If you are not familiar with the construction business, once engaged in the repair or manufacture of furniture, then you do not need to explain what the hardware means. You should also like the idea of opening a hardware store. You do not need to invest in sophisticated and expensive equipment, run around for permission, and collect documents for a license. At first, you can very well manage to make modest investments within 500 thousand rubles.
Business features
Not without reason, the need for close acquaintance with the field of construction and repair was already mentioned above. It is difficult for a person far from this area to understand the assortment and features of product promotion. Namely, your profit depends on practical knowledge. Otherwise, you run the risk of purchasing slow-moving goods or losing a customer due to the fact that you are not able to pick up the hardware he needs.
And the location of your outlet must be selected, given the proximity of potential consumers.
As for investments, the biggest expenses are related to the purchase of goods. Rental of premises, purchase of equipment - these investments are not so large.
How to open a hardware store
To start a business you do not need to apply for a license. You will need to register as an individual entrepreneur. The IP form is considered the most optimal. The procedure is simple, does not require long preparatory work and the collection of documents. And the costs are minimal.
Most individual entrepreneurs work on a simplified tax system. With this option, you must install a cash register. Therefore, you will need documentation for it, as well as for personnel who will work with KKM, there must be tolerances.
In addition to the “simplified tax system,” in some regions there is taxation in the form of a single tax on imputed income. In this mode, a cash register is optional.
Potential clients
Before you open a hardware store, find out the circle of your future customers. Typically, the most active customers are various repair teams, small construction companies or furniture manufacturing and assembly companies. According to statistics, they form up to 40 percent of profits.
It does not hinder to establish good relations with large construction companies in advance, who will be happy to take bulk lots from you. The rest of the revenue is made up of individuals who buy the same construction nails for personal needs: repair a garden house, tidy up the arbor, but you never have to make any small business affairs.
Choose a place
Based on the circle of your potential customers, select the location of the store. The closer it gets to a construction base or market, the better. There is a good trade in fasteners in the area of new buildings. New settlers are actively engaged in the repair and arrangement of apartments, so the interest in your range will not disappear for quite some time.
Consider how to open a hardware store near the office of a construction company. Then your advertisement will be noticed very quickly, and just as quickly you will get regular customers.
Room
The place is chosen, now you need to solve the problem with the size of the room. Renting huge areas is not worth it. This does not justify itself.
Twenty or thirty square meters is enough. You can equip a separate pavilion or organize a point of sale in a common room at the construction market or base. According to conservative estimates (the rental price varies greatly by region) you can rent such a room for 40-50 thousand rubles.
The room should be divided into a warehouse zone and the zone where the goods will be presented. Some entrepreneurs take off a modest "patch" in a specialized shopping center for goods for repair and construction, and the items ordered by the client are given from the warehouse or delivered. Your business case should reflect the hardware store’s business plan. In it, lay the costs of launching an online store or business card website, if any, are included in your plans.
Equipment
You do not need to buy complex units. But standard commercial equipment will be needed. So, you need to get:
a shop window;- shelving;
- shutters;
- cash register;
- a computer;
- by the table.
In addition, you need a signboard. This is enough to start. When purchasing equipment, remember that it must be durable.
Shelves are better to take metal, they will last you much longer. Glass for showcases is better to choose shockproof so that it does not crack or scratch during the demonstration of the goods to the buyer. If you are thinking about how to open a hardware store in a large trading hall of a construction base, then rolling shutters are necessary to cover the goods during the absence of the seller.
A computer and a desktop will be needed by your seller or sales manager.
Shop Assortment
Now a little about the product range. It includes screws, anchors, dowels, rivets, fasteners, sandwich panels, studs. These devices are necessary when installing the roof. They can not do without fixing ventilation systems or installing floors, assembling furniture, building a house.
The assortment of your outlet should include building nails, screws, nuts, bolts, metal abrasives, mounting chucks, welding accessories, clamps.
Handheld (screwdrivers, hammers, etc.) and a power tool are pretty good. You should not just undertake the implementation of expensive or large-sized units, for example lawn mowers, chainsaws. These devices will require serious investments from you, but selling them will be much more difficult than a box with nails.
Because of the features that distinguish your business (hardware has a clearly defined circle of consumers), you need to carefully select the assortment range. Without the necessary knowledge, it is very simple to purchase illiquid positions. They will gather dust in your warehouse for a long time until you get rid of them. In order to avoid losses, thoroughly study demand.
Take a walk around similar stores, study the goods displayed in online stores, talk with potential customers. Only in this way you will be able to correctly plan your purchases. The product will not stale, and turnover will increase.
Putting together a team
To open a hardware store, you need employees. Even for a small enterprise, you need to hire two sellers who would go in two shifts. In such cases, the standard two-in-two schedule is set.
The main difficulty is finding qualified personnel who are versed in the intricacies of fasteners. What and where is applied, for what kind of work, what characteristics does it have and how is it actually called.
Your employees must not only give out goods, but also advise customers. The latter sometimes have difficulty choosing. Therefore, when hiring sellers, interview them for professional knowledge and skills.
If we talk about the wage fund, then the salary is traditionally made up of salary (fixed part) and interest. Such a scheme stimulates sales. Provide and point about bonuses.The system you select should contain a business plan for the hardware store.
If your plans include cooperation with large wholesalers, then consider hiring a sales manager. Such specialists have rich experience in negotiating at the level of heads of organizations, and they are familiar with working with a client base.
With an increase in sales, it makes sense to hire an accountant and purchase a specialized accounting program.
We promote business
The question is not how to open a hardware store, but how to bring it to a stable profit. The competition in this market is great, so you need to plan the promotion of your business.
Do not skimp on advertising. In newspapers, on television, on the Internet, post information about yourself. Order flyers, product brochures, discount flyers. At first, attract customers with promotions and discounts.
Linking to the construction business plays a key role here too. It is the beginning of the season in this sector that is considered the best time to open a retail outlet for the sale of hardware products. Repair boom will affect you.
And do not stop there. Set yourself new strategic goals and achieve them.
