What you need to open a clothing department. How to competently open your own clothing store from scratch

The clothing store is a promising type of business with a high margin on goods, profitability is ~ 20% with a payback period of 1.5 years. According to the agency "MarketMasters" the rate of clothing retail turnover in Russia is increasing by 3% annually. Moscow accounts for ~40% of all purchased clothes! In the article, we will consider how to open a clothing store from scratch step by step with an example of a business plan with calculations.

Advantages and disadvantages of opening a clothing store

The main target audience of the clothing store: women of any age, men aged 18 to 40 and children. Consider the key advantages and disadvantages of creating a clothing store.

More than 50% of stores in Moscow are franchised! For the clothes sold, you need

The sale of clothing belongs to impulse goods, i.e. is often bought spontaneously, therefore, to stimulate sales, it is recommended to arrange sales, promotions, savings cards with discounts, bonuses for several purchases.

According to Gomkomstat, the leader in clothing turnover is the Central Federal District (~50%) and, in particular, Moscow (~40%). The retail turnover of clothing in St. Petersburg amounted to ~3%.

The main production facilities are located in the Central region of the country (~40%), the North-Western region accounts for ~19% and the Volga region ~18%. If the production of clothing is considered, it is recommended to organize in districts with maximum capacities.

Opening a clothing store: the general concept

Opening a clothing store is possible in two ways: purchase a franchise (ready-made solution), or open it yourself. Both methods are characterized by their disadvantages and advantages. If you decide to open a store on your own, then in order to quickly understand the basic business processes of the store, it is recommended to get a job as an administrator in one of the existing.

How to open a clothing store from scratch: business registration

To register in the tax clothing store, an individual entrepreneur or LLC is created. The table below analyzes the main benefits, as well as the required list of documents for each of the forms of business. When registering for OKVED, choose the main activity: 52.42 "Retail trade in clothes", 52.42.1 - "Retail trade in men's, women's and children's clothing", 52.42.8 - "Retail trade in clothing accessories (gloves, ties, scarves, belts, suspenders and etc.)”.

The best choice of taxation system for a clothing store would be UTII(single tax on imputed income), in order to switch to this system, there must be a municipal law on the possibility of using UTII (up to 100 employees and the cost of fixed assets up to 100 million rubles). The interest rate is - 15%. The advantage of this tax is its linkage to the physical data of the store: area, number of employees, etc. When opening a large store, this is beneficial.

If the simplified tax system is chosen when organizing a company, then it is recommended to choose the accrual of income tax with an interest rate of 6%.

Search for suppliers for a clothing store

Main clothing suppliers: Turkey, China, Europe, Russia. Goods from China and Turkey are attractive due to their low price, which allows for a markup of 200-300%. For example, for a women's skirt on taobao it costs ~ $ 8 (500 rubles), in the domestic market it can be sold for 1500 rubles.

To search for suppliers in China via the Internet, use Aliexpress.com, Taobao.com

Clothing Store Business Plan: Finding a Premises

When creating a store, the key point is to find a place and premises. Locations are a key success factor in offline business. It is necessary to locate the store in close proximity to the traffic of visitors.

For a children's clothing department and a lingerie store, a room with an area of ​​​​12-20 m² is sufficient. This is enough to accommodate a warehouse, shop windows, a fitting room and a cash register. A fur shop or a bridal dress shop will require ~25-70 m². The specificity of the goods here is such that it will be necessary to increase the trading floor and storage facilities.

In megacities (Moscow, St. Petersburg) rent of 1 m² starts from 1500 rubles. Renting a small department of women's clothing (about 20 m²) will cost 30,000 rubles. On the periphery, rent starts from 1,000 rubles / m², a similar store will require about 10,000 rubles.

The most expensive rental of premises is in shopping centers (SCs), as they are the place where the maximum traffic of people accumulates. The cost of rent in the shopping center for 1 m² reaches 20,000 rubles.

Master class: “How to open a clothing store from scratch”

Estimating the cost of commercial equipment

We estimate the type of equipment required and financial costs. When purchasing showcases and racks, the concept of the store, the type of clothing (fur clothing and underwear require different equipment), and traffic are taken into account.

Consider a set of equipment for the store:

• Cash register - 12000-30000 rubles. (price depends on modification). Additional costs: device registration and maintenance.
• Racks - refer to the main furniture of the trading floor, one rack costs 1000-20000 rubles. A store needs 4-10 shelving.
• Showcases - will be needed for displaying accessories or expensive items. Prices start from 2000-3000 rubles. A showcase with an exclusive design and lighting can cost up to 22,000 rubles. For a boutique, you need 2-6 showcases.
• Shelves or brackets - from 600 rubles. for simple models.
• Mannequins - from 1500 rubles, 10 mannequins in the trading floor will be enough.
• Hanged - 2500-9000 rubles. (depending on size). Some shops hang up almost as the only commercial equipment. The need for them is up to 15 pieces. Hangers are sometimes supplied with hangers, but usually hangers are ordered separately. 100-150 pieces will be enough.
• Mirrors - necessary in fitting rooms and the trading floor. The cost of a floor mirror is about 3000 rubles. It is also necessary to purchase wall mirror panels (several pieces).

