High St shop ideas?

[LordHaveMurci]

daemon said:

enemi said:

Adult toys surely.

Would that be right up your alley?

OP did say there was a little room around the back

[daemon]

singlecoil said:

48k said:

Best of luck with whatever you decide to do, but I can't help agreeing with some of the earlier posts that being offered a unit and trying to decide what business to run in it as a sideline to your day job does not sound like the seed of a particularly successful venture.

That's a good point but speaking as one who has spent a year searching for premises in my admittedly quite well off area, being offered a shop is the kind of luck (if luck it be) that makes it worth looking in to even if one wasn't actively seeking it.

The difference being you already had the idea, business plan, proof of concept, presumably some sort of SWOT analysis done, funding, knowledge, experience, and you required a business unit to facilitate it.

Effectively you had a business, you needed a space to facilitate it.

The O/P has a space.

singlecoil said:

Same as being offered an old car for £100. It might be a bloody good investment or it might be scrap, it just depends on what it is. The fact that the offer came about through a personal contact doesn't rule it out or rule it in, it should be carefully considered and accurate information about it sought out.

Its really not. A car has a quantifiable monetary value and thus its easy to determine if its a value proposition and establish risk (of losing your outlay) versus reward (resale value - costs - original outlay)

To stick with a car related analogy, the O/P has been offered a trailer but doesnt have a car to tow it with or a purpose for it.

There is nothing wrong with that - lets just not over egg it and make it something its not.

Edited by daemon on Friday 19th May 15:24

[ATG]

daemon said:

... lets just not over egg it and make it something its not.

No one has been doing that.

[singlecoil]

daemon said:

singlecoil said:

48k said:

Best of luck with whatever you decide to do, but I can't help agreeing with some of the earlier posts that being offered a unit and trying to decide what business to run in it as a sideline to your day job does not sound like the seed of a particularly successful venture.

That's a good point but speaking as one who has spent a year searching for premises in my admittedly quite well off area, being offered a shop is the kind of luck (if luck it be) that makes it worth looking in to even if one wasn't actively seeking it.

The difference being you already had the idea, business plan, proof of concept, presumably some sort of SWOT analysis done, funding, knowledge, experience, and you required a business unit to facilitate it.

Effectively you had a business, you needed a space to facilitate it.

The O/P has a space.

I'll reply one more time, your overly negative attitude is becoming tedious. It goes far beyond due diligence. Worse still, it's not based on knowledge. For instance, you thought there was VAT on cheese!

Any business plan you can construct for a retail business is a waste of time and paper, without knowing where it is. The phrase 'location, location and location' was originally coined when a retail expert was asked what the three most important considerations for a retail business were.

Yes, of course you can make a plan, I know, I've done it myself. But if your plan requires a shop in a prosperous area you will then find that no such shops are available. The main reason is that there are businesses in the shops, they are making money, and if the owner no longer wants to run the business he or she will sell the business as a going concern. So no empty shops and a plan that's a waste of time.

I don't know the area of the OP's shop, he's not been very forthcoming, but if it's a prosperous area then being offered a lease on a shop is unusual and well worth looking in to. If it's not a prosperous area then he'd be well advised to leave it alone. So it all depends on the area, and neither of us know what that area is but he does, and it will be up to him to decide whether to proceed or not on the basis of accurate information if he can get it, and I will do what I can to make sure he does.

I can't imagine your response will be worth replying to.

[daemon]

ATG said:

daemon said:

... lets just not over egg it and make it something its not.

No one has been doing that.

In the context that you took that part sentence out of, i was referring to Singlecoils view and supporting analogy that it was a potential no brainer like being offered a car for £100. Its not.

[daemon]

singlecoil said:

I'll reply one more time, your overly negative attitude is becoming tedious. It goes far beyond due diligence. Worse still, it's not based on knowledge.

Its not overly negative. Its expressing caution and potential risks - thats all.

Its up to the O/P - not you - to review and decide if those risks can be mitigated.

I have knowledge, because i've previously started and ran a bricks and mortar retail business - whats your experience based on?

singlecoil said:

For instance, you thought there was VAT on cheese!

Yup. Whilst having a few minutes to spare and brain dumping some initial thoughts on the subject i brought up the subject of VAT. Apologies that i didnt have the time and opportunity to google it.

Likewise, wine was suggested as a possible sideline, so i wouldnt go scrubbing VAT implications off the table until the O/P knows fully the range of what they plan on selling.

I would have thought that would be something the O/P would have known the detail on, or would investigate - again you seem to have deemed it your responsibility to review and mitigate all risks for the O/P - would you not agree the O/P should be doing that NOT you?

singlecoil said:

Any business plan you can construct for a retail business is a waste of time and paper, without knowing where it is. The phrase 'location, location and location' was originally coined when a retail expert was asked what the three most important considerations for a retail business were.

Uh-huh - WHEN you have a business to put in it. Having a location, location, location does not suddenly mean you've a business.

singlecoil said:

Yes, of course you can make a plan, I know, I've done it myself. But if your plan requires a shop in a prosperous area you will then find that no such shops are available. The main reason is that there are businesses in the shops, they are making money, and if the owner no longer wants to run the business he or she will sell the business as a going concern. So no empty shops and a plan that's a waste of time.

Again, based on having a business (idea) and nowhere to put it. NOT having a space and trying to find something to put in it.

singlecoil said:

I don't know the area of the OP's shop, he's not been very forthcoming, but if it's a prosperous area then being offered a lease on a shop is unusual and well worth looking in to. If it's not a prosperous area then he'd be well advised to leave it alone. So it all depends on the area, and neither of us know what that area is but he does, and it will be up to him to decide whether to proceed or not on the basis of accurate information if he can get it, and I will do what I can to make sure he does.

Agreed. And noone said otherwise.

singlecoil said:

I can't imagine your response will be worth replying to.

And yet I'm sure you will....

Edited by daemon on Friday 19th May 16:01

[Granfondo]

singlecoil said:

I'll reply one more time, your overly negative attitude is becoming tedious. It goes far beyond due diligence. Worse still, it's not based on knowledge. For instance, you thought there was VAT on cheese!

Any business plan you can construct for a retail business is a waste of time and paper, without knowing where it is. The phrase 'location, location and location' was originally coined when a retail expert was asked what the three most important considerations for a retail business were.

Yes, of course you can make a plan, I know, I've done it myself. But if your plan requires a shop in a prosperous area you will then find that no such shops are available. The main reason is that there are businesses in the shops, they are making money, and if the owner no longer wants to run the business he or she will sell the business as a going concern. So no empty shops and a plan that's a waste of time.

I don't know the area of the OP's shop, he's not been very forthcoming, but if it's a prosperous area then being offered a lease on a shop is unusual and well worth looking in to. If it's not a prosperous area then he'd be well advised to leave it alone. So it all depends on the area, and neither of us know what that area is but he does, and it will be up to him to decide whether to proceed or not on the basis of accurate information if he can get it, and I will do what I can to make sure he does.

I can't imagine your response will be worth replying to.

There are experts on here about buisiness failures!

[singlecoil]

Granfondo said:

There are experts on here about buisiness failures!

I daresay. Running a business which fails must be a very disheartening experience and not necessarily something that anyone should blame themselves for. Things change, but some things change less than others. For instance, there will always be people who have more money than the rest of the population. Setting up where they are has always been good for retail businesses.