In setting any business at all,firstly it boils down to your obejctives.what is the perpose of setting it up.Obviously its to earn $ and get the bestest return on your investment ( ROI)...and having answered that,how many % would you want returned on your equity..?:)) and more importantly,How long you want it to be returned.Document all this into your business plan.now with all the figures in your head,start with a comfortable budget.With that budget you might perhaps want to plan out the logistics.Flowers are perishable and therefore,getting equipment to store them,ie Freezers,etc.Then you have to go out and source for both suppliers n clients lor... ok so much for now
If you have no experience, training and expertise in the field, you are a sure loser opening a shop in that area of specialization. You need to know all of your flowers, how long they last, how much demand there is for each type of flower at different times of the year, how to make flower arrangements, where to source wholesale, how much they go for, what equipment you require, and so much more. If you have not worked in a flower shop for several years and taken some management courses as well, you have absolutely no chance of competing with the professionals and you will lose all of your investment.
By gathering up a LOT of money and being prepared to see it all spent and you going broke.Why? Because NO ONE should be starting a business without knowing SOMETHING about RUNNING a business. It is a sure formula for failure.Best bet is to get into the busines by taking a job in a florist shop. LEARN how the owner runs the business. Learn where the florist gets his/her supplies and the wholesale outlets for flowers. Learn how to prepare for each season. It s not just about Valentine s Day, or Mother s Day or Xmas. It s about which flowers are in season and which ones aren t. It s about knowing WHERE to get a plant that just isn t IN season and how much YOU D expect to pay for it. It s about tracking the money being spent and the money coming in. It s about knowing accounting practices, tax law, labor laws, collections, dunning, contracts, and the price of gas in November and how it compares to the price in June.It s about marketing, product preparation, presentation and, guess what? It s about EXPERIENCE. Get it, first.
I would suggest you check out The Small Business Administration (http://www.sba.gov/). This site will be your go-to site for understanding what is needed to start your own business. They provide instructions, guidelines and resources to get your business up and running. Do you have prior experience with flowers and the industry? I would love opening a florist shop, my Mother and I love gardening and planting, so this would be right up my alley! :)I know the thought of opening up a florist shop may be in its very early stages, but you may want to check out or bookmark this site, http://www.l-trondirect.com/ once you get it up and running. My friend recently opened up a small retail store in town and he was looking for barcode scanners to track his inventory and purchasing point-of-purchase equipment, like those electronic signature pads you find at many stores near the checkout. This site was a huge help when it came to equipping the store to manage the product sold, capturing payment methods of his customers and whatnot. You may find this site useful in time.Best of luck to you, I wish you all the success!
Associations may be a good avenue to explore. These organizations will address many of the thoughts, questions and concerns you ll inevitably have as well as many you haven t anticipated yet. Also take a look at Entrepreneur s online guide.http://www.entrepreneur.com/howto/retail -- Entrepreneur s How to Start a Retail Business Guidehttp://www.afia.net/ -- American Floral Industry Associationhttp://www.flowerpossibilities.org/ -- Flower Promotion Organizationhttp://www.gardencentersofamerica.org/ -- Garden Centers of Americahttp://www.ofa.org/ -- Association of Floriculture ProfessionalsResearch, research, research �C this cannot be stressed enough. Read as much as you can about the industry. Here are some book titles that are relevant:* Starting A Flower And Gift Shop by Millicent Gray Lownes-Jackson* Start and Run a Profitable Retail Business by Jim Dion, Ted Topping* Retail Business Kit for Dummies by Rick Segel * Specialty Shop Retailing: How to Run Your Own Store Revised by Carol L. Schroeder* So You Want To Own The Store: Secrets to Running a Successful Retail Operation by Mort BrownThere are plenty of free informational resources out there. Check out these articles:http://www.ezinearticles.com/?Building-R�� �C Building Retail Business without Financial Muscle by James Littlehttp://ezinearticles.com/?Start-a-Small-�� �C Start a Small Retail Business with Multiple Sales Channels by Jacob Wrenhttp://ezinearticles.com/?Retail-Selling�� �C Retail Selling Strategies by Donny LowyHope that helps! I wish you much success happiness in all your ventures!
you really need to do a lot of studies n plans before u want to open a business or u gonna waste your money into the drain.u have to make sure which is the good spot to open your business n how to take care of the flowers