The cost of purchasing equipment will be ~ 100,000-500,000 rubles.

Some types of retail stores additionally require: a cashier counter, banquettes in fitting booths, etiquette guns. In bridal salons, a sewing machine is needed to fit the dress.

The most famous equipment suppliers: Tritix, Play, Uno, Style, Market, Joker, Primo. Most of them, in addition to selling ready-made solutions, offer to order the creation of individual trading systems.

Personnel costs

For an average store, the total number of staff will be 4-6 people. The team will have 2-3 sales consultants working in shifts. Hall employees simultaneously perform the duties of an administrator and / or cashier, cleaner of premises. To reduce the cost of wages to an accountant, bookkeeping is transferred to outsourcing companies. This allows you to reduce costs ~ 25,000 rubles. per month!

The best criterion for the salary of employees is the average level of wages in the industry. The average level of wages for workers can be found on the website rabota.yandex.ru. Usually, staff earnings are piecework-bonus (fixed salary + percentage from sales). The average salary of a salesperson/consultant is 14,000-25,000 rubles. Sellers need to be trained in how to communicate with buyers. A smile and an attentive attitude increases sales.

The entrepreneur creates a payroll fund (PF), which takes into account the amount given to the staff.

An approximate calculation of payroll for the year:

4 sellers x 12,000 rubles = 48,000 rubles / month

48000 rub. x 12 months = 576,000 rubles. (FOT for the year).

Additional expenses of the entrepreneur: payments to the Pension Fund (PFR), the Social Insurance Fund (FSS) and the Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund (FOMS). The interest rate of the PFR is 22%, the FSS is 2.9%, the MHIF is 5.1%. As a result, the cost of social security is 30%.

Revenue and net profit of the business

To calculate revenue for the year, the average revenue from 1 client (average check) is calculated. The average check, equal to 800 rubles, is a good indicator. It is planned to visit the store by 10 customers, the amount of daily revenue will be ~ 8000 rubles.

Annual revenue will be ~ 2,700,000 rubles. If at the opening the costs amounted to about 1,400,000 rubles, then the payback is achieved after 1.5 years. It may take 1-2 years to achieve a stable profit, which is a good indicator.

Evaluation of the attractiveness of a business by a magazine site

Business Profitability	(3.5 out of 5)	Business Attractiveness 3.3
Project payback	(3.0 out of 5)
Ease of starting a business	(3.5 out of 5)
The clothing store is a promising business in large cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Yekaterinburg. The payback period for initial costs is ~1.5-2 years. The business has sales seasonality (August-October, April-June) which will require additional staff and inventory. The key factors for business success are: location close to visitor traffic, and the possibility of markups on goods of more than 300%.

Today, more than 70% of the market is engaged in sales in various fields of activity. Sales is the easiest and most effective way to start your own business from scratch, because there is a constant demand for a certain category of goods, there is no need for serious planning and analysis.

When thinking about starting your own business, be sure to pay attention to the sales area, for example, selling clothes, children's clothing, jewelry, haberdashery, or all the same only in a complex.

It will be about opening a clothing store in a shopping center.

For example, the markup on outerwear is 20-110% (this includes jackets, down jackets, coats, etc.), the markup on casual clothes is 50-270% (this includes jackets, blouses, shirts, etc.) and the margin for underwear is 150-400%.

Of course, we should not forget about the markup for the brand, for the quality of the material, for the initial purchase price, and availability for buyers.

Starting your activities in the field of sales, you should decide for which category of people your products will be, since not everyone will be able to buy a shirt for everyday wear for 7,000 rubles.

So, the opening of a small business begins with the registration of an individual entrepreneur or a legal entity, and the latter is a rarity for this field of activity.

First steps to starting a business

Suppose you decide to start selling casual clothing, the assortment of which consists of women's blouses, T-shirts, sweaters, men's shirts, T-shirts, jumpers, included wallets, bags, purses in the assortment, and also supplemented it with underwear.

Of course, the assortment can be anything, depending on your desire, and we are only considering an example.

Stage 1: registration with the tax office.

Registration with the tax authority takes place within 5 days from the next day after the submission of documents for registration of an individual entrepreneur. Moreover, before visiting a government agency, you should pay the state duty at one of the banks and attach a receipt for its payment to the documentation.

Stage 2: registration with the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation.

In the pension fund, you do not have to pay for registration, all that is required of you is to write an application for registration. If this is not done on time, you can easily get a fine of 5 thousand rubles.

