Entrepreneurs all across the world are making money from their shoe store business and you can also make money starting a shoe store. This is because there is always a ready market for shoes. A shoe store is a retail outlet that predominantly retails different types and sizes of shoes and related footwear.
Shoe stores primarily purchase shoes and related footwear from wholesalers and retail them directly to the end-users. In this article, we will help you with the estimated cost of starting a shoe store business in your city.
The Estimated Cost of Starting a Shoe Store Business
When it comes to starting a standard shoe store business, one is expected to spend the bulk of the start-up capital on leasing a storage facility in an ideal location, stocking the shoe store with a wide range of shoes, and equipping the facility.
These are the key areas where you are expected to spend your start-up capital;
- The Total Fee for Registering the Business in the United States of America – $750.
- Legal expenses for obtaining licenses and permits as well as the accounting services (software, P.O.S machines, and other software) – $3,300.
- Marketing promotion expenses for the grand opening of the shoe store business for $3,500 and as well as flyer printing (2,000 flyers at $0.04 per copy) for $3,580.
- Insurance coverage – $2,400.
- The cost for payment of rent for 12 months at $1.76 per square foot in the total amount of $53,300.
- The cost for facility remodeling (construction of racks and shelves) – $5,000.
- Other start-up expenses include stationery ($500) and phone and utility deposits ($2,500).
- Operational cost for the first 3 months (salaries of employees, payments of bills et al) – $20,000
- The cost for equipping the shoe store – $45,000
- The cost for start-up inventory (a wide range of shoes and related footwear from different brands) – $25,000
- Storage hardware (bins, rack, shelves, food case) – $3,720
- The cost for store equipment (cash register, security, ventilation, signage) – $3,750
- The cost for purchasing furniture and gadgets (Computers, Printers, Telephone, TVs, Sound systems, tables and chairs et al): $4,000.
- The cost of launching a website: $600
- The cost for our opening party: $3,000
- Miscellaneous: $5,000
From the rough estimate listed above, you would need a minimum of one hundred and seventy-four thousand two hundred and thirty dollars ($174,230) to establish a medium-scale but standard shoe store in the United States of America.
Please note that this is a rough estimate and we usually advise our readers to go to the market or directly contact wholesalers and manufacturers of the types and brands of shoes and shoe accessories they want to retail in order to get real-time prices of these items.
The truth is that, if you are a good bargainer, you can get a better deal that will help you beat down the estimated price as listed above. Having said that, here are some factors that will influence the cost of opening a shoe store business in the United States of America.
Factors That Will Influence The Cost of Opening a Shoe Store Business in the United States of America
The Type of the Shoe Store
A major factor that will determine the overall cost of opening a shoe store business in the United States of America is the type of shoe store you have in mind. There are brick-and-mortar stores and online stores. If you just want to start a shoe store business that is running from a brick-and-mortar facility, you are going to spend more when compared to a shoe store business that is strictly online (operating from an eCommerce store).
The Choice of Location
Another major factor that will determine the cost of opening a shoe store business in the United States of America is the location. There is a key part of what determines the success of a business. As a matter of fact, there are business consultants and realtors who are specialized in helping people choose an ideal location for their business; a location that will help you break even within the shortest time frame.
For example, renting or leasing a storage facility in a location that is off the city center or off a major road will be less expensive when compared to renting or leasing a storage facility in a highbrow area.
The Required Licenses and Permits
In the United States of America, you cannot open a business without first applying for licenses and permits. You would need an operational license, building license, zonal permits, signage permits, and reseller permits amongst others for your store. These licenses and permits cost money and it will influence the overall cost of opening a shoe store business in the United States of America.
In order to get the overall cost of licensing and permits associated with opening a new shoe store business, we will advise that you reach out to your city government. You also need to consider state and federal requirements.
The Type of Facility
The type of facility you want to operate your shoe store business from is also a major factor that will determine the overall cost of opening the business in the United States of America. As regards the facility, yove the options of renting, leasing or designing and constructing your own shop facility from the scratch.
With renting and leasing a shop facility, you need to spend extra to modify the shop to fit into what you have in mind, but there is a limit to how far you can go and it will depend on if you get permission from the landlord of the facility.
