The needs of a brick-and-mortar store will be vastly different from the needs of an online eCommerce store. The overhead costs are significantly higher, and you will invest in things you don’t need when running an eCommerce business.
You will obviously need to invest in inventory and shelving, racks, or displays to show off your inventory to customers who walk in. Those are expenses you go into the business understanding. There are, however, things you may not realize or be fully aware of until you get started. Here are three investments you will need to make when opening a brick-and-mortar store.
1. Property
You are going to need to invest in property. This can mean buying, building, or renting. Buying or building property will be costly, so starting, renting may be your best option. If you aren’t sure where to start, do an internet search for “building for lease near me” and you will start finding commercial properties for lease in your area. You’ll need to have an idea of the square feet you are going to need in the showroom area and back areas. You will need warehouse space and office space if you run your business from that location completely.
If you are having trouble finding what you want, you can contact commercial real estate brokers to help you with your search. You can also search for current spaces that may already be renting and see if you can sublease the property. Retail space properties can be in high demand, depending on where you are located. If you find a property you like from the outside, you can go online and see if there are 3d tours available, so you can see the inside before reaching out to the broker.
2. Security
Once you have a retail space, you will need to invest in enterprise security systems. While the building owner or landlord may offer some security on the building, you need to take the necessary steps to protect your investment, including your data. You don’t want a hacker to access your information or your customers’ information through a data breach. You can reduce vulnerability with a security system that protects all your devices, including laptops and mobile devices.
You also need to get a security system that will monitor the property with security cameras, door and window alarms, and motion detectors inside the space. Your security system can be linked to the local police department, so they are dispatched when something happens to stop it from being too devastating to your business, hopefully. Linking your security system to record to cloud storage when activated automatically will allow you to pursue criminals or vandals if they are already gone when the police arrive.
3. Point of Sale System
Your point of sale (POS) system may include cash registers, workstations, credit card machines, and scanners, depending on the size and type of store you plan to open. You can choose something as simple as a tablet with a credit card scanner attached or as complex as a multi-unit cash register system that will allow you to run reports from all registers simultaneously.
The POS system will need to fit all of your needs while also be user-friendly. The harder it is to use, the more problems you will have hiring and training new staff members. Additionally, if it is too hard to use, there will be many mistakes that could hurt your business and mess up your inventory tracking.
If you are starting a new business from scratch, you will need to research the credit card processing options to figure out what is best for your business. If you are moving from an online store to a brick-and-mortar store, you can contact the companies you already work with to see what your new options will be with them.
