Hi this might be a touchy subject, I'm not sure... I know that the economy is bad and the stores that are already out there don't need competition.. (?)

I've been seriously looking into starting a toystore/Clothing store/record shop/ with a small section contributed to independent comic books, and local art.

I'm native American, so if I stay in Michigan (where my tribe is located), it's really easy for me to get government subsidized loans to start a business. Currently there's only one toystore that I know of located in Detroit, MI. the only other stores that sell toys are based on learning (bah who needs learning?), and TRU... There's absolutely nothing for the discerning adult. It is cool that Rotofugi is close, but it's still 2 hours away. Grand Rapids is the second largest city in Michigan so I think the location is prime, I'm just unsure of where to start.

I know there are other people on this board who have played around with the idea, so I was thinking a section to post tips about what you've learned, or what not to do would be cool. For instance if I do start this up, I would want to carry S7 in the shop, how do I go about becoming a distributor, do I need a contract with the company, or are they already licensed to a set number of distributors?

If this post is out of line here than let me know, I'll shut it down completely... Once again, I've searched through posts to see if there already was something going on, but I'm not the best seeker, so...

Michael

I know it's inappropriate, but I literally LOL-d. At least I think I did.. I've never actually LOL-d before, so..

BTW, dunno anything about biz, but a physical store should start with location, location, location. That's 3 locations for ya, if you're counting..
Recall S7 moving to the Haight here in SF, just down the street from them other guys? I would bet even though being near to them must be irritating, the pull of them tourist dollarz is just too strong.
Also note the plight of our UK brethren, London still doesn't have a kaiju themed store, as it seems it would have trouble surviving. Lesson? Know yer customers. I think.

Man, I've always wanted to do this sort of thing. Good for you, it takes a set of ballz. My wife and I have toyed with the idea of an art gallery with a physical space but hoping for more online sales than anything else. I think the same thing may apply with your idea. Akron is smaller than Detroit but sort of similar as far as consumers. People like what they already know.

Locally (within 30 miles) there are at least 4 toys stores that are not TRU. About the coolest thing they carry are Ugly Doll merchandise, but not the vinyl pieces. Everything else is more boutique type toys, like the Schuyling plastic figures, playmobil sets, weird games, European baby toys...basically anything you can't get at TRU. Although TRU has started selling boutique toys, like Calico Critters and more playmobil.

Sorry I'm not much help... all I can say is it can be done. The stores locally are located in Kent ( strict college town) , Fairlawn ( wealthy, middle class and up ) and Hudson ( really wealthy and middle class). So maybe you need to find a location where people go out of their way to buy something special ? These stores have been around for years and are doing well.

Sometimes the best location is next to the competition.
Two stores close together will have a larger draw than two individual stores.

Yeah, unfortunately here there is no competition whatsoever, the reason I think G.R. is a prime location is because there are 5 colleges in town, I think it's diverse enough to support a local scene... It just hasn't been done yet...

I don't know if you've ever heard of Artprize, but it's a 150,000.00 dollar art contest held in G.R. annually, so there's a lot of out of town traffic that comes through, There just aren't that many fun boutiques to shop at, and the closest thing we have to a vinyl shop is a skateshop that sells dum dums. The owners do collect some insane Kaiju/Kaws/Art pieces, but toy retail is non-existent. I'm just looking at it in the perspective that maybe I could make a difference here culturally and make some kids and adults happy along the way.

It seems like everyplace that I thought might sell bearbricks, was stoked on the idea of them when I asked, but nobody had even heard of them... That's what scares me, I just need to have some sort of sustainability...

Right now I'm smack dab in the middle of writing out a business plan, and depending on the kind of loans I pull off, I would love to have a resin selection from some of the artist's I've met online. Someone was talking about Kaiju and wondering how people can like it when the pieces themselves aren't always the cleanest sculpts... My opinion is the imperfections are what make it unique and give it flavor... I want to have a sort of Folk Art Toy Store, but carry all sorts of different flavors. The Dirty ole Art Brut, right next to the squeaky clean sculpts from people like RxH.

I have no advice per say, but Grand Rapids seemed like an awesome city when I went there a few years back with my old band.

In a coversation I had with kirby at Rotofugi a while back he said that when they first opened there was another toy store down the street from them. That place closed and roto continued to grow because of its internet presence.

Running a brick and mortar location is a pita. If Roto would have trouble staying open with local sales in Chi town then I would be very concerned with the financial viability of your proposed store. Unless you feel you can execute and promote an online side I wouldn't even consider it. Even with that I would explore what other niche markets you can appeal to without losing the heart and soul of your store. If you can manage to bring the right elements in you may become popular with the cities counter culture (hate that term) in general. Sounds like that's along the lines of your thinking anyways. Talk to businesses in the area that rely solely on discretionary income purchases. How are they coping with the current economy in your area. I always tell people if they plan to start their own store to expect it to be like having 3 jobs, none of which pay you. Have the plans and means to not see a profit for 24 months and plan to staff your location without hired help to get up and running. Hope I am not being to negative, I just think you should know these things before jumping in.

As for vendors they will usually have a set process get people carrying their merchandise. They will usually do a credit check and then set you up on terms. They may have contractual agreements pertaining to the particulars for you to sign and follow. A distributor carries lines and sells them wholesale to retail stores so S7 is the distributor and manufacturer in this case. I would imagine S7 would be happy to discuss the prospect of you carrying their toys and if appropriate help navigate the process. I'm also sure that other members can speak with more focus on the toy business in particular. Sadly toys are not among the things I've sold professionally. I hope you can figure it out and make it work, I humbly envy anyone who makes a living off what they love or love to do.

Here in NYC the real estate costs make opening up brick-and-mortar stores a costly pain nowadays. But everyone I have met who is selling stuff like toys, albums, cool stuff and such are going the combo flea-market/Internet presence route. They make the circuit at certain fairs and markets and sell mainly online. EIther via Etsy or eBay... Having your own store is nice, but those methods are relatively easy ways to gauge the waters and then see if you want to go deeper with a whole e-commerce setup.

Another idea I think would be interesting: A toy truck. I know there are some boutiques that basically drive a truck around NYC, tweet locations and such and that is their “storefront” but I’m not too sure how feasible that is for just toys, but it’s an idea. Might actually work well for where you are located since you can park it at one place and then just drive off to other places if need be,

Good luck!

Not so funny, I've actually played with the idea too. There's this guy driving up and down the coast here in California (well, actually who knows where else he's been to..) in a pimped out Jesus RV (no, not a Rose Vampire) that gave me the inspiration to chuck it all, kaiju pimp out an RV and just go all over the country, evangelizing the good little monsters.. but it's difficult to drive around in a Godzilla costume. Plus people kept asking for ice cream..

Ha ha. I've had this same daydream. A G.T. mobile shop that drives from Comic con to Comic con. There is no way I'd ever do it... different life maybe, but it's fun to daydream about it.

I've owned an online record shop and worked with friends to open a record store so this is what I've learned:

Brick and mortar stores are a thing of the past. Unless you own the building, rents are ridiculous even in the cheapest of cities. You would never get enough foot traffic in a niche hobby like this to generate a profit, nor would you be able to set affordable prices, because you'd probably need to charge a little more to make rent. Also you have to think about distributers. They do play favorites depending on the business you give them. Sometimes just opening an account is hard enough. You also need to have online sales no matter what, so then you have to think about building a website etc etc. Not trying to say that all of this is impossible to do but chances for a profitable business are slim. I've seen many great ideas from the heart not translate to a successful business venture in my time.