If you live in a city with a high population density with a young crowd, a retail baby store business is perfect to start. An entrepreneur having knowledge of the retail industry can initiate a baby store business by focusing on the target niche.
It must be borne in mind, though the baby products business is hugely profitable, startups must be prepared to invest a good amount of money and ready to face stiff competition from other players.
However, if you are living in a small town or in a small city where the retail cost is not much, you can make good profits from a baby store by investing a reasonable amount.
Here are the 10 Steps to Start a Baby Store Business
1. Understand the Market
Before starting a baby store in the desired locality, it is important to gather information regarding the demand and trends of the industry. Do market research and find how much the market volume, pricing of baby products by competitors, etc. All this information will help you in exploring the existing gaps in the market and plan accordingly to fully exploit them.
2. Select Products
The next important step is to choose the type of baby product that has a good local demand. You can set up a niche like clothing or a multi-product baby store. Some of the popular baby products that sell well are the following:
- Baby Clothing
- Baby Toys
- Baby Shoes
- Baby Furniture
- Diapers
- Baby Food
- Accessories
- Baby Gear
- Baby Room Decor Items
3. Select a Location
It is without saying, location plays a vital role in the overall success of any retail business. Some of the basic factors you must look for before finalizing a retail space are the following:
- The location must be transport-friendly
- Wide frontage
- Sufficient floor space for customers to roam freely
- Good visibility of the store
- High traffic area
- Cost of the retail space
4. Make your Baby Store Business Legally Compliant
It is essential to register your baby store to actually own a legal business. Every country and state offers a wide range of company formations as per the size and scale of the business. Select the one that fits you best.
For example, many startups in the United States form an LLC as it comes with several benefits with little cost. One gets advantages like personal asset protection, ease of filing taxes, tax benefits, etc that sole proprietorship does not offer.
Talk to a local attorney and procure the necessary licenses and permits needed to run a baby shop in the desired locality. Furthermore, it is advised to buy business insurance to stand protected yourself from unexpected events.
After you finish all the legal formalities, apply for a business bank account. It has multiple benefits like separate business accounting other than personal accounts, ease of filing annual taxes, better tracking and monitoring of the financial health of the company, etc.
5. Create a Business Name
Create a soft winning business name that is memorable and easy to spell for your baby store business. Check our in-depth guide on how to name a business to learn more.
6. Create a Business Plan
Write a business plan for your baby store business. It will not only help you to be on the right track in the future but also help you in arranging finance if you need any.
Specify what segments you want to cater to in your store like clothing, toiletries, toys, kid’s furniture, shoes, personal care products, stationery, etc. what age group will be your target customer?
How you are going to compete with other established retail brands. What will be the in-shop promotion strategy? Calculate your initial capital investment and projected return on investment.
Related: Best Places to Find Free Business Plan Templates
7. Setup of Retail Baby Store Clothing Business
Lease a visible and accessible store location with sufficient space for customer parking. Choosing the right retail space location is the most important factor in the retail business. Make sure your store has an attractive storefront and good signage.
To make retail kids’ store business successful, a properly planned floor plan is important. Take advice from interior experts and purchase display fixtures and mannequins. The Interior decoration of your store should be comfortable and kids friendly. If you are planning to set up a big one then try to keep a place as a play zone for kids.
8. Hire Manpower
Hiring the right personnel is an important issue in getting success in this business. Hire skilled and experienced personnel with a pleasant and attractive personality. For in-shop activity, employees play a crucial role in making the sale done.
9. Have a Sourcing Plan
You need to do extensive research on purchasing items of wholesale children’s clothing. Consider fun ideas such as stuffed animals or an exciting superhero. Carrying a particular baby brand will require you to become an authorized dealer of a popular manufacturer’s products.
You can also specialize in medium to high-end products, which often are not found in major stores. In garments, consider a balance between creative and utility daily-wear clothes.
10. Promote Your Baby Store Business
To be successful in a baby store business, it is extremely important to have a properly planned promotional plan. Following are some of the promotional activities you can consider implementing:
- Create a child-oriented grand opening that children and parents won’t want to miss.
- Do some outdoor advertising activity
- Craft and hang attractive signage on the front wall of your store
- Create an online presence by creating a website. Update your products with features and prices regularly.
- Initiate an online order system and cash-on-delivery.
- Offer some introductory discounts and gifts to your valued customer.
- Keeping a record of the Birth Date of your kid customers and wishing them a day with a small gift, definitely give a wide chance of enhancing return customers.
- Concentrate on brand building
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Baby Store Business Profitable?
The size of the children’s product market is growing and there is no shortage of potential consumers in this industry ever. Industry experts predict that the baby products industry will grow 20% in the year 2026 from the present volume.
The kids themselves are more sophisticated now and they have the power to influence their parents in almost every purchase decision. Children are now savvier customers than ever before.
What is the Cost of Starting a Baby Store?
One needs to invest substantially to open a baby store. The cost will include rent charges for the retail space, inventory, salary of staff, POS and accounting software, furniture, and promotional expenses.
If you are planning to start a baby store in the United States, a minimum investment of around will be $200,000. The cost will rise for bigger formats and can go as much as $1 million.
What is the Profit Margin in the Baby Store business?
The expected average gross profit is 10 percent in a baby shop business. However, the profit margin varies with items. It is seen that items like furniture and toys provide more profit margins than apparel items.
About the Author: 99businessideas.com led by Rupak Chakrabarty is committed to helping beginners, entrepreneurs, and small business owners in starting, managing, and growing their business. Our aim is to educate the entrepreneur on the various stages of entrepreneurship.