ITMAN
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Hi guys, im new here and looks like a great place!
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Looking to open a shop - in august 2010
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that statement right there, should be enough for you...ignore anyone who says otherwise. A little help from us and a little research and you shouldnt have a problem makin a go at it. You might need to fine tune some stuff but we can work on that. August of 2010 gives you plenty of time to get it right.
Glad to have you on!
14049752
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The other thing to consider is your stock. You're going to have a TON of money tied up in stock that's sitting on the shelf but not selling. How likely are people to come to you to buy their ink? How are you going to decide which ink to stock, out of the 40-bajillion types? What'll you do with it once it expires and hasn't sold?
Additionally, do you want to move to be a shop-based business or maintain doing on-site repairs? If you have an on-site job that can't be done during the hours you offer, will you turn it down? If you do it, who will watch your shop? If someone watches the shop, can they work on systems while you're gone? How will you pay them?
So, you have a year to plan. You really need to use all of it to plan, check on prices, save, write a solid business plan and adapt it as needed, and get people that you trust to help and support you.
And...the disclaimer: No, we're not trying to discourage you from starting your own business. It's a great dream and that's what this site is about. We're just people who've been there and done that and want to make sure you have a very realistic idea of what to expect.
Frankly, I think there are too many people on the forums that say non-sense like "your dream is enough". ACG and I are just being more realistic about it... it's hard work, there will be times when you doubt your decision to do it, but nobody's saying it can't be done.
Additionally, do you want to move to be a shop-based business or maintain doing on-site repairs? If you have an on-site job that can't be done during the hours you offer, will you turn it down? If you do it, who will watch your shop? If someone watches the shop, can they work on systems while you're gone? How will you pay them?
So, you have a year to plan. You really need to use all of it to plan, check on prices, save, write a solid business plan and adapt it as needed, and get people that you trust to help and support you.
And...the disclaimer: No, we're not trying to discourage you from starting your own business. It's a great dream and that's what this site is about. We're just people who've been there and done that and want to make sure you have a very realistic idea of what to expect.
Frankly, I think there are too many people on the forums that say non-sense like "your dream is enough". ACG and I are just being more realistic about it... it's hard work, there will be times when you doubt your decision to do it, but nobody's saying it can't be done.
NYJimbo
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(but I would operate 10am - 4pm mon - sat, and then 9-10 and 4-5.30 I would pick up & take back machines)
10-4 wont work. Not enough time for people to come by. I used to do 10-4 and found out that most people are already at work by 10am and dont get out of work until 5pm. You will get some people who don't work, have spouses or kids that can drop off computers, people who take a day off from work or those who leave work early, but it's not enough. Its not the start time, its the closing time. Go to a Staples or Office depot during the day and its empty, but go after 5pm and it really picks up. You need to be open until at least 5pm. I usually do 6pm now but sometimes close at 5pm when its dead.
10-4 wont work. Not enough time for people to come by. I used to do 10-4 and found out that most people are already at work by 10am and dont get out of work until 5pm. You will get some people who don't work, have spouses or kids that can drop off computers, people who take a day off from work or those who leave work early, but it's not enough. Its not the start time, its the closing time. Go to a Staples or Office depot during the day and its empty, but go after 5pm and it really picks up. You need to be open until at least 5pm. I usually do 6pm now but sometimes close at 5pm when its dead.
angry_geek
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I agree with Jimbo on that one. I stay open 8-6 Tuesday through Friday. On Monday, I open at 7 because everyone seems to want to bring in their stuff on Mondays. On Saturday, it's 9-3 or whenever I'm in the shop. Running a shop is no walk in the park. You trade in one boss for however many can fit through the door.
