How to Start an Office Supply Business
Offices need a regular supply of their various needs day-to-day like paper, ink, paper clips, and many other things. Schools are also big users of office supplies, which can even be among your major markets of the business you are thinking of setting up.
An informal survey of the number of offices and schools in the area of your planned business would be helpful.
When you start your office supply business, ensure that the space you occupy has enough storage capacity for the various office supplies that you have to keep in stock in preparation to servicing your clients. Your stockroom must be of the all-weather type, meaning your supplies, especially paper, may not get wet even if there are strong winds and rains that may hit your area every now and then. You should have also a closed van that you can use for hauling the office supplies from your supplier or for delivering them to your clients’ offices.
Identify Your Source of Office Supplies
Your location should also be near enough to the suppliers you would tap to provide you with all the office supply items that you need to be ready with, whenever your customers and clients call for them. If you can get suppliers willing to deliver to your place the items you need, so much the better, so you can substantially cut on your own transportation costs. That will also mean some savings for you on overhead expenses for personnel. All the suppliers you will work with must have appropriate communication facilities so you can easily contact them anytime.
Locate Your Store Centrally
The other important factor to consider in deciding where to locate your store is its central location relative to the business offices and the schools that will be your main clients and customers. This should make your many delivery trips of office supplies to them easy and convenient for you. If you can also get a store space, where there is considerable pedestrian traffic passing by all day that will be an added source of income. You can set up a retail portion of your store for small transactions with individuals needing to buy your office supply items.
You have to make the existence of your store known to the public, especially to the establishments that you will be supplying with the office supplies. You can initially spread this information when you conduct your survey of the area in the city where you intend to do business to determine how many offices and schools are there that will be your market for your goods. When you have finally decided where to locate the store, go around the offices and schools a second time, this time with your business card detailing more information about your new store. If you have established your own website, your business card should include this information for those who might choose to order office supplies from you online.
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For instance, how does one get in touch with suppliers, how does one derive the formula to markup a product, are there categories or specialties of office supply stores -- not every store offers office cube installation, does one carry the inventory or use just-in-time inventory, and why would one do either. What are some of the best venues on which to advertise? A successful Office Supply Business depends on letting folks know one is in business.
These are just the beginning of questions I had after reading this article.
Something positive can said about the article; it caused me to think about the questions to which I had no answers.
(In fairness to the author, I'm thinking maybe there's a word limit on these articles.... But some references to help on start to answer the questions above would have polished off this piece in a 360 kind of way.)
1. Think small first. Better start small scale and escalate your business later.
2. This answers the space and storage requirement because you only keep a small inventory. Example your storage room in the house that is secure and dry.
3. Local government business license requirement and information are readily available in your municipality. This answers you licensing issues. Example business permits and licensing, capitalization required, business configuration alternatives, sometimes list of suppliers are available in your local government offices.
4. What kind of products? Check the market and industry demand in you place of operation. If you are near schools, business establishments, etc.
5. Know the products they need, there are multiple products. Start with your excel spreadsheet by listing the products. Place a cell and estimate retail and wholesale pricing.
6. Identify suppliers in your area. Check the yellow pages, internet.
7. I will continue next time with more recommendations.
- Pricing: Check on other local businesses or in retail locations on nearby counties. For goverment or industrial sales you have to buy direct from the manufacturer. In general, multiply the COST by 1.8. Research the profit margin formula.
- Products: Start with the basic: Ballpoint and gel pens, Copier paper, Folders, Invoice notebooks, Pencils, Business machine paper (for atm and adding machines, packing tape and masking tape (lots of both, envelopes. If you have schools then add construction paper, crayons, water-based marker, coloring pencils, notebooks. Work it up from there. Don't just buy the cheapest. Buy some quality products too (Ex, Pilot pens. Good place to start - Bazic products. Basically the whole catalog sells.
- Be warned: Governments are slow to pay. I'd stay away from them until you can absorb their 6mo-1yr (to never!) paying cycle. Unless you can make them pay cash. If so, teach me that trick!
jimcooper1224@yahoo.com || Office Supply Business Adviser