Cell Phone Store Advice/Help Please

[SRenn]

Hi my name is steve and i was wondering if anyone could help me out? For a while i have been thinking about opening up a cell phone store. I dont know whear to start.Does anyone know what i should do,What kinda things should i be expecting,What kinda money will be needed, exc...... If you have time please let me know everything you could tell me about opening up a cell phone store... THANK YOU...

[nKrypteD1]

Originally Posted by SRenn

Hi my name is steve and i was wondering if anyone could help me out? For a while i have been thinking about opening up a cell phone store. I dont know whear to start.Does anyone know what i should do,What kinda things should i be expecting,What kinda money will be needed, exc...... If you have time please let me know everything you could tell me about opening up a cell phone store... THANK YOU...

Hi Steve,

First of all, this belongs in another forum and I'm sure the mods will move it shortly, don't be alarmed it's a simple mistake to make. I cannot give you direct #'s but I can walk you through some of the basics of what you're looking at.

First of all, is another cellular store something your area needs? or is this just simply something you feel the need to do? Do a bit of research on market saturation. Next costs, I'm sure if you've gotten this far you have a location in mind, speak to a real estate agent or the property manager where you're looking, at the very least get some base figures. IE. how much do you need to spend monthly on rent, utilities, etc. Next comes the display furniture, you can look on google to find a vendor that will give you a rough estimate, nothing all too fancy needed to start with. Now we get a bit touchy,

1. Inventory, you need to decide what phones to carry and how many of which model to keep in stock, the master dealer you work with will have some advice and propably some floorplan options on this matter.

2. Advertisement/Marketing, this is the bread and butter of all business, at the very least you'll want some signs for your business exterior, you'll want a identity kit (Letterhead, Business Cards, etc) depending on which carrier you go with there are specific guidelines you will have to follow. There is also the need for at least a simple information site (it helps in the customers eyes to have yet another resource on you) and so forth.

Services you'll need, 2 telephone lines, at the least, 1 for fax 1 for voice, you will also need internet access to activate the phones and so forth. There will be misc. equipment and electronic equipment you will need to purchase, I would say $5,000 for this category would be about right. Sales are really area and skill specific so I doubt anybody will attempt to give you numbers in such a volatile market. I would strongly suggest finding your nearest small business center, community colleges usually host these, it may be known as a SBDC/Small Business Development Center, they will help you figure out costs in more detail, get your business legal, etc.

Best of luck and just for good measure, remember your biggest step in success when you get off the ground is keep your customers happy even if it means you have to occassionally eat a few dollars, word of mouth is a powerful tool and/or weapon.