OberonSH's DFW Diary Thread - 1 Woman, 1 Toddler & A Whole Lotta Debt!

whatamess_2

OberonSH wrote:

Whatamess - I know, shall have to crawl now and tell The Ultimate MSE Nerd I was a naughty Obi and I should be put in the dungeon with the Stupid% store cards, and carol vorderman.

Please, no carol.....put the broccoli juice down, and step *away* from the mung beans......and no I don't want a consolidation loan at a daft percentage secured on my home, thanks.

:rotfl: :rotfl:

jessicamb

OberonSH wrote:

yay! Come on Debt Assassins, climb aboard the DebtMobile - Heated seats, expensive car mats and those handy cup holders you only get on cars worth more than the National Income.

Well, got a bit of a shock just, the shop I was looking at in Grimsby would suit perfectly - except it's £77k a year!!!!! :eek: :eek:

Wonder why these companies let these places sit empty for years rather than accept a lower rent? I'm not rushing into anything though, must find the perfect shop. There's a nice little one that's in a great place, but it's just soo small for what I want to do. May considder that though, it's big enough for what I want without some of the 'add ons' like dress making patterns and craft stuff. What do y'all think?

Obi - you need to consider what the relative margins and turnover are on each of product lines then decide what is the most profitable. Things like dress making patterns sound like they wouldnt take up vast amounts of space but I guess that they would sell for a decent amount more than they cost you. If you want any help you can send me a pm anytime (I promise I dont own a wool shop!)

Pobby

Obi,re selling the shop.How long have you been running?Guess you have up to date books.I have never really fathomed out how you value a business.I guess the best way is to value it against your pre tax profits.I had a shop up for sale some years ago and involved a business transfer agency.

They found me a potential buyer who was a complete d--- head.No money and s--- for brains.Ended up with me trying to get him finance.In the end we told him to sling his hook as we were head of the lease and I could see that he would go bust pretty quick with us having to pay the rent!

Have alook at Daltons weekly on line.Also try and find a decent business transfer agent in your area.Anyway all the best with it.

OberonSH

Thanks for your advice guys - The redevelopment will be great for the shop if it goes the way the council are talking, but to be honest I'm mainly sick of people comparing me to the previous owners. The shop is too small for what I want to do, and there are no affordable units available in scunny, never are. Grimsby is where all y friends are, and I do like the place, gets a lot more people than we do in scunny.

As for buyers I have a couple already lined up, some of my regulars have expressed an interest, plus I've had a few phone calls when my daughter was born seeing if I was selling up then. Don;t think I'll have a problem finding a buyer to be honest.

I just don;t want peple looking at he books and thinking it doesn't make anything - place is a gold mine if you're not in debt, but when I bought the place I got screwed by the guy who sold it to me, and had to put myself in debt to stock up. I intend to sell the shop as a package - stock, till, even a float. Open up monday and start trading, and making a profit from ay 1.

OberonSH

jessie - you'd be surprised how much space they take up - I'm using teh cabinets as a counter t the mo! You're right about narrowing the lines, I don't want o end up like I am now - stocking a bit of everything. I have my list of things I want to stock, the type of stuff I want to do, and I'm sticking to it. No more 99p-doesn't-really-make-a-profit DK yarn. I want top end stuff, with custmers who want quality and don't !!!!! about £1.79 being too expensive. I'll just have to keep my eyes out, I'm the opportuniy will arise if it's meant to be.

lynzpower

I reckon if you are looking for a crafty type place ( im not a crafter myself, cant thread a needle) but I suspect that people will go wherever the stuff is sold. Obviously if youve got A more mature clientele youl wouldnt want to be on top of a hill, but as long as its on some bus routes, does it need to be in the town centre?

OberonSH

I'd prefer that, more passing trade. I thought I could get away with the 'if you sell it, they will come' with another shop that lasted 6 months, but as it was 'out of the way' (top end of high street with bus stop 200 yards away) they didn;t. I don't want to make the same mistake again, so I'm looking at location first. There's a nice little shop going with accomodation but it's out theway and looks like it's in the middle of a rough area so that's off the list, even if it is cheap rent/flat/gold plated loo seat.

lynzpower

Fair enough, I do agree with you.
My parents had shops themselves too, and Ive always fancied it myself, but commercial rents being what they are these days :eek:

What sort of square footage do you need??

OberonSH

Couldn't tell you, except not dinky (current store approx 15m x 20m retail area) but not too big. Would love one with a flat above to save on rent, but not going to get one on the high street I reckon. Going to just keep an eye out along the roads I fancy, and call the agents when I see them. Got to get current shop shifted first before I do any serious looking anyways, just wanted to get a feel for the type of rents I'm looking at, and Grimsby seems quite reasonable.

lynzpower

and maybe somewhere where you are allowed to sell coffee? Maybe a loo perhaps lol