If you want to construct your facility from the scratch, you will buy the land or property, bring up your design and of course construct and equip the facility to fit into the ideal picture of a shoe store business you have in mind. You will agree that you are going to spend way more when compared to people that rent or lease a facility in an industrial area.
The Size of the Shoe Store Business
Another very important factor that will determine the cost of opening a shoe store business in the United States of America is the size of the shoe store. Of course, the larger the shoe store, the larger the budget to get it up and running especially as it relates to furnishing and equipping the store facility.
Aside from the cost of furnishing and equipping the store facility, it will also cost you more to hire employees to man different job sections in the shoe store. For example, few employees can man a shoe store business that is in a 10 by 10 facility while it will take about a dozen employees to man a shoe store business that is in a 20 by 20 facility.
- The Cost for Branding, Promotion, and Marketing of the Shoe Store Business
The cost of branding, promoting, and marketing the shoe store business is yet another key factor that will determine the overall cost of opening a shoe store business in the United States of America. Trust me, if you need to win a fair share of the available market in your city, and the online marketing to pay for branding, promotion, and marketing.
As a matter of fact, it is not cheap to come by an expert in branding, promotion, and marketing that will help you compete with brands that are already determining the market direction of the shoe store business in your city. So, if you add the cost of paying a branding and marketing expert, it will surely increase the cost of opening your shoe store business.
7. The Cost for Furnishing and Equipping the Facility
Another factor that will determine the cost of opening a shoe store business is the cost of furnishing and equipping the facility. You need to acquire items such as storage hardware (bins, rack, shelves, case), shopping baskets and trolleys, counter area equipment,
Flat Screen TVs, sound system, Satellite dish and decoder, furniture (table, and stools), telephones, filing cabinets, store equipment (cash register, POS machines, security, CCTV, ventilation, signage), security and fire alarms and prevention gadgets amongst others. All these will cost money and it will influence the overall cost of opening a shoe store in the United States of America.
8. The Cost for Insurance
The cost of paying for insurance is yet another important factor that will determine the overall cost of opening a shoe store business in the United States of America. In the United States, you can’t operate a business without having some of the basic insurance policy covers that are required by the industry you want to operate from.
Thus, it is imperative to create a budget for insurance policy cover and perhaps consult an insurance broker to guide you in choosing the best and most appropriate insurance policies for your business.
9. The Cost for Registering the Business
The cost of registering the shoe store business is yet another cost that will influence the overall cost of opening a shoe store business in the United States of America. Although the cost of registering a business is affordable, it will no doubt add to the overall cost of opening the shoe store business.
10. Source of Your Supplies
Another major factor that will determine the cost of opening a shoe store business in the United States of America is the source of your supplies. If you get your supplies from a cheaper source, you canwill help bring down the cost of starting the business.
If you are able to build a robust business relationship with some of the leading shoe manufacturing companies,You have succeeded in cutting down the cost of your supplies. As a matter of fact, you can even get your supplies on credit.
11. Cost of Recruiting and Training Your Staff
The fact that you are opening a new shoe store business means that you are expected to recruit and train your staff to conform to the kind of shoe store business you want to operate.
The training will help you sell the corporate culture of your organization to your new employees. As expected, it will cost you money to hire expert trainers that will help you bring your new hires up to speed and that will add to the overall cost of opening a shoe store business.
12. The Cost of Purchase and Customizing of Uniforms
Another factor that will determine the overall cost of opening a shoe store business in the United States is the cost of the purchase and customizing of uniforms. As expected, sales boys and girls, front desk/payment attendants, and security personnel all need different uniforms, and these uniforms will cost you money which is why they must be part of your budget.
13. The Cost for Grand Opening of the Shoe Store Business
No shoe store business should open its door for business without first organizing an opening party to officially launch the business. This means that the cost of the grand opening of a shoe store business is part of the factors that will determine the overall cost of opening the business in the United States of America.
You can choose to do a soft opening if you are operating on a low budget or you can go for a grand opening party. The bottom line is that it is a cost that must be part of your budget.