Good luck!
... Separately, that was the first thought that both Sachi and I had when starting this post. But seriously, we are not small business advisors, loan officers or lawyers. We are two sisters who have been working in retail a combined 19 years. We are two sisters trying to pursue our particular dream and make sure it is successful. To some extent, a thought that remains uppermost in our mind for all things is, "how will this build/grow our business?" Even though there might be some distant pay-off or pay-forward, there are limits to how much we would share of our own business in order to make someone else's business successful, particularly if there is a potential detraction from the sucess of our own business, if only in the amount of time that it takes me to have a conversation when I should be balancing the checkbook or helping customers.
Every once in a while, we do get questions from people who like our store and/or always wanted a store of their own, who have a shop but would like to emulate some aspect of our own. I get questions about product that we select, working with consignees/vendors, having a brick and mortar shop as opposed to selling strictly online, and so on and so forth.
To answer these questions, I can relate the history of Anthology and describe some aspects of the shop and our motivations; there are other things that might work for us which might not work for anyone else, and there are still other things that are our own personal spin upon making this business successful (which we'd consider trade secrets). Financial details are confidential and shared only with our accountant and tax collecting agencies. Questions about licensing and taxes really ought to be directed to professionals in those fields. Other things we are just making up as we go along and we hesitate to impart as suggestions/wisdom/recommendations.
Two things I would emphasize: 1. When I was first thinking about opening a store of my own, so many people told me it would be SO MUCH work. I didn't really believe them. It is SO MUCH work. I'm not sure I would ever be able to manage this store if I didn't have my sister working with me - two of us, working 6-day weeks each and there are still lots of tasks that don't get done in a timely manner. 2. Whatever works, or doesn't work, for us, might not apply to anyone else. There is a particular combination of timing and circumstances, personalities and location, and any other number of factors that go into our business. It's probably completely different for you. That said, it's still going to be a lot of work.
a little bit of history
Anthology has been open since 2008, but I had written "own a store by 40" for at least 5 years before that on all my Christmas letters. Even before that, working as an assistant manager at a local gift shop, I had an idea about owning my own store; I kind of started that career track with an eye towards working my way up the retail ladder. Even before that, I was making and selling my own creations at little open houses/art sales. In that sense, the idea of Anthology was at least 10 years in the making. In the process of working retail, I learned a lot about running a shop, though there were still plenty of surprises once we opened our shop, mostly related to amount of work. I came to see that it wasn't exactly a one-person job, so I was pleased that my sister was open to my plan. Neither of us studied business in school; Sachi has an M.F.A. in illustration, I have an M.S. in Geography.
The pieces for Anthology were in place for a long time, but the actual store developed pretty quickly as my old job came to an end and store space became available - I had the thought in November of 2007, doors opened in March of 2008. While tending to her infant daughter, my sister wrote the business plan; we managed to cash out some stocks before the big drop (and also secured a small business loan before said drop); with the baby sitting in the window, we set up the shop, complete with dressers from attics and basements of friends and family.
We made it! ? People often ask me when did I know that we'd made it. I find this question rather entertaining. But it depends on what your standards are. Many business fail within their first year. We made it past that. Some businesses close and default on their loan. We paid that off in less time than we were supposed to. Some businesses enable their owners to take off for France for a few weeks each year. We're still working up to that one. Other businesses provide a cushy retirement for their owners. Also still working on that one. Perhaps I can get back to you in a few more years?
a little bit of concept
The mission of Anthology is to facilitate creativity. All things come from that. Why creativity? Because we believe that our lives are better and happier for the creative things we do; we believe that not enough people have that in their lives, and we believe something should be done about it. To do so we: sell things that we've created, sell things that other people have created, provide space and materials for people to create, and sell things that inspire us creatively. I think it is important to have a mission statement, one that you believe deeply in; something simple that you can come back to which grounds your decision-making on all levels.
a little bit on inventory & information
The inventory that we carry stems from our mission above. My old boss always told me to listen to your customers, so over the years, there has been some product shift based on customers (direct request and also just watching sales trends), but that is always within the framework of what we like. We do use a computer system to track inventory. Particularly for keeping track of consignment items, the precision of computer records is invaluable.
I consider our shop a curated collection; even within the various vendors and artists we carry, we make specific selections about what we will bring into the store, and we base our selections upon our individual taste, what we like and feel passionate about, what sort of aesthetic will be created in the shop - this is an effective tool that any retailer has for distinguishing themselves from any other: no one is the same, no one has the same taste; let your unique taste be visible, and you will create a unique store, and customers will, even if only subconsciously, be able to pick up on the genuine quality of your store.
