How to Open a Bookstore Business

Business Overview:

If you are an avid reader and all-around book lover looking for a way to be your own boss and escape the rat race, you should learn how to open a bookstore. Imagine being around books all day long, getting to read on the job and helping others find books they will enjoy. Owning a bookstore sounds like a pretty great business idea, doesn’t it? When opening a bookstore business, you should create a business plan first, then start looking for a shop that meets your needs. You might find an empty store for rent or you may find another bookstore owner who wants to sell you his or her franchise. This route might be more expensive but you would already have a supply of books in stock. Perhaps the most important thing to find out when researching how to open a book store is where and how to obtain your inventory of books. There are several suppliers that sell books wholesale; you can also find inexpensive books online. When you think about how to start a book store, you might wonder exactly what type of store to open. If you’re interested in non-fiction, you might want to open a historical bookstore. If you’re a romance novel fan, devote your book stock to that genre. You should do some research to see what genres of books sell best but it is entirely up to you what types of books to have in your bookstore. As you can see, for a book lover, owning your own bookstore is a dream come true.

A Day in the Life of a Bookstore Business Owner:

Your day will begin a little while before your store is scheduled to open. Make sure all the books are properly shelved and displays are set up correctly. If you have a staff working for you, make sure they are on time and know about any new books or discounts. You will help customers throughout the day and discuss with them what books they might like to see you carry. At the end of the day, you’ll want to go over your sales and put all your finance information into your computer.

About Your Customers:

Your customers will be people looking to buy books of the genre you choose to carry.

What You Need to Start:

• Business plan
• Storefront
• Books
• Other items (journals, calendars, bookmarks, etc.)
• Cash register
• Insurance
• Computer and finance software

The Good:

• For a book lover, being around books all day is highly enjoyable.
• Even in this technological age, books will always be in demand.
• You can be your own boss.
• You can have your employees run the shop so that you may take vacation whenever you want.

The Bad:

• It can be expensive to get your store up and running.
• It might take some time for your sales to exceed your expenses.

Resources:

• American Booksellers Association
• Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of America
• Wikipedia on Bookselling

About The Author

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