Stage 3: opening a current account (if necessary).

As a rule, a current account is needed to pay for goods to suppliers. In order to find out if you need it, check with your suppliers on what payment system they are used to working with clients. Within 5 working days after opening an account, notify the tax office and the pension fund, otherwise you will be required to pay a fine.

5 working days after the submission of documents, you receive a certificate of registration and become a full-fledged individual entrepreneur.

Supplier search

Currently, suppliers of goods are ordinary retailers and wholesalers rolled into one. As a rule, a discount on a product is achieved by bulk purchases. The average volume discount is 15-25%. Agree, not so much to add to the amount of your own margin.

The search for suppliers is based on the choice between purchase price and quality. It is recommended that you review up to ten options before choosing your supplier to purchase an item.

How to choose a place to sell clothes

Whoever says what, the most profitable place to sell clothes is a shopping center. The only condition when choosing a location is that the shopping center is well visited by people and it does not matter where it is located, on the outskirts or in the center.

Another issue that arises when choosing a site for sale is the price. As a rule, landlords set their price based on the cost per square meter. In addition, the price for electricity, heating and even a certain percentage for the corridor area is added to this cost.

The cost of 200-500 rubles per square meter characterizes a retail outlet located not in the city center, with low and medium attendance. The price per square, equal to 500-1500 rubles, refers to trading floors in places favorable for sale, the attendance of these centers is sufficient for the implementation of your business.

All sites whose cost is more than 1500 rubles belong to the luxury class. These shopping centers are important not only in the city, but also in the surrounding area. As a rule, there are no cheap things in such expensive shopping centers and they were created for the "rich" segments of the population.

Staff

To carry out activities in the shopping center, you will not need either a cleaner or a security guard. It is recommended for the first time (at least 2-5 months) to work in the clothing department on your own. In this way, you can reduce the costs associated with wages and contributions to the pension fund.

In addition, it will be easier for you to develop your own business, as you will be more motivated to succeed than a hired salesman.

If your sales area exceeds 50 square meters, then you are unlikely to be able to cope on your own. In such a situation, hiring an employee is mandatory, provided that one employee will work for every 50 meters of area. With a heavy workload of your department, the number of sellers should increase.

The financial side of the issue

According to our calculations, the minimum price for opening a clothing department is 72,000 rubles. Next, we will justify it.

• The cost of opening an IP - 800 rubles;
• Costs for the purchase of goods - from 40,000 rubles at a time;
• Equipment costs - from 15,000 rubles;
• Rent of retail space - from 15,000 rubles / month.
• Other expenses - from 1,200 rubles.

These calculations were carried out for a city with a population of 30,000 people. To calculate an estimated cost for a city with a different population, use a proportion and divide the result by two. For example, for a city with a population of 300,000 people, the opening costs will be 360,000 rubles.

Of course, the formula is approximate and does not have any significance, however, it is great for estimating costs.

♦ Capital investments – 1,500,000 rubles
♦ Payback – 1.5−2 years

The conventional wisdom is that people will always buy clothes, shoes and food.

That is why entrepreneurs make out an individual entrepreneur or LLC and begin to look for detailed information about how to open a clothing store or grocery.

Oddly enough, but it is the ready-made dress stores that lead two completely opposite ratings: the easiest startups to start from scratch and those that go bankrupt most often.

And this is no coincidence.

It’s not enough just to say to yourself: “I want to own a clothing boutique.” It is necessary to think over all the nuances, backing up the idea with sufficient capital investments.

Such businessmen are expected to succeed, not financial collapse.

How to open a clothing store: choose a business concept

If you are tired of sitting at home or suffering from a low-paying job and decide to go into business, then probably the first thought that occurred to you was: why not open a store.

According to statistics, women most often open clothing stores (commission or boutique), men - grocery or specialized (construction, household, auto, etc.).

If you belong to the first category, then you should start by thinking through the concept of your future store.

This is very important and necessary in order to build up a customer base as quickly as possible and stand out from competitors.

And then it is worth starting to implement all the other stages, including the purchase of equipment.

The most promising options for business today are:

1. Boutique of high-quality foreign clothes of popular brands.
   Quite a lot of people who will become your customers are ready to purchase even fewer clothes, but better ones.
   For such clients, it is necessary not only to bring well-known brands (Zara, Next, Mango, etc.), but also to open new brands.
2. Thrift store or .
   Used but in good condition, quality clothing is in demand among buyers.
3. Market selling clothes of domestic manufacturers.
   More and more domestic fashion houses are beginning to sew beautiful and high-quality clothes, so you can safely choose just such a startup to launch.
4. Luxury brand store.
   This is often opened by non-poor fashionistas right at home: going abroad for shopping, they take more clothes than they need, and then sell the surplus.
   And no expenses for opening an individual entrepreneur, purchasing equipment or renting.
5. Inexpensive clothes.
   Yes, it's not high quality, but if you set low prices to attract customers, you can make your store profitable.
6. Single brand store.
   Such a business can be opened as a franchise, having received financial assistance, sensible advice, equipment, documents ready for registration, etc.
7. original startup.
   For example, you collaborate with a talented designer and sell in your store clothes that he sews at home. We also accept custom orders.
   For example, the client liked the model, but did not like the color.
   For a fee, you are ready to provide him with the dress of his dreams.