Of all the aspects of the store, the products we carry are the best representatives of who we are, and therefore we try hard to both gather and protect a unique collection of goods. We travel to trade shows, receive artist submissions, scout online. It takes a lot of work to get a particular mix of products and our way of being paid for that work is by sale of product not distribution of information. Particularly in this internet age and in the age of travelers, when anyone anywhere can purchase from anyone anywhere else, we are aggressive about protecting our product mix. It is general store policy to keep artist and vendor information confidential.
Along related lines, almost every week I hear something like: "I saw this online but I wanted to see it in person before I ordered it." Yet if there is a fundamental need for a person to see something in person, then it seems they ought to make the purchase from the shop that provides that service. To me, this also betrays a fundamental disconnect between ourselves as consumers and ourselves as workers and taxpayers (the search for the almighty bargain drives us online where vendors don't pay sales taxes to support government services that we all benefit from, and where most employees are working jobs that no shopper would want). For us, the reward for having an open shop is to make sales, not to be a library or a showroom (neither of which pay the rent). My personal rule of thumb is that if I find a store I like, I support it with my cash.
a bit about credit cards
And speaking of cash... On one hand, I do think a store will lose sales if it does not accept credit cards; a store could perhaps train their customers to pay with cash or check but that is going to be harder and harder to do. There are big forces (with names like "Bank of America" and "American Express") who are training the American consumer to pay with plastic, or even just pay with their fancy phones. Those big forces are not doing it out of the goodness of their hearts: they make a profit, and usually the profit is made not on the consumer, but on the business on the other end. Every year, the amount of money that we pay for credit card processing runs into the thousands of dollars. You can try to make some adjustments but there are going to be certain people who simply do not carry cash anymore. This is an expense which did not exist for a business 15 years ago. Just one more thing to keep in mind when a person gets into the general calculation of business expenses (and something to keep in mind when you are out shopping: never mind the commercials, cash is best!).
a bit about consignment & wholesale
We sell a combination of consignment and wholesale items, culled from a variety of sources. There are advantages to both, and I personally like the mix that we've come up with. The main advantage of consignment is that you can have more inventory to fill the store without paying for it until it sells. Since you have more inventory, you sell more - despite the initial cost to artists, I do believe this is a better choice for artists because our consignment artists are the ones who get the biggest checks, as long as they keep us stocked. The advantage of wholesale is that you tend to have a little more control over what you get in stock, and there's less paperwork - you basically write a check and get your stuff. Wholesale tends to be less work than consignment and you are not as susceptible to the vagaries of an artist's time management skills; consignment takes less money up front.
For anyone considering consignment, our recommendation would be to establish rules and stick to them. During store hours, customers always need to take precedence, something that potential consignees don't always think of when they walk unannounced into your store with a box full of samples. Reviewing and receiving consignment art, as with all things, takes time and has to take its place after customer service - if you don't attend to your customers, there won't be anyone to sell that consignment work to. If you have a clear process for consignment artists to follow, ideally available online, then you can reduce the possible conflict between customer service and consignment conversations.
We do also sell our own creations on consignment. When we first opened the store, this was nice because it added to our take-home pay. It also adds to the work that needs to be done. In addition to being at the store 6 days a week, I probably spend another 10+ hours a week making things to sell. And any time I see my consignment check lagging, I know it is because I haven't been keeping up on restocking.
thoughts on brick & mortar vs. internet
I made a very conscious choice, and some might call me old-fashioned, but I believe that the in-person exerience cannot be replaced by the online experience. For myself, I like to see and touch an item before I buy it, and a big part of the Anthology experience is the physical experience of being in the store, even, perhaps, being a little overwhelmed by creative inspiration. I'm not saying there aren't advantages to online stores, just that I thought about it a lot, and it didn't suit my style, nor the creative-inspiration function of this shop.
On the other hand, the internet is very useful in terms of marketing and, in fact, we mostly rely on our Facebook page and this blog. Although in my younger years, I really loved advertising (spent lots of time collecting ads from fashion magazines), I have some philosophical objections to the amount of money that is spent in the field of advertising so I tend to go more lo-finance in our store advertising approach.
