[Q] Setting Up A Retail Shop
A friend of mine is planning to set up a small scale retail shop selling organic stuff and herbal medicine. I’m also planning to be a part of this venture. We both have been looking for info about the basic steps to be taken, DOs and DON’Ts and about the various loans available in this regard. On top of that, I thought my work would be made easier with the inputs of dimers.
He has an fssai license to manufacture some value added food products. In addition to this, we are also planning to sell siddha medicines prepared by a well-established company in TamilNadu. Depending on the amount of capital we could generate, we are also planning to bring in popular brands like Patanjali.
Kindly share your valuable inputs. 
OK. If you are a paid employee, not much to worry. Why worry about someone else’s problems?
Just make sure you know the difference between your pocket and cash register.. That’s a biggest help you can do.
@aapkaraghu wrote:
OK. If you are a paid employee, not much to worry. Why worry about someone else’s problems?
Just make sure you know the difference between your pocket and cash register.. That’s a biggest help you can do.
haha… But he is a close friend of mine. You do help your friends with whatever input you can when he comes to you, right?
ah okay, this is less loaded on you then.
Well not to get philosophical, but having peace and solitude is still better than having lots of money.
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Even as a Munim ji (salesman : – D blehi) cum manager you’d be as interesting.
Well if he/you have local goodwill and a going enterprise then shop & establishment or the drug licences wont take much time (i think).
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If you can get anything under 13-14% costs, I’d say its a great funding option. that Pradhan Mantri Whatever Yojna thing.
Not aware, sorry, about manufacturing rules/ clearances for U.T.
Our wishes though are with you 
@Magus wrote: It’s a part of our vision to help people appreciate the goodness of our traditional food habits. People these days haven’t even seen any millet, let alone consume it.dark reality of our times. All this mixing of cultures, migration or the newage jargons like ‘global citizen’ sound nice.
But somewhere we slowly dilute and loose our ethos.
Hopefully, not completely if efforts like these persist.
But when we provide it in a ready-to-cook (or consume) form, they really like it.
that is good then. Take baby steps. Get people hooked. Grow big
i myself like some Bajra (sorry, forgetting the english name) and Ragi preparations
@aapkaraghu wrote:
If you are waiting for a bank loan to start a shop, it’s a very bad idea to start a shop or any other business. You will face many uncertain expenses and if you are so tight on budget, you will have difficulty sleeping in night.
Such ventures have to be self funded ( or from a immediate family with a relaxed payback period) . You will get loan for expansion or working capital.
Before starting be sure ( financially) you can stock up decently once and pay 6 months rent even if there is zero sale.
Just in case you don’t know, no suppliers will give you material without payment initially. Over time off course it will change to you paying week or fifteen days after the sale.
kaafi dara diya bhai.. encourage kar dete thoda ?
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Have similar views on the last part. FMCG or such companies, usually do not extend any credit lines. May be if their local distributor or stockist gives credit, then it is another story.
Waise, ye koi ekdum NASA level ka project nahi hai.
The finances won’t be that large IMO, nor they will have any sudden event to determine success/failure.
Keeping overheads under control always helps.
Any learning by trial and error is what brings wisdom. Kyun sahi bola na @thrifty bhai ? (and isn’t a loan of upto 50000, usually disbursed with any collaterals ¿)
i think @Spock has covered almost everything in his comments . But some inputs from my side before u take the plunge
1) Perform a market research to determine the requirements of the general public out there and to determine the demand for the prodcuts you are willing to sell ( Hoping that ur starting up in pondicherry itself )
2) As someone pointed out selling on sites like ebay,paytm,and amazon will give ur business a sure boost . Maybe take a plunge in any one ecomm site see how it goes and maybe later determine to expand too others if u sense ur success
3) Try to research ,check india mart and other trade directories for organic produce and their distributors in nearbuy areas . Maybe make a planned trip to chennai once to establish contacts with organic sellers out there and bring some produce back home with you
4) No need for fancy decorations and stuff but do give a personal touch to every item u sell and ur shop appearance.Maybe youtube and google will come out with super creative ideas to decorate ur shops and give ur products some love
5) Dont invest in any high tech billing system,bar code readers unless u feel there is a need and demand for them. Inventory checking and billing maybe the rarest of problems since i understand u will be connected to ur shop and business
6) Try spreading awareness by small paper pamplets (maybe even smaller contact cards or stuff delivered personally during non peak hours like afternoon) . Word of mouth and some local events where u can set up stalls will only add to ur fortunes
7) Home delivery and stuff is ur prerogative .
ps : i may not be available at night but will keep a track of this thread
@Magus
All the Best for your new venture.