How to open a clothing store: advertising

First of all, you need to come up with a name for the clothing store.

The name should be short and bright, look good on promotional products and be easy to remember.

Foreign names make a good impression on buyers, which seem to hint that luxury clothes are sold here.

Do not spare money for a sign: it should be large, easy to read and be seen from afar.

1. Outdoor advertising: all kinds of announcements, banners, posters and more.
2. Flyers to be handed out in the most crowded place in the area near your boutique.
3. Announcements on radio and television.

Free, but quite effective ways of advertising include social networks and city forums.

How to open a clothing store: calendar plan

Interesting fact:
In the Middle Ages, a fine could only be imposed for the fact that a person is dressed better than a person of higher ranks. Clothes that were considered “illegal” in those days were simply confiscated.

Experienced businessmen have no doubts where to start launching any business: from writing a financial plan with specific calculations in order to understand how profitable a startup is.

And rightly so, but in addition to the financial plan, you also need to draw up a calendar plan that will help you understand how long it will take to implement the idea.

To open a clothing store from scratch (including a commission) it will take from 3 months - up to six months.

How to open a clothing store: a phased launch of a startup

• how carefully they approached the opening of the business;
• were they able to choose the right concept (thrift store or new clothes sale);
• how long did it take to complete all the documents;
• did you manage to save at the initial stage, for example, on the purchase of equipment;
• whether they found a passage place to open a clothing store;
• whether they reasonably formed the assortment and pricing policy;
• and even from the choice of the form for registration: individual entrepreneur or LLC.

Doubt where to start?

Of course - from the registration procedure and the choice of suitable premises.

Registration

You should start dealing with the registration procedure by choosing the form of the future business: sole proprietorship or LLC.

Remember that the area of ​​your store must be up to 150 square meters, otherwise you will need to open an LLC.

Yes, you don’t need a market larger than 150 square meters to open a clothing store from scratch - it’s too risky a startup.

By registering as an individual entrepreneur, you can choose a simplified form of taxation, for example, UTII. After that, you register with the Pension Fund, presenting all registration documents.

And you definitely need to take care of the legalization of your outlet.

It is desirable to issue documents before the purchase of equipment and the delivery of goods.

To legalize a point, you will have to:

1. Register with the Chamber of Commerce.
2. Create a Buyer's Corner.
3. Set up a cash register.
4. Obtain permission from the Fire Service and SES.
5. Sign contracts for garbage collection and more.

Even more difficult, because you also have to conclude a contract for each accepted unit of goods, so it makes sense to still open a new clothing store, and not a commission.

Location

With the same success, you can start opening a clothing store at home in the hope that suddenly customers will still find you.

Climbing far to the outskirts, you must understand that you will have to spend a lot of money on an advertising campaign and create such attractive competitive advantages, such as low prices, so that customers are not too lazy to get to you so far.

The choice of a place with high traffic plays a really important role in opening a clothing store (and it doesn’t even matter if you are running a commission or not market).

The ideal place is:

1. Shopping center.
2. Premises on the ground floor of a high-rise building in the city center.
3. A sleeping area where houses of people with a decent income are located.

Also, you need to make sure that:

1. There were no direct competitors nearby.
2. It didn't take long to find your clothing store (it's located on the main street, not somewhere in the yards).
3. Equip parking. If you open an elite boutique, then you should draw up documents so that only your customers can park their cars in this parking lot, and not everyone who wants to.

room

The size of the room depends on how big a clothing store you decide to open, but it is better not to rent a room with an area of ​​​​less than 50 square meters, as you will create inconvenience for yourself and customers.

The interior of the room depends on the concept of your business:

1. Use bright colors for decoration.
2. An elite boutique should amaze with luxury.
3. Designer fashion house - creative ideas.
4. For an inexpensive clothing market, it is enough to do everything neatly, while choosing discreet colors.
5. But if you decide to open a thrift store, then the interior is not too important, the main thing is the right assortment and prices.

Equipment

The cost of purchasing equipment directly depends on the size of your future store.

If your market area is large and you are focused on wealthy customers, then you will have to shell out a large amount to purchase all the necessary equipment and fully stock your clothing store.

