Wisconsin Beth
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No, we don't walk away. But when we're holding on to something precious, we run.
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 15, 2013 15:04:47 GMT -5
I lost my post but find out if your high school does Rube Goldberg and see if the kids will do demos at your store.
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973beachbum
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Post by 973beachbum on Apr 15, 2013 15:21:32 GMT -5
So, hiring and hours. The plan is to open with just me in the store. I'm working open to close, everyday that it's open. Sum Dum Gai, I just wanted to leave a quick note. I have a lot of friends and neighbors who have small business'. By and large they are french fry stands but most of them seem to do pretty well. The one thing I have noticed is that until after they get big they don't hire anyone outside of the family, ever! They hire their kids and spouse and maybe their cousin or mom but never nyone outside of them. They want to make sure tha all money getting paid from that business goes back into the family bank account. I know your girls are young but my friends would still make them work say 5 hours a week doing something. Loop could work 15-20 doing things that they can't. Even if it is sweeping up or opening boxes or dusting a shelf it is still time you won't have to pay someone else min wage to do it. Then your girls would be earning money for their work and you would be saving not only the allowance but your expenses become a benefit to your family. This way the business gets to write off the wages spent and your family gets the benefit of those wages on top of any profit made by it. I swear to God that my neighbor has a 12 year old who does the first interview for hiring. That girl has been working at that store since she was in kindergarten and knows exactly what they want in employees by having been one herself. Sorry to ramble but I hope it helps a little.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2013 15:45:26 GMT -5
I agree, good time to start the girls IRAs.
Plan sounds good. Do you want activity day ideas?
Fire, that is not NEAR the whole story... Start your own thread!
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Apr 15, 2013 16:10:42 GMT -5
you seemed very set on staying with this job, so it's something of a surprise to me. I still don't know what happened to change things.
@tbird, it was a combination of factors. I've known for more than a year now that this job wasn't right for me long-term. I haven't done anything about it until now for a few reasons:
1. Wicked benefits + high salary + 2 years in the job = ideal for maternity leave. When we decided to try for Babybird at the beginning of 2012, I knew I wasn't going anywhere until after I'd been back from maternity leave for at least a few months.
2. Wicked benefits + high salary = awesome no matter what your life circumstances. Frankly, it's tough to walk away from this much money. We haven't even been in a position to consider a significant paycut until right now, to tell the truth.
3. I really liked my coworkers, my boss and my work environment.
So even though my actual job was boring as shit not very challenging, there were lots of reasons to stay. That being said, I'm ready to move on and have been ready for a LONG time - this job is just not right for me and now that I have a kid, the commute is practically killing me. I really want to be closer to home.
That was my position up until late February (and I had started *very casually* looking for something new). Then something happened (I'll PM you the details if you're really dying of curiosity) which meant a change in my job description, and I knew that was the push I needed to start actively looking.
Talked to my boss, talked to HR, and we negotiated a "transition" period through the end of April (that timeframe may or may not adjust a little as we get closer). So the idea is that I'll have a job by the end of that time, but if I don't... we'll see. I have a lot of safety nets so I'm not particularly worried... yet. Talk to me if I still don't have a job and we're coming up on the end of May. That would be a problemo.
Right now the goal is to get a job near home that pays an adequate salary and is more challenging than my current position. So it's kind of a tall order (but I still think it's doable). I've gotten some good leads so it's just a matter of waiting to see which one works out. Fingers crossed!
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Apr 15, 2013 16:13:00 GMT -5
Fire, that is not NEAR the whole story... Start your own thread!But why do that when I can hijack Dark's? I thought about starting my own thread but I don't really need advice at the moment. I know what I need to do, and I'm doing it. We'll see where I end up but I've never not gotten a job when I need one and I should have a nice safety net if they actually cut me loose before I'm ready.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2013 16:25:50 GMT -5
Since you mentioned Legos, I approve of this business venture.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Apr 15, 2013 16:28:39 GMT -5
Sum Dum Gai - That reminds me, does Babybird still get your kids' Lincoln Logs? I remember an offer to that effect before she was born... don't think I'm not going to hold you to that now just 'cuz you're all unemployed and sympathetic
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2013 16:29:46 GMT -5
Legos is great for young mind. It can help them with math and logic.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Apr 15, 2013 16:46:32 GMT -5
In your inbox
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2013 18:10:41 GMT -5
Now what are you going to do about layout? What goes where, next to what?