ITMAN
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Thanks guys for your comments so Far
Ok, in order! lol I charge £35 per hour, for brand new customers - after that I charge pro-rata, but what i seem to do different is to cap my charge - never more than about £70-80 even for a windows re-install - thats mainly becuase I charge for the time im acutally working on the machine, not while its installing / doing updates
Generally all my work is home users, and yes, i work most evenings and weekends so i know that is where a lot of my work comes from, and my hope is that becuase the town where i want to set up is where i get most of my work, I should be able to get these people to drop off, or allow me to pick upo
dont get me wrng the hours i mentioned are only rough, and if someone comes earlier (or later) i will do this, the idea is that during the day, I can fix the machines i pick up and also do work in the shop
The stock i hold wont be too high value, mainly cables, and adaptors, maybe the odd hard disk, i will certainly order things for next day through some good suppliers i currently have
i have found places around here for around £800 a month, (for rent, and business tax) obvoulsy i can ad abour £200 on top for bills etc, but i think IO can make it work, due to the sheer number of calls / jobs i get and that is all from word of mouth, and currenly 1 (yes only one) advert in a local publicaton to 1 town (not even the main one)
I have thought about just having an office / room, to work from (my flat is too small!) but i think that with a shop front, and the placement i should and hope to get a lot of passing trade.
Re the ink, I know 4 shops near to me (different towns) and they all stock HP ink, and canon and only certyain ones at that, so im sure I can work that out
I guess really its a matter of making sure that I keep overheads down
My dad is a carpenter, so can fit the shop out, and im very hands on, and in my current full time job I have access to a lot of contacts in the area
Its great to find somewhere with real people doing what i want to do!
oh, and as afinal thought a shop about 14 miles from me, turns over about 130,000 and turns gross profit of 48,000 - not a bad wage, and (i guess i would say this) I get a lot of his "repairs" to sort out...
Thanks
I
Ok, in order! lol I charge £35 per hour, for brand new customers - after that I charge pro-rata, but what i seem to do different is to cap my charge - never more than about £70-80 even for a windows re-install - thats mainly becuase I charge for the time im acutally working on the machine, not while its installing / doing updates
Generally all my work is home users, and yes, i work most evenings and weekends so i know that is where a lot of my work comes from, and my hope is that becuase the town where i want to set up is where i get most of my work, I should be able to get these people to drop off, or allow me to pick upo
dont get me wrng the hours i mentioned are only rough, and if someone comes earlier (or later) i will do this, the idea is that during the day, I can fix the machines i pick up and also do work in the shop
The stock i hold wont be too high value, mainly cables, and adaptors, maybe the odd hard disk, i will certainly order things for next day through some good suppliers i currently have
i have found places around here for around £800 a month, (for rent, and business tax) obvoulsy i can ad abour £200 on top for bills etc, but i think IO can make it work, due to the sheer number of calls / jobs i get and that is all from word of mouth, and currenly 1 (yes only one) advert in a local publicaton to 1 town (not even the main one)
I have thought about just having an office / room, to work from (my flat is too small!) but i think that with a shop front, and the placement i should and hope to get a lot of passing trade.
Re the ink, I know 4 shops near to me (different towns) and they all stock HP ink, and canon and only certyain ones at that, so im sure I can work that out
I guess really its a matter of making sure that I keep overheads down
My dad is a carpenter, so can fit the shop out, and im very hands on, and in my current full time job I have access to a lot of contacts in the area
Its great to find somewhere with real people doing what i want to do!
oh, and as afinal thought a shop about 14 miles from me, turns over about 130,000 and turns gross profit of 48,000 - not a bad wage, and (i guess i would say this) I get a lot of his "repairs" to sort out...
Thanks
I
angry_geek
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I just reread your post. I'm not the one to ask about UK laws and the like. However, if you plan on stocking inventory, there are a lot of things to consider. Most wholesalers won't offer inventory to a startup on credit. I would assume a "LTD" is similar to a "LLC" like we have in the states. This would be the place to start. (I'm speaking on US terms here.) It offers protection by separating your business assets from personal. It also establishes a new entity which will have better luck obtaining lines of credit than you would if you were a sole proprietor. You're going to need this for the first couple of years if you plan on stocking even a modest inventory. To stock a nice line of just ink and toner, you're looking at at least $10,000.00 to get started. You may want to check into some franchise options for ink and toner. As for stocking other items, the sky is the limit. I chose not to go into stocking merchandise for a lot of reasons. The only thing I carry on hand is memory and various basic parts and supplies for upgrades and repairs.
You need to decide if you are aiming your business toward repair and service or toward the resale side. They are both very different business paths. My suggestion would be to file a LLC or LTD or whatever, establish your business on the repair and service maybe with a very small stock, then, after a couple of years, see if it's feasible to move onto resale.
