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During the day, the store belongs to the public, but in the early morning or late evening, its all yours. Enjoy the calm and solitude, and the opportunity to get some work done without the distractions of customers and staff. Theres no reason not to have a pair of bunny slippers tucked under your desk and a collection of favorite music to listen to when youre working late. 4 MERCHANDISE BUYING A local discount appliance store used to boast in its radio ads, How do we do it? We buy right! The key to keeping retail prices down and profit margins up is to buy right. Good customer service also hinges on good buying, because you need to have what customers want, when they want it. But how do you know what to order, especially when you begin planning your shop? Mel Ziegler, founder of Banana Republic and The Republic of Tea, states, I would not think of starting a business unless I was its first customer. But how do you know what to order, especially when you begin planning your shop? Mel Ziegler, founder of Banana Republic and The Republic of Tea, states, I would not think of starting a business unless I was its first customer. ese less expensive add-on items may attract more repeat visits from customers and produce more sales than the basic stock. A variety of merchandise can help to make a store more visually appealing. A store selling dresses, for instance, can create interesting displays by also carrying jewelry, scarves, hats, and other accessories. First orders should be broad and shallow, which means you will be buying a sampling of a wide variety of merchandise without stocking a large quantity of each item. You do need to order enough merchandise to do an inviting display of each line, but not so much that you will have a deep back stock if it doesnt sell well. You can always place a reorder once you see which items sell best. You can always place a reorder once you see which items sell best. Divide your inventory dollars carefully into the categories you establish for your store, and track these wholesale purchases by category as you pay the invoices. By comparing retail sales and wholesale inventory purchases by category, you can see whether your inventory dollars are correctly distributed based on the ratio of sales to stock. Merchandise categories that sell best should get a higher percentage of the buying budget. You may also wish to use a similar system to check whether the amount of space in the store allotted to a category reflects the percentage of sales, and profits, generated by that category. Keep in mind, however, that a category that starts out with more shelf space and more merchandise is bound to outperform one with less of each. Open-to-Buy Budgeting Once you have established your merchandise categories and collected some sales data over the first few months your store has been open, you may choose to set up a formal system of budgeting merchandise dollars by category. Open-to-Buy Budgeting Once you have established your merchandise categories and collected some sales data over the first few months your store has been open, you may choose to set up a formal system of budgeting merchandise dollars by category. If you enjoy working with data and taking a scientific approach to buying, you may enjoy using an open-to-buy system. There is one available specifically to small retailers designed by Mort Haaz, a former retailer who believes passionately in the virtues of inventory planning. For information about OTB Retail Systems, call him at 800444-4682 (or visit www.otb-retail.com). WHERE TO LOOK FOR MERCHANDISE There are countless ways to find goods for your store, from reading trade magazines in bed at night to traveling to meet with native suppliers on the floor of the rain forest like Anita Roddick of The Body Shop. Trade shows, usually held once or twice a year and open only to qualified wholesale buyers, have traditionally been the major source of new lines. In addition to temporary trade show exhibits, market centers in major cities often feature some permanent showrooms. In addition to temporary trade show exhibits, market centers in major cities often feature some permanent showrooms. Private label merchandise reinforces your store name and image and gives the consumer the impression that your operation is large enough to include manufacturing. It is also hard for consumers to compare prices on private label products, so extra markup can usually be taken on these items. Chain stores often feature one or more private label brands of clothing and other merchandise, and the profit on these products is considerably greater than on competitive name brands. Private label manufacturing usually requires placing large orders, if for no other reason than the expense of printing full-color labels. Look for products that can share the same label, perhaps with a separate sticker indicating the size, style, or fragrance. You might also be able to do your own packaging of items purchased in bulk , such as candies, seeds, beads, or soaps. You might also be able to do your own packaging of items purchased in bulk , such as candies, seeds, beads, or soaps. s that there are many trade shows abroad, offering the retailer who can afford it (it may be deductible, but its not free) the opportunity to travel. Another advantage is that there are many trade shows abroad, offering the retailer who can afford it (it may be deductible, but its not free) the opportunity to travel. Sports.