Always keep in mind, winning Customers heart is utmost priority for any Business Success even at the cost of expense (sometimes).
If the customer lost faith on Product and Service (if applicable) then its very very hard to retain them.
@srigem81 wrote:
@Magus
All the Best for your new venture.
Always keep in mind, winning Customers heart is utmost priority for any Business Success even at the cost of expense (sometimes).
If the customer lost faith on Product and Service (if applicable) then its very very hard to retain them.
Tagging @$hubham as his views are opposite to yours. Shubham, blast away with your thoughts. 
@Magus wrote:
@Spock I’ll keep that advice in mind.
I’m not a partner (of any type) in this venture. I will just be a paid employee, looking after the shop. Salesman cum accounts keeping. Frankly speaking, I don’t have any money to invest.
He has a license to manufacture millet based food products, for example, Idli / Dosa dry mix. He’s already into it at a very elementary level and the product is quite successful among our friends and their families. It’s a part of our vision to help people appreciate the goodness of our traditional food habits. People these days haven’t even seen any millet, let alone consume it. But when we provide it in a ready-to-cook (or consume) form, they really like it.
Regarding the legal procedures, I just want to help him with any info available all around. Thanks for your input.
Magus, I didn’t expect this from you. I thought you will be that aggressive, money-minded, do-it-all guy with SUVs in his garage and bitches in the backyard waiting eagerly in the pool to get a glimpse of the Great Magus. And now I see you want people to appreciate the goodness (or whatever) of your product.
Are you joking? And if you are just a paid employee, you don’t have to worry about all these things. Just get your money and come back home. But if you do worry, brainstorm, and strategize, then you are in a disadvantage. Because you are essentially helping your friend grow his business while he enjoys everything with minimum work. If it fails – blame goes to you. If it succeeds – he keeps all the profit. And if you are that soft guy who don’t want to fight for your share, your money, then draw up a contract right away. Money changes relationship, unfortunately.
I was burned several times because I thought “yaar, it’s friendship. Who does this contract and sh*t.”
You will be SURPRISED how easy it is to get a license, or start your own bottles, etc. You can, in fact, with some investment leave your backyard right now and start your own retail shop next to your friend’s. Then copy his product and show him how it’s done. A product with no good marketing is a worthless product. Of course, you won’t do it because you are that nice guy who wants to help a friend out.
Be the one who screws, not the one who gets screwed.
@dealbhai wrote:
@Magus the best option for you is to start a Patanjali store in your area, especially if there is none in your area. You can generate decent revenues, I believe.
anybody know distributor of patanjali products my friend said they give 15% to 20% profit of every product.
@Magus good luck 
If your friend or any close relative has a job, you can easily get personal loans upto 5L. That’s how I started my very first venture. Though not the best idea as the interest rates are on higher sides. But you can pull it off if you can circulate your money every month. FMCG products have very low margin, the secret is to keep the money rotating and volume flowing. Just concentrate on that mantra and you will be good.
You have limited budget or I would have suggested you for some local inexpensive ads via pamphlets and offer free home delivery. Having your presence felt matters.
SInce you mentioned ‘herbal medicines’ I recall a very good marketing strategy I couple of years back. Someone came up with a shop named ‘Diabetes Care Shop’. When I read the name I smiled because if marketed good and on a relatively bigger level it can be very profitable business. Indians have absolutely no respect for their body and diabetes is one of the most widespread illness in this country. There are numerous products which you can re-brand or re-package and sell them as —-For diabetic people or for fat loss(this one is absolute gold, people love to eat more to get slimmer). Or even something like Shandhi-sudha tel 
I think you get the idea.
I should stop writing or those diabetics and fat people would come after me pitchforks….OH! wait they can’t run!
@sidbhai wrote:
Tagging @$hubham as his views are opposite to yours. Shubham, blast away with your thoughts.
