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.
Invite her in to the store, give her a display area with a sign “Designs By Not Me” or some hippy version, and take the small financial hit in the moment, but enhance your entire business model in the long run. You get experience handling consignments, you improve your legitimacy as a community member, learn what sells and why, and step up your own game a little. Also, this gives you the best way to control the aesthetics of the presentation.
Play this right, it’s a win-win-win with a 3-way tie for first between you, your friend, and your customers.