Sarah walks boutique owners through deciding whether to open a second location or focus on online sales. Start with customer interviews to test demand, get clear on why you want to expand, and check if you have the time and team for it. Don't expand just because you have extra inventory or found a good storefront.
Hey guys, it's Sarah back from the Boutique hub and I'm here today to answer probably one of the most difficult questions that I am asked on the daily should I open a second location or should I go full fledged into online versus my brick and mortar? Well, in today's age, as time changes so quickly and we're finding the needs of our customers have changed, it's time to do a customer interview. It is time to really dive in to find out who they are and what they want and what they need and how we can serve them. I've covered that in other videos, but I just wanted to come back to that and say before you say yes to the second store or you say yes to closing store one and opening strictly online and focusing there, I have to go back and ask you, what is your why? Who are those customers? Assuming that you already know that, who they are, how you're going to serve them, but they. But then go back and decide what is your why? What's the reason you're getting out of bed every morning and continuing to do this? Have your passions changed? Because if your why is big enough, you'll find out how to do this right. But all too often the number one biggest mistake I see retailers make is jumping into that second location or trying to go more into the online space, including your brick and mortar, simply because we've overbought an inventory and that's a hardship. We don't want to have to find more space just because we have a buying problem. So should you go into a second location? I'm not sure. Do you have time for that? Do you have a customer need for that? Do you have the people asking you and the team in place to make that happen? Because all of these extra things you want to take on, you're not getting any more time into your week, right? So what are you going to let go or where are you going to find the time to really be able to focus on these things? That's really important. So if you have a deep enough why you're going to figure out how to do this, maybe it's time to assess all the other things that we're doing and decide is that really worth it? I honestly feel like less is more. Trying to be absolutely everything to everyone is going to spread yourself too wide, too thin and create a lot of problems. You've probably heard me say, the bigger you get, the bigger your problems, right? That comes with growth. So iron out your time, figure out what are those things most important to you, right? That you're super passionate about and go after those first. As long as you have a customer that wants that, do those customer interviews assess your passions, your whys, and assess your time. And that right there should answer that question. Should I open a second location or should I deep dive further into online? Guys, yes, there's opportunity everywhere every time we turn around. Because if you're listening to this and you're one of the ones that has survived the 2020 issues that happen with businesses, there's opportunities knocking every time we turn around. However, we have to be in line with those goals. We can't just say yes without a plan. So slow down, think it through, decide who you're serving, what they need. Do you have time and a passion for this effort? If so, then it's time to put the pencil to the paper and start mapping out the financial opportunities and the gain. Don't do it just because you have too much inventory and don't do it simply because you drove down the street and you saw a building for sale or for rent. There's a lot more that goes into it. I honestly believe if you can dive in and do really awesome at the less, the more will come. Alright guys, that's all I got for today. Please don't hesitate to ask us other questions. Message me for more information. Drop your thoughts below. We'll be back soon.
