Many predict that soon prints will simply become unnecessary. But despite the constant and rapid development of technology, books are still in demand.
And today, many are interested in questions about how to open a bookstore? What documents will be needed? How profitable can such a trade be?
How to open a bookstore? Advantages and disadvantages
Books, especially when it comes to teaching aids, are a fairly popular product. Therefore, the book business with the right approach can be a truly profitable business. But in order to bring it to a decent level, you have to work hard.
Naturally, such a trade has its advantages. To begin with, it should be noted that books are a product that has virtually no expiration date (at least fiction). On the other hand, teaching aids with today's frequent shifts in curricula can simply become unclaimed. Therefore, the store owner will have to follow the constant changes and news in education.
Some publishers offer a deferred payment service - the owner orders a batch of books and pays them only after the sale. This is beneficial, since it does not require additional costs for the purchase of goods. Take an interest in the scheme of work of popular publishers.
The business plan of the bookstore should take into account all possible nuances, from the choice of premises to the assortment and customer service.
What documents are needed?
Naturally, your own business must be properly formalized. And if you are interested in the question of how to open a bookstore, then you should know that in most cases such enterprises are registered in the tax service as LLC (Limited Liability Company).
In addition, you will need permissions from the inspection of the sanitary and epidemiological service and the fire service. You can get a license to trade in the city administration. The basic package of documents looks like this, which will allow you to become the owner of your own bookstore.
Where is better to place?
Of course, the crucial question is where it is best to open a bookstore, since the location of the enterprise will largely determine its attendance.
Connoisseurs and experienced businessmen argue that a crowded shopping center, a vibrant area of the city with a vibrant social life, will be most beneficial. You can consider the option of opening a store near large educational institutions, such as universities. But in such cases, the main emphasis should be placed on scientific and educational literature.
Optimal bookstore design
Yes, the interior decoration and design of the place where various publications are sold is also of considerable importance. After all, there are probably at least a few such establishments in your city, and you need to stand out with something, to be better.
Therefore, pay special attention to repair - it is advisable to design rooms in calm pastel colors. And do not forget about good lighting, because many customers will want to at least familiarize themselves with the content or read the annotation.
The business plan of the bookstore should include the costs of necessary furniture. The cash desk is best positioned so that it does not interfere with customers moving and looking around.
Shelving should be comfortable and not too high - the buyer should easily get a book, even from the top shelf. And do not forget about the decorations, for example, baskets, antique jewelry and other little things that will give your institution the right style and mood.
Be sure to arrange books by genre (for example, textbooks and fiction should be separate). For greater convenience, place special plates indicating the genre of publications located on one or another shelf, so it will be much easier for customers to orient themselves.
It is worth equipping a reading corner with tables, chairs or sofas in the store. So clients will have the opportunity in a calm atmosphere to get acquainted with the selected books and understand whether they really need them. Some owners who created the book business from scratch even put vending machines on the premises.
What books to sell?
Before you open a store, you need to study the market and demand. Naturally, in order to deserve the favor of customers, it is necessary to provide them with a large selection. Each bookstore should sell masterpieces of classical literature, modern fiction, science and teaching aids. Especially popular is children's fiction and developmental literature. You can also sell school books, notebooks and stationery.
As already mentioned, the store owner must keep track of changes in the education program - let new textbooks appear in your store as soon as possible. In addition, pay attention to news on the market - books by popular authors are in great demand, so they can bring good income.
The book business may have some other features. For example, you can sell comics or some magazines (in particular, scientific). You can make a separate window for exhibiting rare editions, old antique books, etc. - there are also buyers for this product. But of course, you will have to spend some time buying antique publications.
Some businessmen order special case studies, which make it possible to understand which books the buyer himself wants to see in the store. If for this purpose we hire student sociologists, then the cost of monitoring will not be so high.
By the way, you can order special packages with the logo and name of your store. And since prints are often bought as a gift, it will be just fine if your institution offers special gift wrapping and postcards.
We hire staff
Even if the bookstore is self-service, you need employees. How many employees will you need? It all depends on the size of your store. First you need a sales clerk.
In addition, any reputable bookstore needs sales consultants (1-3 employees). The choice of these employees should be taken very carefully. They not only need to know where and which book lies, and to memorize the entire range of the store.
Ideally, they should have a good understanding of the literature in order to help the client select a good, interesting book or express their own opinion if necessary. And, of course, consultants should be pleasant and easy to communicate.
You will also need a person who will be engaged in accounting. If you do not have time to study literary novelties and monitor market changes, you can also hire a merchandiser.
Additional sources of income and interesting ideas
If you thought about solving the problem of how to open a bookstore, you probably also thought about ways to increase your monthly income. Indeed, there are some "tricks" that will help to get regular customers.
For example, in a store you can organize an exchange of publications when a customer leaves his own in it, and in exchange takes another one (of course, used). There is always the opportunity to separate a small corner and create something like a library. Here visitors will be able to borrow books on time for a small fee. After all, unfortunately, not every fan of print media can afford to regularly spend money on replenishing his home library.
Many Soviet stores offered delivery of books or magazines to order. For example, there are publications that are needed only by a few representatives of your regular clientele (for example, specialized scientific literature).
Thus, readers will be able to leave your applications with you, and you will have a guarantee of sale. By the way, the same system can work with school teaching materials. You can negotiate with teachers or the headmaster - and you can immediately sell dozens or even hundreds of copies.
Advertising campaign: we provide a constant influx of customers
If you are going to sell books, then do not ignore the possibility of widespread promotion of your business. Indeed, thoughtful bookstore advertising will provide you with a steady flow of customers. You can advertise in newspapers and local magazines, order radio advertising of your city, arrange banners.
From time to time, you can arrange distribution of leaflets near the store - everyone who presents such a leaflet will receive a discount at the checkout. This circuit is very popular.
And if we are talking about discounts, then over time you can create special cards for regular customers, which will give these customers certain privileges.
Sell books over the Internet
If you are going to sell online, then you need to decide on the delivery methods (for example, via mail). If you want to sell books, you have probably thought about the possibilities of the World Wide Web more than once. So how to open an online bookstore? First you need to create a website with a convenient interface (people involved in this business are easy to find). Here you will post information about the availability of certain books.
How profitable can this business be?
The question of possible earnings is extremely important. It should immediately be noted that the profitability of your store will largely depend on how exactly you organized its work. There are people with bad experience in this area, at the same time, some entrepreneurs, after 1-2 years, create a whole network of bookstores.
It should immediately be noted that the risk level in such a business is relatively high. And a decent income is possible only if your bookshop offers customers a large assortment of goods along with certain amenities, privileges and pleasant service.