You need to decide if you are aiming your business toward repair and service or toward the resale side. They are both very different business paths. My suggestion would be to file a LLC or LTD or whatever, establish your business on the repair and service maybe with a very small stock, then, after a couple of years, see if it's feasible to move onto resale.
NYJimbo
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The stock i hold wont be too high value, mainly cables, and adaptors, maybe the odd hard disk, i will certainly order things for next day through some good suppliers i currently have
TIP: Keep your empty boxes. We have this very impressive shelf of about 30 motherboard boxes, all layed out like books with "bookends" of power supply boxes, but they are all empty. SEXY but worthless.
Empty boxes will help fill shelves and not cost you anything extra. If clients dont buy your consumables off the shelf but do get uprades instore, then always keep the colorful boxes to fill the place up.
TIP: Keep your empty boxes. We have this very impressive shelf of about 30 motherboard boxes, all layed out like books with "bookends" of power supply boxes, but they are all empty. SEXY but worthless.
Empty boxes will help fill shelves and not cost you anything extra. If clients dont buy your consumables off the shelf but do get uprades instore, then always keep the colorful boxes to fill the place up.
ITMAN
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Great tip! I will start saving them now... one question, what happens when someone picks one up 
NYJimbo
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Great tip! I will start saving them now... one question, what happens when someone picks one up
Most are out of reach, but those I keep in reach are "floor models" for customers to view. Rarely happens. But go to most computer stores and they do the same.
angry_geek
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The stock i hold wont be too high value, mainly cables, and adaptors, maybe the odd hard disk, i will certainly order things for next day through some good suppliers i currently have
TIP: Keep your empty boxes. We have this very impressive shelf of about 30 motherboard boxes, all layed out like books with "bookends" of power supply boxes, but they are all empty. SEXY but worthless.
Empty boxes will help fill shelves and not cost you anything extra. If clients dont buy your consumables off the shelf but do get uprades instore, then always keep the colorful boxes to fill the place up.
Great tip. I do this as well. It also is good for security. Not much sense shoplifting an empty box. I keep the merchandise in back out of sight.
thebeardedone
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Great tip! I will start saving them now... one question, what happens when someone picks one up
Then they pick up an empty box *shrugs*
Seriously, I can only echo the advice that has currently been given here. Ensure that your figures are right before taking the plunge and that everything is in order.
There is a website for UK companies called http://www.startups.co.uk which has advice on becoming incorporated amongst other things.
EDIT: Great advice there, NYJimbo and angry_geek. If I ever open a shop I'll keep that in mind
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Hello Ian,
Well done for deciding to take the plunge, I wouldn't want to do anything else.
Firstly, you need to look at your sales/profit figure, you'll have a lot more expenses to come out of your profit.
You don't have much local competition so you'll be able to make a slightly higher margin, as an example:
With regards "Limited Company" status vs "Sole Trader", I would recommend Ltd company but you will need to speak to your accountant, things to consider:
1) Limited company means that the company is liable, not you. E.g. If a customer trips over a box in your shop and sue's you for £50,000 if your insurance company finds a get-out then you're going to loose your house & business if you're "Sole Trader", you're just going to loose your business if you're Ltd
2) Banks will be more likely to lend to you if you're "Sole Trader" (they can go after you PERSONALLY if it all goes wrong). As a Ltd company, don't expect the banks to offer you much money, credit card, etc WITHOUT getting a Personal Guarantee from you (so they can still go after you personally if it all goes wrong!).
3) If you start off "Sole Trader" and everything goes well, changing to Ltd company will be a complete pain in the arse after a few years (you will loose any credit you have built up with distributors as they will treat you as a brand new business).
Things you're going to need:
MONEY (and a lot of it)
You're going to need a LOT of money to start up, don't underestimate the cost of stock.. £10,000 of stock will barely fill even a small shop. E.g. getting a range of consumables in could cost you a couple of grand in itself (and these go out of date by the way, do you're homework first to make sure you know which ones sell - great regular business though when you get it right)
IMPORTANT: Ever since the mid 90's when ton's of UK computer companies went bust, most IT trade distributors won't even think of offering you a penny of credit until you've been in business 1 year.
