So I run a very small gift shop in a town which is mostly financially supported by travelers/tourists. I hand make a lot of my items, and have built the business up from nothing. My friend however stops through when she is in this part of the state. She travels full time in a bus, so she carries all of her goods and such with her. But she only rolls through during major holidays and times when business is at its best. When she stops through she places all of her inventory in front of my place, and attempts to pull my customers in before they even get to my entrance. I don’t want to be greedy, or discouraged her from making and selling souvenirs and whatnot. But I rely on my income from my shop to support me. How should I handle this situation? Should I just let it go and lose 2 weeks of typical income? Or should I ask her to move away from my store front? I’ve spent a significant amount of time landscaping and making it eye catching, and I feel like she is taking advantage of the hard work I’ve done, and attempting to give the impression that it’s her place. I don’t know what to do, honestly.
I know this feeling so well. You don’t want to be an asshole or come across as greedy or heartless. The reality is this business is your livelihood, whether friends, family, or anyone else recognizes or respects that. Prioritize your business first and let others decide how they want to interpret that. Ironically, as soon as you start doing that people will respect or at least accept it.
She is not dumb, she knows she’s taking advantage. If she recognizes that she’s benefitting from the flow of traffic in front of your store, then she has to recognize that she’s taking it from you. If she doesn’t recognize it or acts like it’s not a big deal then she can’t complain about moving from your store front as it is a big deal to you. Any motivation she has to specifically post up in front of your store is also acknowledgement that she is taking business from you.
Again, I really feel for you on this. Some of us are not trying to be selfish and want to try to be generous and fair. Remind yourself that this is not a trivial thing. Regardless of how big the business is, it’s cost you a lot of your time and other resources. It is not a joke or a hobby for you, so protect it. If others fail to understand that, fuck them. They will not be paying your bills.