large profit at considerable costs, or he has a modest profit at a minimum cost. We need to look at how pure “profit” will be in both cases and, based on this, select the optimal strategy. Some marketers believe that when choosing a format for doing business on a large scale, that is, when choosing option number two, there is more chance to withstand competition.
According to recipes from the East
In some cases, a candy store may contain its own production of goods sold. In one of the premises in this case is a full-fledged confectionery workshop.In recent years, sweets of oriental origin have become popular in Russia. Take, for example, Turkish delight: this Turkic dish does not require scarce ingredients, and at the same time, many gourmets like it.
The production of oriental sweets of most types is a fairly simple process, since in the countries of origin of these dishes recipes have existed for several centuries and have not changed with the advent of any technology.
Accordingly, they can be cooked practically at home (and this is especially good for those entrepreneurs who have chosen number one strategy - work with a modest retail outlet). To cook the same Turkish delight, all that is needed is water, starch, sugar, as well as something for taste (jam, syrup or freshly squeezed juice), as an addition - nuts.
Business launch
Having compiled a business plan for a candy store, the entrepreneur proceeds to the stage of its practical implementation. There are a few key points here. Firstly, it is a relationship with suppliers of products. It is necessary to analyze how rational it will be for a business to choose a particular candy or confectionery factory.
Secondly, this is the inflation component in terms of costs. You need to make sure that, say, rental prices either don’t happen at all, or at a predictable rate. The same thing happens with staff salaries. In Russia, the level of remuneration of employees in the retail segment (just like in the field of bakery, confectionery) has not yet reached its ceiling, and it will inevitably increase over the next several years.
Thirdly, it is necessary to optimize the reporting process to tax authorities and other government agencies so that paper handling does not interfere with the core business and does not take time. The business plan of a candy store often does not include these three factors, and the entrepreneur has to learn the nuances of working during the practice.