As far as other location considerations, I have spent most of my retail life on State Street in Madison. I like the liveliness and the mix of people, I like that it is equally in/accessible to everyone - it has a (lowercase "d") democratic feeling about it. People from the East side and the West side tell me they never get downtown, meanwhile some people will never see anything else of Madison except the stretch between the State Capitol and UW Campus. Although just anyone walking by can come in, anyone walking by can come in (see next section). That means the occasional homeless or intoxicated person, that means the sports fan who can't comprehend anyone spending money on stickers, that means the person who says they aren't crafty but might just stop in anyway. It's not the cheapest cost per square foot, but it's where I like to be.
a few drawbacks
Our Dad is fond of saying that whatever you like about something is also what you dislike about that. His favorite example: free speech: we like to have it, but it also means that people are free to say things that we dislike. In my job, as with any other, there are things I like and things I don't like, some of which you can't have without the other.
Overwhelmingly for me is the whole matter of being an introverted control freak who might have to talk to anyone about anything at a moment's notice. The plus side of that is that I have been able to share my own art work and my creative inspiration with thousands of people - way more than I would have if I had just stayed home in my dark little cave. On a daily basis, Anthology inspires someone to go home and make something - overhearing people talk about being inspired is tremendous compensation for any disinterested shoppers. I definitely feel that I am fulfilling our mission, and that is of great satisfaction.
Being in business, being in a public setting, is a risk - you put your all into creating something that you hope people will like and some people will stop in the doorway, sneer a little bit and turn around, others will rave about how much they love your store but never seem to help with the rent-paying aspect (Just to be clear, it is not only about money, but as long as our landlord and the IRS will not accept my quilts as payment, there will have to be some monetary component). Still, other people will walk in, maybe even without paying full attention and then suddenly be caught short and then spend another hour really sinking into the details of the store, and spend lots of money in the process. Those moments are true treasures for me, and they are all the more valuable because of all the risks we have taken, because it is OUR store (I noticed very early on that I take compliments so much more personally now that I am standing at the cash register of our own shop; I take insults/disinterest more personally too).
I honestly think that everyone in this world should be required to work a year in retail. The world would be much better for it. Retail involves a high level of uncertainty on a minute-by-minute basis. You never know who is going to come through the door, what their request will be, what their mood is. Your list of things to do is subject to interruption at any time; while this can be exciting sometimes - you never know what the UPS man is going to bring or who you'll interact with - it does make it challenging to get through that list. There is also an uneven balance of power which some people will abuse - ever treat a salesgirl in a way you wouldn't want to be treated? It happens.
I know, it looks charming when you stop in and two sisters are working on craft projects, or when you think about making pretty arrangements of products. First of all, a lot of work goes into preparing those projects to be worked on in the retail setting, and a lot of work goes into selecting product for those arrangements. And, we don't do that all the time. When we first opened the store, I had visions of completing tons of artwork in my spare time; I brought most of those home after a couple years because I needed the shelving space in the office. Certain artsy tasks are easily accomplished, others require a level of concentration that is just not possible. Even if you aren't interrupted, there is the possibility that you might be, which means you can never attain the level of concentration necessary for certain projects, and thus all time at the shop is not at all studio time. Of course there are other fun things: ordering product, looking for new artists & crafters, unpacking new arrivals. And then there are the less charming aspects of store ownership: accounting, filing tax returns (monthly, quarterly, annually), paperwork, more paperwork, dusting, trying to keep an eye on someone you think is a shoplifter, giving directions (driving downtown with all those one-way streets?!), sweeping, cleaning the windows, breaking down cardboard boxes, the list goes on.
I started this post because people often ask questions about what it is like to be in business. A part of me isn't sure that anything I say is helpful; everyone's individual experience is going to be different. People who are friends with me on Facebook perhaps wonder why I am in retail when I complain about tending to inattentive customers (who ask me questions but don't listen to answers), staying late & missing my bus for someone who ends up spending $1 on a button, chasing around the store behind a child with buttery popcorn fingers, but on balance, the pluses overwhelmingly outweigh the minuses.
There is nothing else that I would rather be doing. I have a little burst of happy satisfaction every day when I walk into our store. There are tremendous risks and uncertainties, but there are great rewards as well. Ultimately, I hope more people take the risk to create a job for themselves, whether it is a store of their own, or some other sort of small business. I think the world would be a better place if more of us were being true to our deepest calling, and I think the world would be a better place if we supported other people in their deepest calling.