But even a small boutique (area - 50 squares) involves the purchase of the following commercial equipment:

Item of expenses	Amount (in rubles)
Total:	250 000 rub.
Racks and shelves	30 000
Showcase for accessories (jewelry, etc.)	20 000
Racks and hangers	20 000
Equipment for two fitting rooms	20 000
Mannequins	10 000
Cash machine	10 000
Laptop+printer	25 000
Bathroom equipment	15 000
Service room equipment	40 000
Other	60 000

Staff

• polite, helpful, smiling;
• have a good understanding of the product that is being sold;
• have strong nerves and are indulgent about the shortcomings of clients, such as nervousness, impatience, tactlessness, etc.

Today, it is rare that clothing stores work, closing for the weekend, so form two shifts of sellers at once.

The number of consultants on one shift directly depends on the size of your store and the range of goods in it.

If we are talking about a modest corner in a shopping center, then one employee is enough.

If the area of ​​the trading floor is more than 25 squares, then it is better to hire 4 sellers at once (2 per shift).

To incentivize your consultants to sell better, don't put them on a bid. This scheme of work is more effective: a small rate (for example, 5,000 rubles) +% of sales.

In addition to salespeople, you need to hire 1-2 cleaners (if you want your clothing store to always be clean, it’s better to hire two cleaners so that they also work in shifts) and an accountant (an alternative is an agreement with an outsourcing company).

If you decide to open a large clothing store from scratch and are not too limited in funds, then you can hire a manager to help you figure out all the nuances of a new business.

Or you can manage on your own if you feel like you can handle it.

For the salary of the staff, you expect the following monthly expenses:

As you can see, salary costs will not be the same every month due to the fact that sellers do not have a fixed rate, their earnings depend on the amount of sales made.

How to open a clothing store: expenses

You will receive an exact answer to this question only when, with an indication of specific amounts for equipment, rent, repairs in the premises, depending on its condition, etc.

Before making such a plan, study the pricing policy in your area in order to operate with exact, not indicative figures.

If we talk about opening a store of 50 square meters on the ground floor of a multi-storey building in the central part of the city with a population of 300-400 thousand people, then the costs will be approximately as follows:

This amount will increase due to the fact that you will have to contribute the costs of maintaining a clothing store to the financial plan until your monthly income covers these expenses.

To maintain the normal operation of the boutique, you need at least 150,000 rubles a month.

That is, in order to open a clothing store from scratch, it is desirable to have 1.5 million rubles.

Opening a clothing store - is it profitable or not?

The average payback of this business is 1.5-2 years.

Let's try to explain how the numbers work with a specific example.

Let's say you sell 4 items worth 8,000 rubles a day.

Let's immediately subtract the % of sellers who persuaded customers to make a purchase, let's say it's 10%, that is, we have 7,200 rubles left. For a month, the profit of a clothing store (already minus the% of the consultant) will be over 200,000 rubles.

Remember that the amount of mandatory monthly expenses is 140,000 rubles (we take the minimum amount, because we have already deducted% to the consultant), that is, you are left with 76,000 rubles of profit.

At least 20% of this amount should be set aside for the next purchase.

Little is left?

Then you have to attract more clients so that your personal income as a boutique owner is even higher.

Now you know almost everything about how to open a clothing store.

It remains only to collect the amount of start-up capital and think through all the nuances of launching a startup in order to avoid disappointment.

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The specifics of the store is such that the opening can be planned either based on the available space, or on the basis of the assortment with which you want to work. I propose to consider the general principles for choosing the territory and area of ​​the store.

Clothing can be sold both in the Shopping Center and in a separate retail outlet. The shopping center is an excellent solution for opening a middle-class clothing store with an area of ​​up to 150 m 2 . Good traffic will ensure stable revenue, and most of the problems with advertising and approvals will be solved by the administration of the shopping center. This option is ideal for large cities.

A stand-alone store is worth opening if you decide to work with an elite or, conversely, a stock assortment. Such stores also pay off well in small towns and central areas.

Documents accompanying the product

When working with suppliers or making independent purchases, do not forget to take care of the documents. Women's clothing does not apply to goods subject to mandatory certification, but must have a declaration of conformity with GOST R, which is issued by certification bodies.

When issuing a declaration of conformity with GOST R, it is necessary to provide a certain package of documents. For products made in Russia:

• NTD for certified products
• a lease agreement for the occupied space or other document certifying the right of ownership
• quality certificates for the materials used

For clearance import declarations the following documents are required:

• application for a declaration of conformity GOST R
• copy of the contract
• company charter
• state registration certificate OGRN, TIN
• product description (composition, properties, appearance, scope, etc.)
• manufacturer's country quality certificates

Required approvals

While the documents for the goods are being prepared, you can deal with the documents for the store. To open a retail business, approvals from Rospotrebnadzor and the Fire Department are required. If a store opens in a shopping center, then the administration of the center takes care of all these documents, but in a separate store, the entrepreneur will have to take care of everything himself.

