TLDR: struggling for years, tired of being poor; I’ve had an idea for the past couple yrs of opening a pet supply shop in my small town (there are none for at least 40mins around.) Barely any competition, possible business building vacancies… What do I need to prepare for and what should I expect in terms of costs, entrepreneurship, etc.? I’ve never done this before.
The long story:
Hi all, I’ve had this idea swimming around my head for a couple of years but things are rough and we need a break. Where I live there’s nothing like this unless you drive 40+ mins to a busy city. I live just a few miles east of a bustling but small town, the outskirts are residential but the heart is full of businesses (lots of run down antique shops, though.)
Well lately it seems to be expanding, albeit slowly, but still. Compared to three years ago when we first moved to the area, it has grown.
I want to provide something new here that doesn’t exist yet, and I know there’s a want for it; and I want to go from the rags we got now to the riches that’ll set my kids up for a life I didn’t have growing up. I’m only 23, I have three kids under 3, my husband is only 25. We’ve struggled ever since COVID first reared its ugly head in 2020 and haven’t been stable since.
I want to, at some point, open a pet shop – starting out I’d like to sell pet supplies, maybe a couple of small cage/tank critters (feeder rodents, feeder bugs and beetles, snakes, hamsters, etc. Things like those.
The nearest competitors I could think of, are Wally world (pet supplies), and TSC (pet supplies and chickens/ducks.)
There’s a couple vacant spots downtown that are in multistory, old, worn down brick buildings (probably 1900s… Maybe earlier.) But based off the local prices, it could be feasible.
For something like this… What do I need to consider when pursuing it? What costs should I expect? What advice would you give to a start up newbie like myself?
Also, bonus points for hearing y’all’s start up stories when you first starts.
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Maybe start with a service rather than retail. What about doggy daycare?
If you feel poor now starting a local brick and mortar business will make you poor for 5 years until (if) it starts getting a reputation and turning a profit.
Starting small and with low cost is the key. Perhaps start with dog walking, dog sitting or dog washing. All these skills are in demand and customers usually don’t mind coming to your house. Once you have built a solid base of clients, you can consider opening an online shop. As for a physical store, I have only heard horror stories.
Ahh true, my mind skipped a few steps lol. With dog sitting and bathing, my landlord absolutely doesn’t allow dogs… Dog walking, I might have to look into that. Not like my kids would interfere – honestly, it’d be a great learning experience for everybody. If said animal likes kids, of course.
Tbh my biggest skills stem from having been enslaved to the workforce and big companies and corporate crap. I’m pretty good at retail and sales for sure, know how to talk to folks n get good reads on them. But my experience working in a pet shop, I know how to care for a wide variety of small animals.
Might just look into online store and maybe, as a running idea atm, maaybe adopt some hamsters or such and then breed + adopt them out. Big maybe though, Im sure there’s a million and one things I need legally before I go breeding even simple hamsters…
Local petshop here makes their bottom line selling cigarettes, not the pet supplies.
I think many people are moving away from pet stores because they usually have abusive or unethical practices somewhere along “production”, for the most part. Birds, cats, dogs, rabbits—all would be off the table.
If you want location-based store, you have to find a suitable location, create a storefront, and then drive traffic to it.
A real estate agent and/or industry consultant can help you find suitable location.
The most inexpensive way to create storefront is leasing a space and outfitting it for the type of business.
It might cost $100K or more for renovations. You will also need inventory and capital to cover monthly operating expenses until the business is cash flow positive.
Consequently, you may be facing start up expenses of $200K.
If poor, you may find this a mountain too high to climb.
As mentioned, alternative is to start small with something you can actually budget for.