Are you excited by the thought of being self-employed and running your very own furniture franchise business, but you don’t know how to get started? Here, we’re going to take a look at what you should prioritize if you plan on running a furniture franchise.
Choose a niche
With so much competition on the high street, running a competitive furniture franchise requires you to choose a niche that you can own for yourself. For example, you could focus on a specific kind of furniture, like bookcases or bedroom furniture, such as bedside tables and dressing tables.
Don’t stop short on the planning
Many new businesses have a tough time with their finances in the early years, which can cause a great deal of stress. This is why you should do as much planning as possible before you get started.
Unfortunately, there are some eventualities you can’t plan for, as things happen, and you end up spending more than you bargained for, or at least take longer than you predicted. However, there are some things that you can plan to help your new furniture franchise business run more smoothly. So do your research on the industry and allow yourself to be as prepared as you can.
If you can attract some inquiries early on, you can always take advantage of a financing option like invoice factoring to give you advances on potential orders. This can help you succeed in managing cash flow in those early stages.
Location, location, location
As with almost all businesses, location is one of the most important factors if you’re planning to open a physical store. In this case, there are a few things to take into account. One factor is the size of the space. For example, if you plan on selling custom-made sofas, you’ll need a large enough space to showcase your furniture and maximize sales potential. Even if you don’t need to accommodate larger pieces of furniture for sales, you’ll still need enough space to enable suppliers to easily pick up materials.
Focus on your online presence
While it’s important to choose the right location for your store, you should also focus on your online shop and presence. These days, many customers browse online when looking for furniture because they walk into a shop and make a purchase. Another large group of buyers exclusively buy their furniture online. That’s why it’s important you invest time and money in your website, and make sure that you provide a quality user experience. When it comes to web design, you can always consider alternative options like Shopify.
Don’t forget sales and marketing
As a new furniture franchise business, you should look to get in touch with local media and bloggers to generate some interest in your company, as well as help optimize your website for local search engine results. You won’t need to spend anything here, as all you need to do is use such social media channels as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Or you could appear at local events and craft fairs. Make sure to have business cards at hand, so that if you meet somebody who is interested in buying a piece of furniture, they can get in touch with you when they’re ready to get out their credit card and make a purchase.
The legal stuff
There are certain responsibilities you need to remember when it comes to selling furniture. For example, you need warranties and guarantees in place should something suddenly break. You also need to have the right insurance for handling products and goods, i.e. product liability.