Cascade Alliance

Technique Tuesday: Tips for Starting a New Project in Your Store

So, you’ve started a new business and now you’re looking to take on a new project to bring in more revenue.  Curious how to effectively do that?  Worried that adding a product line might be too big of a project?  Below we’ve compiled a list of suggestions.

Adding in a book section can be a good source of added income to your thrift store, but can be a burden if done wrong. Where to start?

• When planning to expand and add a books section (or any section!), first build up a stockpile. You want to ensure that you’ll have a steady supply in order to rotate the stock.
• Ready to shelve? Group books in similar categories. The easier it is for a customer to find what they’re looking for the better. Below are some basic categories to start out with until your inventory has increased.
  • Fiction
  • Nonfiction
  • Kids
• Not sure how to price your books?
  • Use unit pricing. Examples include $1.79 for soft backs and $2.79 for hardback.
  • Consider pricing up books that are newer, popular or on local history.
  • Don’t price up books right away if you’re still building your brand-you want to first establish a customer base.
• Focus on rotating
  • Look at your product turnover, see what’s moving and what’s not. Expand sections that are popular as long as you can keep them full.
  • Add new inventory every week. Don’t just refill as the product sells, even if a shelf is full you don’t want it to become stagnant. Rotate, rotate, rotate!

The key to expanding your store and operating a successful book section is to consistently turn over product, have simple pricing guidelines and keep it organized.