For Rospotrebnadzor, it will be necessary to make a PLC (a program for production control over the implementation of laboratory research and testing of factors in the working environment and the labor process at the workplace). This program will spell out all the points on which you need to report to Rospotrebnadzor and the frequency of their implementation.

This usually includes all the necessary measurements for the store, compliance with sanitary standards, control over the maintenance of health records for employees, schedules for various briefings. The program is done once.

To obtain the conclusion of the Fire Inspectorate, it is necessary to equip the premises with a fire alarm, an evacuation plan, fire extinguishers and take a package of documents to the regional division of the State Fire Supervision. This usually includes an application for the issuance of an opinion, a lease agreement, documents for an individual entrepreneur, a plan for the BTI store, an agreement on installing an alarm.

After the departure of the inspector to familiarize himself with the object, they may issue an order to eliminate the defects found. But if most of the measures are completed, then they are usually allowed to open a store with a letter of guarantee. Naturally, all claims will need to be eliminated over time.

You will also need to coordinate the showcase, conclude an agreement for garbage collection and landscaping. Somewhere they demand landscaping of the territory near the store. All requirements can be found in the Administration of the district in which the store is located.

Equipment

Next, you need to think about how you are going to present the goods on the trading floor. The wall equipment for clothes is the same type and differs only in material, color and design. The ideal solution is modular systems such as Global or Solo, they allow you to perfectly display the goods due to different types of hangers.

It is advisable to purchase the so-called island equipment and tables for displaying goods: they will create a direction for the movement of customers and beautifully present the goods. This is the basics of merchandising, the science of how a product can sell itself. It is desirable to install mannequins in the trading floor, which will demonstrate the clothes "live".

Fitting rooms should be comfortable and bright. Mirrors should be positioned so that when trying on you can see how the product looks from behind.

In addition to equipment for demonstrating clothes, you need a computer, a cashless terminal and a cash register registered with the tax office. However, when choosing UTII as a taxation system, an individual entrepreneur gets the opportunity to work without a cash register. Then you can limit yourself to purchasing a check printing machine or work on sales receipts.

Video

Staff

At the same time we are engaged in recruitment. The number of people working in a clothing store depends rather not on the area, but on the customer traffic.

significantly increases sales

In season, which occurs twice a year in the clothing trade (August-October and April-June), it is necessary to bring more people to the work shift. The rest of the time, you can work with a minimum staff, strengthening the team for the weekend.

Usually on an area of ​​​​100-150 square meters. m. cope with three or four sellers and a cashier. In a smaller store, you can limit yourself to 2-3 people. In advance, it is necessary to consider the requirements for personnel, the need for training and certification, since the turnover will largely depend on the goodwill and competence of the sellers in the hall.

Opening your own clothing store is what many entrepreneurs dream of. Someone sees it in the format of a fashionable boutique, and someone wants to make a cozy place where you can buy everything you need for your wardrobe at an affordable price. These ideas are radically opposite, but they are united by the fact that at the beginning it is necessary to draw up a clothing store with calculations. This will allow you to study all the nuances of the sphere in advance, calculate costs and financial results.

Market analysis

As of 2015-2020, the clothing market is worth about 2,000 billion rubles. There is no particular growth in this area; on the contrary, even small declines are sometimes possible. A significant slowdown occurred in 2013-2014. This is due to a significant depreciation of the ruble and the economic crisis in the country. The volume of spending by the population is growing slightly, while prices increase by 4-12% per year on average. From this we can conclude that people:

• prefer cheaper clothes;
• began to buy less clothes due to low purchasing power.

With all this, opening your own clothing store remains a relevant business format. However, it is better to open outlets under a well-known brand by purchasing a franchise. The development of own production will require serious capital investments, and the sale of products from unknown manufacturers will bring much less income.

Consider starting an online store. This option will require a lower start-up cost. In addition, in case of failure, financial losses will be much lower. The work of such a store can be organized independently - create a website, purchase goods and serve customers remotely without involving personnel.

Despite the shift in the interests of buyers towards online stores and mono-brand stores, the entrepreneur has the opportunity to open a successful business in the stationary clothing trade. The main thing in this case is to choose the right assortment and attract buyers.

What is the best clothing to sell?

The business plan of the store implies the need to form a product range. To do this, it is important to decide what kind of clothes to sell. First you need to understand who will be the target audience - women, men or children? Each has its own characteristics:

	Women's clothing	Men's clothing	Baby clothes
Demand level	55%	25%	20%
Competition	high	Moderate	high
Advantages	The highest level of demand. Sustainability of demand even in times of crisis compared to the other two formats. Great needs and financial opportunities.	It's easier to win over the consumer.	Children grow up quickly, so parents are forced to update their wardrobe frequently. High markup on goods.
Flaws	Very high competition, the market is overheated	Men need less clothes. Often they are willing to spend money on their wives and children, and to a much lesser extent on themselves.	High competition. Serious requirements for products.
Capabilities	Sale of shoes and accessories	Sale of expensive accessories (ties, cufflinks, etc.)	Sale of related products: toys, baby food, hygiene products, etc.

