How to Open a Stationery Store

Business Overview:

Choosing to open a stationery store could well prove to become one of the smartest business decisions you make. This is a time tested business idea, and with it you can make great profits selling products that everyone needs. Through your stationery store you will typically sell usual stationery items such as pens, pencils, folders and paper. However, you’ll certainly not be limited to only selling typical products such as these, as you’ll have a great deal of freedom to offer a variety of other products. Most stationery stores also offer cards (birthday cards, Christmas cards, thank you cards, etc.) and many other products like calendars, photo albums, diaries, desk clocks, ink cartridges, gift wrapping, and much more. Added to the freedom you’ll have in choosing which products to offer, you can also choose whether you want to get creative and build your own unique stationery store or, alternatively, you can purchase a franchise. No special qualifications or experience are required to open a stationery store and build it into a profitable business. Desire, creativity and commitment are all you really need to succeed with this business idea.

A Day in the Life of a Stationery Store Business Owner:

As a stationery store business owner, you will arrive at your store about 15 minutes early to ensure everything is in order, before opening your doors for business around 9 a.m. Throughout the day people will enter your store to purchase stationery items, and you will serve them. You may also provide assistance to customers and help them either with locating the specific stationery products that they are looking for, or to choose memorable cards for special occasions (birthdays, weddings etc.). At around 6 p.m., you would close your store, ensuring that everything is clean and tidy and ready for business again the next day. Alternatively, you can hire staff to serve customers and to open and close your store for you. In this case a typical day would consist of ensuring the smooth running of your store by overseeing your store and making the high-level decisions. Other typical daily activities would include ordering new stock whenever supplies run low and taking requests from customers for special orders they may want.

About Your Customers:

Your customers will be people looking to purchase stationery. They are most likely to be business people or students looking for stationery for home or for the office. Many of your customers will also visit your store looking for memorable birthday cards to give to friends or relatives for upcoming special occasions such as birthdays or weddings.

What You Need to Start:

• Business plan
• Marketing plan
• Storefront
• Stationery supplies (including things like cards, depending on the type of store you open)
• Staff
• Display shelves, stationery product racks, etc.
• Computer with finance software

The Good:

• It’s a truly “evergreen” market – people will always need stationery products and cards.
• You’ll have a great deal of freedom to choose additional types of products to offer (such as birthday cards, diaries, photo albums, etc.).
• There are stationery franchises available to purchase, or you can create your own successful brand.
• No special qualifications or experience is needed.

The Bad:

• It may take a while for you to see profits as the initial start-up costs are fairly high.
• You’ll need to work hard and be creative to make your stationery business stand out, as you will likely be up against well established competition.

Resources:

• Greeting Card Association
• Highbeam Business on Stationery Stores
• Bureau of Labor Statistics on Office Supplies, Stationery and Gift Stores
• Wikipedia on Stationery

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