What you are going to carry or not carey? Age grouping? or by type?
Is the company that you are buying from going to take care of that?
Are you are going to contract it out? Shelves? Flooring? Back room organization (I am assuming you will have a stock room)?
How much inventory you plan to keep on hand? Inventory turn goal? How will you decide to carry or not carry something? Keep up with the trends? Popular games?
What will be your draw? Make someone come to "your" store?
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Peace Of Mind
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[font color="#8f2520"]~ Drinks Well With Others ~[/font]
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Post by Peace Of Mind on Apr 15, 2013 18:16:02 GMT -5
Dark, are your girls out of school for the summer? If they are hanging out there at the store with you make sure you give them cool stuff to play with in front of the window to your shop. If the location is good and has lots of foot and car traffic every kid that goes by will want to go in to see what they are doing. Your girls have been out of diapers for years so put those slackers to work!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2013 18:21:15 GMT -5
Family effort! Everyone pulls together.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Apr 15, 2013 19:22:19 GMT -5
I love the idea of having a juggling class and things like that to bring kids into the stores with their parents. I was on a girls weekend a couple of weeks ago and the 10 of us went to a local scrapbook store to do some Make and Takes. Cost us $5 for like $0.50 worth of paper and supplies. But every single lady there ended up spending way more then the $5 by the time we finished shopping. So in 30 minutes they probably made $300 off of us.
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giramomma
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Post by giramomma on Apr 15, 2013 23:21:47 GMT -5
Dark-FWIW,
A thought popped into my head at work today.
I would run the fun summer activity classes, and then see what's popular and run them as a birthday party themes for the school year. Especially if you are close to baskin robins, you could offer parents a package where you and baskin robbins team up to provide everything..You provide the games/entertainment, maybe some snacks, and baskin robbins does the cake. The parent/caregiver talks to you, and in a half hour, viola, the party is all taken care of.
I'm assuming you will dedicate a spot in your store to the activities during the summer. I'm lazy. Rather than reconfigure the store for the summer, I'd try to keep the same configuration and use the "classroom space" for lack of a better term all year round.
I would be a little reluctant to market to teachers, unless you are going to carry teaching supplies (to include things like reward stickers, class room decorations, etc.) Even at our private school, the 4K teachers don't go out and buy brand new toys for the kids. They bring toys from home the kids out grow or accept donations (I donated a felt board I bought for my oldest). Our local Y had toys that DH and I played with as kids....I know loop was on the school board, so you know the curriculum that is used, but do you really know what teachers want for their class room (and can afford to buy?)
I think something better might be to talk to your local library system, and see if your store can get in as a reward for a summer reading program. In our parts, after a kid reads 5 books (or x amount of hours, depending on the age), then they get a a "reward." Free tickets for local events, free books, a free mini pizza. I'm wondering if your business could get in on that, and offer a 50% off one toy coupon as a reward. Or a kid can pick out a free thing up to x amount of dollars..
Another thought might be to see if you could hook up with a story hour. I don't know how many libraries we have in town. But the busier libraries not only have story time for all the age groups, but there's also craft time. It might be a nice plug for your business if you provided craft supplies for craft time for 3 year olds at a public library....
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Apr 16, 2013 10:22:39 GMT -5
I would run the fun summer activity classes, and then see what's popular and run them as a birthday party themes for the school year. Especially if you are close to baskin robins, you could offer parents a package where you and baskin robbins team up to provide everything..You provide the games/entertainment, maybe some snacks, and baskin robbins does the cake. The parent/caregiver talks to you, and in a half hour, viola, the party is all taken care of.
OMFG, I swear giramomma and I share a brain because I had this EXACT same thought. One of the companies that appeared on Shark Tank was very successful in this type of party planning business... I'll see if I can find a link... Found it! www.thecoop-la.com/parties.html(The link doesn't seem to be cooperating, but Google "coop party planning" and it'll come up.)
