Looking for ideas to help start a new grocery store business? Well, look no further! Learn more about the essential tips and tricks right here.
Nowadays, consumers look for a certain level of transparency when it comes to companies that sell or produce food items.
Rightly so, being conscious about what you’re putting into your body should demand a level of transparency from companies and grocery stores alike.
Grocery stores, in particular, should prioritize consumer’s demands and run their business by having the right location, hiring quality employees, and having modern and reliable technology.
So, if you’re a grocery store owner who is looking to bring some change to your business or to start a new grocery store, then you’ve come to the right place.
5 Tips Starting Grocery Store
Here are 5 essential tips that will help you to start a new grocery store. We’re sure that by the end of this article you’ll have some idea of how to run your business both profitably and efficiently.
Let’s get right to it!
Tip #1. Finding the Proper Commercial Space
To start a new grocery store, you’re going to need a large retail space with high foot traffic and visibility.
Recently, a lot of large commercial spaces and malls have been closing up. Because a lot of retailers are going out of business, downsizing, or focusing more on online sales.
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Work It to Your Advantage
This also means that commercial space owners will be enthusiastic to work with you and offer great properties attempting leasing terms.
A smart move would be to set up your store in a place that’s preferably quite a distance from your competitors. Create a floor plan based on the products you’re offering. This will help you to evaluate the size of the store you’ll need.
If you’re renting a space that previously has been a grocery store, then your business will have the benefit of automatically being recognized as one.
The best part is you’ll be getting shelves and other fixtures at a discount too. Finally, don’t forget about parking spaces! You’ll need to make sure there’s parking space available for your customers as well.
Tip #2. Choosing and Buying Equipment
It’s no secret that opening up a new grocery store will require you to buy some equipment such as display cases for bread and pastries, slicers to cut cheese and meat, and freezers for storing perishable goods.
Use your floor plan to get an idea of additional equipment for the product aisle such as grocery carts for customers, sponge matting to hold vegetables and fruits, plastic bags, weights, misters, shelves for storing non-perishable items such as nuts, dried food, snacks, etc.
Use this basic idea for other sections in your store like the deli, bakery area, and frozen foods section too.
It’s important to keep in mind that when it comes to starting a business, choosing and buying the right equipment is often the second-highest cost.
You can choose to buy your desired equipment up-front, secondhand, or lease them to keep your costs low.
Tip #3. Investing in Research and Technology
When it comes to managing inventory, keeping track of purchases, and determining consumer demand, you’ll need to invest in technological devices to help you keep track of everything.
Invest in sellers who will install RFID scanners, buying anti-theft devices, and checkout equipment. This is also a good time to evaluate if you’ll be needing self-checkout stands or not.
Yes, buying these stands will make you spend more up-front on fixed assets, however, your labor cost will be remarkably reduced over time due to it.
As a grocery store owner, credit card terminals, touch screen monitors, customer pole displays and point-of-sale software are also some of the technological devices you’ll be required to invest in as well.
A bit of meticulous research can go a long way for your grocery store, so make sure you do the work before investing in the technology!
Tip #4. Get Started, Stock Up Your Shelves!
Evidently, to run a grocery store you need to have food items to sell and there are many ways you can acquire your stock to fill up your shelves.
3 Ways to Help Set Up Your Stock
Start by researching the prices of wholesale food distributors since you’ll be getting the majority of your products from them. Developing a regular business relationship with local businesses and wholesale food distributors can go a long way.
Major manufacturers such as Kellogg’s might be willing to give you a discount if you buy in bulk. Taking them into considering as your supplier would not only be smart but also beneficial for your grocery store and you never know, they might offer you a good deal!
At last, if you’re looking to get fresh produce then you can rely on the local farmers for your supply. Many times, there’s a chance that your fruits and vegetables may get rotten in transit if you’re ordering them from another country.
By joining hands with the local farmers you’ll be helping them and your community to grow as well.
Tip #5. Hiring Excellent Employees
Lastly, you’ll need good employees to help run your grocery store. Checkout workers, deli and bakery counter supervisors and employees, stock clerks, and a cleaner are an essential part of a successful business.
Keep in mind, you’ll need to wait a few months after you’ve opened your store to hire a full staff. This waiting period will help you to evaluate consumer demand and workflow, thus giving you an idea of how you can adjust your labor projections.
Once you have a pretty good idea about the number of employees you’ll be needing then you can move on to taking interviews and make a selection!
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, we’d like to say that opening up a grocery store can be challenging and difficult.
There are many factors, both big and small, that you’ll need to consider and keep in mind at all times when it comes to running a new business. However, that doesn’t mean it’s entirely impossible.
With time, hard work, determination, and smart thinking, you’ll be able to grow your business into something major and fulfilling. We hope the tips we’ve given will guide you in the right direction and we wish you the success!
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