The ideal option is the joint sale of women's and men's or women's and children's clothing. So the level of profit will be higher.

How to choose a format for a clothing store

There are several directions for dividing clothing stores into categories. So, depending on the number of brands represented, there are:

• mono-brand stores - clothes of the same brand are sold here, most often such outlets operate on a franchise basis;
• multi-brand stores - they present clothes of different brands, this format is more typical for small businesses who independently develop their business.

Clothing stores are also divided by price segments:

1. Premium class. They occupy a small part of the market, but they have a high average bill. They are usually located in the central part of the city in prestigious shopping centers or separate buildings. People with high income and social status apply here.
2. Middle price segment. They have a fairly stable demand. Prices for goods are relatively low, the margin is much lower than in boutiques. They can be located in shopping centers or residential/office buildings.
3. Lower price segment. This includes second-hand stores, stock pavilions. Prices for such goods are low, but their quality is appropriate. Such stores can be located in markets, on the first floors of residential buildings or in other buildings, mainly in the residential areas of the city.

For a novice entrepreneur, a clothing store of the middle price segment is most suitable. In this case, large financial investments will not be required, the demand for the product will be high.

You can divide clothing stores into two categories and how they will sell:

• Stationary stores. The most common option for beginners. Of the minuses can be identified: the presence of rent, the need to hire staff.
• Online shopping. It is more difficult to develop such a point, since the right advertising campaign is required. But the savings are due to the lack of costs for rent and wages (if the entrepreneur takes orders on his own).

If there is very little initial investment, you can try to start with a showroom at home, and with an increase in the number of customers, create your own online store or stationary point.

There are many trade formats in the clothing trade. Some use beautiful names without thinking about what they mean. The most common formats today are:

• boutique - clothes here are fashionable and expensive;
• concept store - multifunctional stores with a special atmosphere that reflects the worldview of a person who must wear the clothes sold (often unique or rare, limited products are sold here);
• corner - a small department located in a common retail space (no walls or doors);
• showroom - a store with a showroom, not only retail, but also wholesale purchases can be made here;
• discount and stock centers - specialize in selling inexpensive items with big discounts.

There are other formats of clothing stores (outlet, Pop-Up Store and others), but they are not very common in Russia.

clothing store franchise

In the last few years, the franchise network has been actively developing in Russia. Now there are more than 500 offers in this area. And more than 50% fall on the sphere of trade, and the undoubted leaders are clothing stores. Here are some of the franchising programs:

1. Foreign companies do not explore the Russian market on their own. They sell the master license to the largest wholesalers, and they are already promoting the brand through a franchise.
2. Domestic brands themselves develop a development strategy, a business project. Such organizations are interested in expansion. Typically, the brands themselves are deployed in large cities (Moscow, St. Petersburg), where the market is already overheated and there is not enough retail space, and the franchise is sold to developing regions, where demand for goods has been growing rapidly over the past few years.

Foreign franchises are quite expensive, while among domestic companies you can find relatively budget offers. Here are some popular franchise programs today:

As can be seen from the proposed options, opening a clothing store, even a small area, will require serious investments. In this case, this is due to the fact that the cost of branded goods is quite high. These stores usually do not charge an entry fee or royalties, they make a profit by providing businessmen with clothes of their own production for later sale.

Location where to open a clothing store

Half the success will depend on the correct choice of the location of the clothing store. Beginners should be especially careful about this issue. Often they do not have large savings and one mistake that led to failures and financial losses can mean the end of all endeavors.

Mostly shops open in rented premises, building your own building will be very costly and time-consuming. In the case of a lease, the following options can be used:

• detached building;
• place in the shopping center;
• place in the clothing market.

Each of them has its own characteristics, advantages and disadvantages. Let's consider them in more detail:

	Detached building	Place in the shopping center	Place in the clothing market
Who will suit?	Experienced entrepreneurs who are ready to invest a large amount in the development of their store	Beginners with low or medium initial investment	Entrepreneurs with a small budget
What products to sell?	Premium segment products	Medium or high price segment (depending on the prevalence of the shopping center)	Medium or low cost
Possible formats	Boutiques, showrooms, brand stores	Pavilions, shops, corners	Pavilion, shop
Advantages	High income, high average bill, loyal customers	No need to resolve issues with firefighters, SES. Quick start. Low repair costs. The premises already meet the requirements of supervisory authorities. No need to spend a lot of money on advertising	Low costs for opening and renting a place, the presence of a large number of visitors
Flaws	The high cost of rent, serious investments (more will be spent on the purchase of goods, payment of utilities, repairs), increased risk. You will have to independently resolve issues with the SES	The high cost of rent. The presence of competitors nearby	Low income, high competition, ineffectiveness of almost any advertising, minimum amenities for the visitor, almost no loyal customers
Accommodation Recommendations	Downtown. Need high traffic, good transport interchange, availability of parking	It is important to choose the right direction of the shopping center. For example, it makes no sense to open in a construction shopping center. Neighbors should be the same clothing stores, entertainment centers. It is important to evaluate the patency of the place. It is better to place the store at the entrance to the store	At the entrance or in the walkways of the market
Minimum costs	2,500,000 rubles	1,500,000 rubles	500 000 rubles

