Owning a shop - am I not livng in the real world?

[luciemule]

Apologies for long post before I start!!!Over the past couple of years, along with my idea of going back work and retraining as a teacher, I've been considering the option of having my own shop. I've looked into the type of shop I'd love to have and have found very few similar (if any) ones in the area where I'd be having it. The town (historic market town with large public school and high visitor interest)has a number of gift/type shops already but my idea is to have a shop/cafe that sells German style toys/gifts/decorations/polish pottery with perhaps a cake and coffee area (Kaffee und Kuchen!) attached. Now DH says what a daft idea and why would it make any money but then I think if the other gift shops make money (and they are similar ones to each other in the same town) then there must be a niche for the sort of stuff I'm thinking of as it'd be unique. Has anyone just dived in and tried to start their own shop or am I just dreaming. DH says why would they go to the shop when they can buy all of the wooden toys/authentic christmas decorations etc online? I disagree and think if there are enough tourists/locals with a need for the product then it'd work.
Anyone got any thoughts on it?

I meant Kaffee und Kuchen/not juchen!

The problem is rent on shops in the town where it would be is very high and not sure if we could afford to buy. Perhaps I'll look into business loans etc. DH is planning to leave the forces in a few years and they get a lump sum when they leave and I thought that's be perfect for setting up a business.

luciemule its not NEAR Wells is it?

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I used to live in a v touristy area with a lot of these gifty/nick-nack type shops. Some did well, while others came and went. The ones that stayed had a lot of goods on offer with a big range of prices, and things you would keep going back in for (eg cards and wrapping paper, bubble bath, pottery that made good gifts - wooden toys would help with that as people always need gifts for children). I think the coffee and cake is a fab idea and if it was good coffee and cake I would frequent a place like that. You could also sell cakes to take away. But remember if you have a cafe you must have a toilet, a disabled toilet etc. so the premises would have to be up to scratch. Also what put me off a lot of the shops where I used to live was desperate, over-chatty owners who wouldn't leave you alone when you went in - don't be like that!

About coffee machines - you can get really good ones now in places like John Lewis that only cost a few hundred quid - if you're serious about that I'd go and test a few out.

Enid - no not near wells. I don't live far from Wells but I'm talking about a town on the the other side of the country! We're moving back there once DH leaves the forces.

Actually admylin when I saw this thread, I thought it was you in a new guise!

Sounds nice lucie - if you think it would be viable to live from the Kaffee und Kuchen, I think it would be worth a try. If you're successful with bread (I'm not ) maybe some typical German bread too?

Have you thought about folklore/knitwear for dc (or even adults). Some of those things are just lovely. I think people would pay a lot for them because the quality is so good. I get lovely knitted jackets from St. Peter Trachten for dd, they have lovely pictures knitted into them. Like the Janker as well. Make nice Christmas presents.

I've been thinking that perhaps just selling the German cakes and bread, rather than having tables and chairs and having the whole toilet/disables toilet thing might work better.
I've been loking at the tradiotional toys thing and I'm sure it'd work. People do love to give nice pressies for kids. Thanks pruni - looked at their site - very nice too.

I like the sound of the german bread mmmmm!

lucie do you remember those Tschibo shops where they sell various different coffee beans and grind your coffee freshly for you into bags? That might go down well, smells lovely, bit noisy though.

hello - yes, I do shop at Tchibo onine and often pop into the shop. In Germany they're in supermarkets as well so you can smell the coffee as you walk round!

I used to work in executive education and one of my favourite subjects was lifestyle retailing.

If you are thinking about a concept for a shop, don't limit its horizons too much from the outset. Inevitably you will want to tweak/adapt the concept to market conditions over time and if you limit the concept too much you will find that much harder.

Try to get hold of the accounts of a shop in Germany with a similar concept to the one you are thinking of and try to place that in your local context, comparing revenues and costs. For example, rent might be much higher in the UK than in Germany, and that alone might eat up all your potential profits. Exporting retail concepts profitably is very hard.

Best of all, try to get a sales job (even one day a week) in a successful gift shop in your area. You will quickly get an idea of how much work it will be and how much money you might one day make.

Thanks Anna - good ideas thank you.

luciemule - looking back over the thread, another thought.

It is MUCH, MUCH harder to produce and sell food profitably than to retail toys and gifts. If I were you, I would look into the toys/gifts area of the business first and wouldn't go down the café route until you were sure you could make a go of the first part.

I think it sounds interesting and different. And if the toys are really unusual, perhaps there could be a mail order service/Internet service too. Like The Cotswold Company or Scotts of Stowe.

Hmmmm - think you're right about the cakes side of it. Instead of mixing the two, just concentrate on the toys and gifts and perhaps have one off late night openings at Christmas with Stollen etc! I would really want it to have a German feel as I feel people like the whole Hansel and Gretel, old fashioned toy shop theme.