INSURANCE
Public & Employers liability + stock + goods in transit (Your car insurance isn't going to cover you if you have an accident while returning those 6 Sony VAIO's you've just set up). In addition, make sure you're car insurance covers you for business use - many standard policies won't (and business use will invalidate your policy without this btw).
Always be honest with insurance companies when getting cover, tell them everything you indend to do (i.e. picking up, dropping off equipment at customers homes, etc) - insurance companies will look for ANY excuse not to pay up if the worst happens.
STOCK & SHOP FITTING
You're going to need a good range of stock and somehow to display it.
SHOP TILL + CREDIT CARD TERMINAL
Most people will want to pay by card, if you're Ltd company you'll have a easier time getting a PDQ Terminal.
On the subject of PDQ (card) terminals... I'm not saying you should LIE... but the higher your estimated turnover, the lower the commission rate they are going to take from each sale (once you've got a low rate, they aren't going to raise it when your turnover is less than you said - they likely won't even ask).
Also MAKE SURE you shop around, our Bank swore blind that they couldn't offer a commission rate below 5%, shopped around until we got a quote of 2% (!)... went back to our Bank with this quote... and they beat it.
SUPPLIERS
Two of the biggest trade distributors are Ingram Micro and Computer 2000, between them they supply about everything you're going to want to stock (however trade prices are really not going to be much different from big online retailers such as Dabs and Aria who work on tiny margins).
CUSTOMERS
Ever area is different, sometimes advertising in local papers/radio works great, other times it's just a great big hole in the ground to throw large amounts of your hard earned money down. Leafleting, mailouts etc sometimes work great. Don't underestimate the importance of word-of-mouth in a small area.
Get a website up and running early, nothing fancy, keep it simple to start off (who we are, what we do type of thing). It will take a while to see any return on this (when rankings improve).
Other expenses you will have to consider: premises, local business & water rates, electricity, accountants fees, credit card terminal hire, telephone & internet (+ probably a few others I can't think of just now).
I hope that this has not put you off by the way, this is just a list of a few things i've come across over the years. I absolutely love owning a computer business and really could never work for someone else again if my life depended on it
Best Wishes,
Jason
Well done for deciding to take the plunge, I wouldn't want to do anything else.
Firstly, you need to look at your sales/profit figure, you'll have a lot more expenses to come out of your profit.
You don't have much local competition so you'll be able to make a slightly higher margin, as an example:
- Most shop items, consumables, etc - 20% to 30% (more than this and even impulse buyers will just order from the internet)
- Laptops & Computer - 10% to 20% (tops), online retailers are on 1.5% to 2.5% over trade cost, you are going to need to sell extras to make any money on systems
- Cables, Connectors (VGA cables, Ethernet cables,etc) - You can make very high margins on these items and still look stupidly cheap compared with PC World, etc
With regards "Limited Company" status vs "Sole Trader", I would recommend Ltd company but you will need to speak to your accountant, things to consider:
1) Limited company means that the company is liable, not you. E.g. If a customer trips over a box in your shop and sue's you for £50,000 if your insurance company finds a get-out then you're going to loose your house & business if you're "Sole Trader", you're just going to loose your business if you're Ltd
2) Banks will be more likely to lend to you if you're "Sole Trader" (they can go after you PERSONALLY if it all goes wrong). As a Ltd company, don't expect the banks to offer you much money, credit card, etc WITHOUT getting a Personal Guarantee from you (so they can still go after you personally if it all goes wrong!).
3) If you start off "Sole Trader" and everything goes well, changing to Ltd company will be a complete pain in the arse after a few years (you will loose any credit you have built up with distributors as they will treat you as a brand new business).
Things you're going to need:
MONEY (and a lot of it)
You're going to need a LOT of money to start up, don't underestimate the cost of stock.. £10,000 of stock will barely fill even a small shop. E.g. getting a range of consumables in could cost you a couple of grand in itself (and these go out of date by the way, do you're homework first to make sure you know which ones sell - great regular business though when you get it right)
IMPORTANT: Ever since the mid 90's when ton's of UK computer companies went bust, most IT trade distributors won't even think of offering you a penny of credit until you've been in business 1 year.