Noting to add really, people are applying all these online rules to the retail environment, which is the wrong thing to do IMO, & again customer faith/service/loyalty doesn’t mean that you can’t make money 
The simple rule is IMO not to overspend on things like marketing, promotion & every other expense that isn’t indispensable, making money however should always be your priority especially for a small business with limited funds. This doesn’t mean that you rob your customers just that you do your estimates & various permutations/combinations well in advance so that one isn’t left scratching his/her head all in the middle of say an unexpected situation 
Mfg date ?
My 2 cents which might be handy for you guys at a later date:
Retail outlets sales is directly proportional to Foot-Falls. And to increase Foot-falls you must plan some ideas (Deep discounts are strict No and are not sustainable… So, what you guys may plan is something or other that may attract customers to drop-by at your shop). Somethings that can be implemented are:
—> A Water-Cooler + small sitting place.
—> Neat-and clean parking space.
—> Maybe a Free Wi-Fi
—> etc etc
—> Most-important: Keep a track of discounted and Promotional Packages available in Market. Always try to keep a stock of all discounted and promotional items. Moreover start visiting Reliance Fresh, Easy-day and Big-bazaar for a month and identify those products which are almost round the year on deep discount (inflated MRP). Don’t miss keeping those products at your store. One example is Refined Oil, Rs 120 pack of sunflower or soyabean is always sold at Rs 75 to Rs 85. Presence of a few such products helps make regular customers by filling them with a sense that ki “is dukaan pe discount achhe milte hai”.
—> Also, you may try selling one of the most frequently sold item at Zero Profit. Eg. Lets say the margin on Sugar is Rs 2, and you guys start selling it at zero profit. Now since sugar is a monthly item in every household’s grocery, so a discount in its price comes to notice of a buyer. I guess by doing so, you will be able to recover the profit missed on selling sugar by selling lot many other items to increased foot-fall at your store.
More Free ka gyaan to continue
All the best for your venture.
@B@R_0_0_D wrote:
“image”
Mfg date ?
@JonSnow wrote:
My 2 cents which might be handy for you guys at a later date:
Retail outlets sales is directly proportional to Foot-Falls. And to increase Foot-falls you must plan some ideas (Deep discounts are strict No and are not sustainable… So, what you guys may plan is something or other that may attract customers to drop-by at your shop). Somethings that can be implemented are:
—> A Water-Cooler + small sitting place.
—> Neat-and clean parking space.
—> Maybe a Free Wi-Fi
—> etc etc
—> Most-important: Keep a track of discounted and Promotional Packages available in Market. Always try to keep a stock of all discounted and promotional items. Moreover start visiting Reliance Fresh, Easy-day and Big-bazaar for a month and identify those products which are almost round the year on deep discount (inflated MRP). Don’t miss keeping those products at your store. One example is Refined Oil, Rs 120 pack of sunflower or soyabean is always sold at Rs 75 to Rs 85. Presence of a few such products helps make regular customers by filling them with a sense that ki “is dukaan pe discount achhe milte hai”.
—> Also, you may try selling one of the most frequently sold item at Zero Profit. Eg. Lets say the margin on Sugar is Rs 2, and you guys start selling it at zero profit. Now since sugar is a monthly item in every household’s grocery, so a discount in its price comes to notice of a buyer. I guess by doing so, you will be able to recover the profit missed on selling sugar by selling lot many other items to increased foot-fall at your store.
More Free ka gyaan to continue
All the best for your venture.
D Mart is a chain for FMCG + (Other home goods and garments ) do stock such products, have much presence in Gujrat and Maharashtra.
Get mudra loan
If you are waiting for a bank loan to start a shop, it’s a very bad idea to start a shop or any other business. You will face many uncertain expenses and if you are so tight on budget, you will have difficulty sleeping in night.
Such ventures have to be self funded ( or from a immediate family with a relaxed payback period) . You will get loan for expansion or working capital.
Before starting be sure ( financially) you can stock up decently once and pay 6 months rent even if there is zero sale.
Just in case you don’t know, no suppliers will give you material without payment initially. Over time off course it will change to you paying week or fifteen days after the sale.
Sorry. I can’t think with Bill Gates as example.