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Apr 16, 2013 10:31:54 GMT -5
I also love giramomma's idea of working with the library to create prizes for reading contests, too. When I was a kid I used to smoke those competitions (I was a really, really, really good reader - way ahead of my grade level - and we had contests for spelling and writing also) and we always had cool prizes. My school had a program called "Book Bucks" - it assigned a certain number of bucks to each book a student could get at the library (usually between 1 and 5 but some books were worth more if they were long or "important" or way above grade level, etc.). Then each semester we'd have a huge... I guess you could call it a rummage sale of sorts, and everything was assigned a Book Buck value. I'm sure your library could work out a similar grading system for books. They had toys, books obviously, and some things like movie tickets or restaurant coupons. All the local businesses seemed to donate to this program. I always had a great time at these sales because I had tons of Bucks to redeem. It was an awesome way to encourage reading - and nice because there weren't really any "winners," at least not then (the school did give certificates and sometimes trophies to the kids who read the most books in a year). So you could look into doing something similar with your local library - you get free advertising for the store and a nice tax write-off, the library helps kids get into reading, and the kids get cool stuff. Everyone wins.
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milee
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Post by milee on Apr 16, 2013 11:13:49 GMT -5
Why do I always have to be the rain on the parade? Dark, be very careful when you're analyzing the party or classroom model for your business. Parties and classes are seductively tempting because they earn big $$ for a short period of work, but you also have to calculate the costs of having that open space (with no working inventory or display) for the rest of the week when it sits empty. The businesses that I've seen make parties and open space work do so because their rent is cheap and they can afford to have space open. Or they're like The Coop, which makes its money because they sell very, very premium offerings to wealthy families who use a Coop party as a status symbol (but that's a tough market to capture and it's very small - lucrative, but small.) As for handing out coupons, freebies and awards, you'll just need to be very careful that you're analyzing how that fits into your cost of customer acquisition. Does the name recognition equate into higher sales in amounts that offset the cost of the promo? Some of those will and some of them won't.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Apr 16, 2013 11:28:57 GMT -5
Why do I always have to be the rain on the parade?
Cuz you're one of the smartest / most experienced business owners on here and you actually know what's required to make this stuff happen. WWMD? would make a great "how-to" business book. I'm just saying....
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milee
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Post by milee on Apr 16, 2013 11:30:51 GMT -5
You're very sweet to say that and I'm going to cling to that theory next time I feel like I'm channeling Debbie Downer.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2013 11:33:24 GMT -5
I think he already did say he wouldn't have that kind of space actually, ...
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2013 11:39:23 GMT -5
. WWMD? would make a great "how-to" business book. I'm just saying.... Or t shirt. I really think we need our own Cafe Press store...
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Apr 16, 2013 21:04:48 GMT -5
Rent here averages about $12 per sq ft per year. For higher traffic locations anyway. I can get retail space at around $8 per sq ft per year on the edges of town, near industrial parks, tucked away, etc. At basically $1 per sq ft a month I can't afford to dedicate a large chunk to tables that I can use for events and stuff. I want to have some space in the store for demoing toys and games or whatnot but it has to be pretty limited.
So, take the juggling thing. $10 per half hour, do a few different time slots throughout the day on a specific day, and limit it to the first 5 or 6 kids that sign up. That's it. Same thing with a Lego deal. 8-10 kids max, first come first in. It's not a significant revenue source for the business, it's a fun and hopefully memorable way to draw people to the store. The main focus of the business is still selling fun and family connectivity. It's getting bodies onto the sales floor, helping them find fun and interesting products for their kids, and trading those products for their cash. My standing on the sidewalk out front in a goofy jester hat with bells teaching a few kids how to juggle is a way to get noticed, not a way to pay the bills.
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Lizard Queen
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Post by Lizard Queen on Apr 16, 2013 21:28:37 GMT -5
Do you also pay CAM charges, or is that gross rent? Do you also have to pay %rent if your sales go over a certain amount? Are you responsible for HVAC maintenance costs? Will you get a tenant allowance to pay for your fixtures/build-out?
These are just a few things to be aware of. The number one piece of advice I would give is to read your entire lease yourself. Oh, and remember, everything is negotiable.
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justme
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Post by justme on Apr 16, 2013 22:20:20 GMT -5
Something I would think about when you're fixing your space up - what if the events do become a big thing? In other words, what if you need to have events frequently to keep up the traffic to your store? I would look into movable fixtures or easily rearranged fixtures. Not so much fixtures that are attached to the wall, but the fixtures that will be free standing in the middle of the store I would look into whether the cost exceptionally more to get re-arrangeable fixtures for what won't be going against the wall. So if the classes become really popular you could maybe rearrange the fixtures for during the classes and then put them back normal when there's not a class.