INSURANCE
Public & Employers liability + stock + goods in transit (Your car insurance isn't going to cover you if you have an accident while returning those 6 Sony VAIO's you've just set up). In addition, make sure you're car insurance covers you for business use - many standard policies won't (and business use will invalidate your policy without this btw).
Always be honest with insurance companies when getting cover, tell them everything you indend to do (i.e. picking up, dropping off equipment at customers homes, etc) - insurance companies will look for ANY excuse not to pay up if the worst happens.
STOCK & SHOP FITTING
You're going to need a good range of stock and somehow to display it.
SHOP TILL + CREDIT CARD TERMINAL
Most people will want to pay by card, if you're Ltd company you'll have a easier time getting a PDQ Terminal.
On the subject of PDQ (card) terminals... I'm not saying you should LIE... but the higher your estimated turnover, the lower the commission rate they are going to take from each sale (once you've got a low rate, they aren't going to raise it when your turnover is less than you said - they likely won't even ask).
Also MAKE SURE you shop around, our Bank swore blind that they couldn't offer a commission rate below 5%, shopped around until we got a quote of 2% (!)... went back to our Bank with this quote... and they beat it.
SUPPLIERS
Two of the biggest trade distributors are Ingram Micro and Computer 2000, between them they supply about everything you're going to want to stock (however trade prices are really not going to be much different from big online retailers such as Dabs and Aria who work on tiny margins).
CUSTOMERS
Ever area is different, sometimes advertising in local papers/radio works great, other times it's just a great big hole in the ground to throw large amounts of your hard earned money down. Leafleting, mailouts etc sometimes work great. Don't underestimate the importance of word-of-mouth in a small area.
Get a website up and running early, nothing fancy, keep it simple to start off (who we are, what we do type of thing). It will take a while to see any return on this (when rankings improve).
Other expenses you will have to consider: premises, local business & water rates, electricity, accountants fees, credit card terminal hire, telephone & internet (+ probably a few others I can't think of just now).
I hope that this has not put you off by the way, this is just a list of a few things i've come across over the years. I absolutely love owning a computer business and really could never work for someone else again if my life depended on it
Best Wishes,
Jason
ITMAN
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Thankyou for your replies guys
Having thought about it VERY hard, i keep thinking of the fact that I am goingt o have to take out around £15000 loan for stock and to cover the first 6 months where trade will be slow, as I dont (an wont by then) have any savings
I think I am therefore going to look into doing full time, what I have been doing part time for 9 years, and then, when i have built up enough work from that, move to a shop
I may still look at getting a small office room / serviced office to do all the jbo and store all my stuff, as my small 1 bed flat at the moment is not big engouh for what I will need to do full time, and also wife, CONSTANTLY moans about pc's being all over the place!
So, think i may look at this, and see if this can be feasbvile, as if i want to run a shop, i would need to makle around 2.5k amonth to pay bills, and me, and have some leisure money! whereas i would only need around 1.5k a month if i dont have the shop as an overhead
Thanks guys!
Having thought about it VERY hard, i keep thinking of the fact that I am goingt o have to take out around £15000 loan for stock and to cover the first 6 months where trade will be slow, as I dont (an wont by then) have any savings
I think I am therefore going to look into doing full time, what I have been doing part time for 9 years, and then, when i have built up enough work from that, move to a shop
I may still look at getting a small office room / serviced office to do all the jbo and store all my stuff, as my small 1 bed flat at the moment is not big engouh for what I will need to do full time, and also wife, CONSTANTLY moans about pc's being all over the place!
So, think i may look at this, and see if this can be feasbvile, as if i want to run a shop, i would need to makle around 2.5k amonth to pay bills, and me, and have some leisure money! whereas i would only need around 1.5k a month if i dont have the shop as an overhead
Thanks guys!
angry_geek
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You may want to see if any of the businesses around have an unused back room or office you could rent. Or see if your town has a small business incubator.
ITMAN
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yes, i have found a business centre on a local indutrial estate, and they have rooms around 250 sq ft for £350 a month, but i dont know if that includes rates and if it has telphone (for broadband) but looks promising!
Doctor Micro
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Nothing to add to the good advice already given, but a kudos to jas. that was a great post. Well thought out and thorough. Good job. *tip of the hat*
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