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DVM gone riding
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Post by DVM gone riding on Apr 16, 2013 23:40:49 GMT -5
So, hiring and hours. The plan is to open with just me in the store. I'm working open to close, everyday that it's open. Dark Honor, I just wanted to leave a quick note. I have a lot of friends and neighbors who have small business'. By and large they are french fry stands but most of them seem to do pretty well. The one thing I have noticed is that until after they get big they don't hire anyone outside of the family, ever! They hire their kids and spouse and maybe their cousin or mom but never nyone outside of them. They want to make sure tha all money getting paid from that business goes back into the family bank account. I know your girls are young but my friends would still make them work say 5 hours a week doing something. Loop could work 15-20 doing things that they can't. Even if it is sweeping up or opening boxes or dusting a shelf it is still time you won't have to pay someone else min wage to do it. Then your girls would be earning money for their work and you would be saving not only the allowance but your expenses become a benefit to your family. This way the business gets to write off the wages spent and your family gets the benefit of those wages on top of any profit made by it. I swear to God that my neighbor has a 12 year old who does the first interview for hiring. That girl has been working at that store since she was in kindergarten and knows exactly what they want in employees by having been one herself. Sorry to ramble but I hope it helps a little. and you can open sep ira's for them!!! And kids can work for their parents for really low wages and you don't have to apply for work permits nor do you have to pay SS taxes (I think) I started at 8 or maybe 6 for 2/hr. And I loved it! of course my parents didn't think about the ira angle but if I have kids I might start a small business JUST for that benefit.
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Bob Ross
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Post by Bob Ross on Apr 18, 2013 11:22:43 GMT -5
Dark, I've got five words for you: Full Contact Magic The Gathering
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Apr 18, 2013 12:20:59 GMT -5
Our local gaming store does MTG events. The only people watching better than that is the D & D night on Wednesdays. No way could you pay me enough to want to put up with those people. The two owners stay open until everyone is ready to leave. On Friday Night Magic nights those kids will show up at 4pm and stay until 3am easy. No thanks.
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Apr 20, 2013 4:26:59 GMT -5
Latest update
So I drove into San Jose today to check out my closest competition. I looked up all the independent toy stores from Gilroy (none) to the middle of San Jose, then drove up and checked them out. I wanted to get a feel for the volume of inventory they fit in a given square footage, what type of fixtures they use, how they're laying out the store, etc, as well as what they're stocking and what they're charging of course. It was a pretty fruitful trip, except I missed The Wooden Horse in Los Gatos. They close at 6 on Fridays, which looks like a bad idea to me. In the 10 minutes I was standing there looking in the windows three families walked up to the door and left disappointed because they were already closed. I really wanted to check that one out because they have the biggest book section of all the indy toy stores I saw.
Anyway, we finished up our scope out the competition trip and we're driving home, south on 101 in the car pool lane going 80, when my car shudders for a second, a cloud of smoke comes out the back, and it dies. I pull off to the side of the road to see what's going on and when I open the hood I see a fire in my engine compartment. Not smoke, actual flames. Thank god I had some water bottles in the car. So yeah, my 9 year old car that's never once not started, left me stranded, or needed a single major repair, picks right now to shit the bed and burn. Figures right?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 20, 2013 6:42:12 GMT -5
Ironic really since you have been begging/praying for your car to crap out.
And when it finally does; it is actually is an inconvenience to you!
Good luck, keep on moving forward. Seemed like you learned a lot on your trip.
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8 Bit WWBG
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Post by 8 Bit WWBG on Apr 20, 2013 7:12:58 GMT -5
I should have gotten on this thread earlier...
...:::"but you also have to calculate the costs of having that open space (with no working inventory or display) for the rest of the week when it sits empty.":::...
I had the same thought. The smaller but high traffic location is definitely the superior choice, but it makes for a lot of lost floor space.
...:::" I would look into movable fixtures or easily rearranged fixtures.":::...
And I had the same solution. Mock up a few layouts: one with the "normal retail" layout, then a special one for class days.
Also, if you are the main employee and you are busy giving a class, who is going to be watching the store? I guess on those days you'll have Loop and the kids working as well.
Sorry about the car. Flames! Time to make sure I keep some water in the car!
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