The most popular among entrepreneurs are pavilions in the shopping center. Although they require more rental costs than in the case of the clothing market, they allow you to get loyal, solvent customers who will come for high-quality and beautiful clothes again and again.

You will not only have to choose a room, but also bring it into proper form. In the case of the shopping center, the points of sale are already equipped with sewerage, lighting, ventilation and other conditions. Entrepreneur enough to carry out repairs. It will take about 150,000 rubles.

Business registration

Opening a store will require registration as or. Beginners most often choose the first format. Before starting work, you will also need to collect a package of documents:

1. conclusion of the fire inspection;
2. conclusion of the SES;
3. Goskomstat codes;
4. official lease agreement;
5. certificates or declarations of conformity for all products, depending on the type of goods sold;
6. list of goods;
7. permission for outdoor advertising, if any;
8. sanitary passport;
9. an agreement for the removal of solid waste and garbage (it is not required in the shopping center, since the owner of the shopping center is responsible for this).

To sell clothes, an entrepreneur does not have to obtain a license or certificates. The latter are provided by suppliers. A businessman is required to establish sales.

Before opening a clothing store, it is important to determine the types of activities according to OKVED. They must be specified in the application during business registration. For clothing stores, the following codes are suitable:

• 51 - "Retail sale of textiles in specialized stores";
• 71 - "Retail trade in clothing in specialized stores";
• 71.1 - "Retail sale of men's, women's and children's clothing in specialized stores";
• 71.2 - "Retail sale of underwear in specialized stores";
• 71.5 - "Retail sale of sportswear in specialized stores".

This list can be supplemented if the entrepreneur sells something else in the store.

At the start of a business, it is also important to decide on the tax system. In the case of a clothing store, you can use the following options:

• (income-expenditure form is more preferable);
• (based on physical indicators - area, if such a regime is applicable in a particular region, but the total area should not exceed 150 m 2);
• (the patent is applicable for retail trade if the area of ​​the store does not exceed 50 m2).

The most attractive format is UTII. The disadvantage of this system is that it is necessary to pay tax regardless of the results and the fact of doing business.

Equipment

After the repair of the premises, it will be necessary to purchase and install all the necessary equipment. It doesn't take much to work. Minimum will be needed:

• racks for clothes;
• hangers;
• showcases;
• mirrors;
• fitting room furniture;
• counters for cashiers;
• a computer.

Additionally, it is worth installing an anti-theft system - it will reduce the amount of possible shortages. It is also better to spend money on installing specialized software for clothing stores. It will allow you to monitor the volume of goods, demand, surpluses, generate reports and make summaries. All together it will cost the entrepreneur no less than 300,000 rubles when it comes to opening a prestigious store in a shopping center. Of course, opening a point in the clothing market will be much cheaper.

Before starting a business, you need to arrange the supply of goods. If you work with a franchisor, this problem will not arise. If the entrepreneur works alone, he will have to find wholesale suppliers and conclude contracts with them. Before the opening, you need to create a stock. This can take 1,000,000 - 1,500,000 rubles and more for a full-fledged store in a shopping center.

Staff

The operation of the store is impossible without staff. Sellers will be key. At least 2 salesmen must work in one shift. You can emphasize the status and high level of service by hiring an additional security guard and administrator.

You may not need an accountant. At first, you can deal with everything yourself or contact an outsourcing company. In fact, this format of service is cheaper and better.

Sellers and other employees of the trading floor must have sanitary books and undergo scheduled inspections on time. But they do not need special education. When looking for suitable sellers, you should pay attention to the following factors:

• ability to work with a cash register and specialized software;
• marketing skills;
• smile and responsiveness;
• attentiveness and accuracy;
• a responsibility;
• neatness;
• nice appearance.

An employee who has all these qualities will be able to provide the customers of the store with the required services at the highest level.

Advertising

For the successful operation of a clothing store, when drawing up a business plan, it is necessary to draw up a marketing strategy. The most effective methods would be:

• placement of outdoor signage;
• installation of a pavement sign at the store or shopping center in which the store is located;
• advertising on TV and in local media (for large stores);
• distribution of leaflets;
• advertising in the elevator;
• Internet advertising;
• creation of discount programs, loyalty programs;
• distribution of leaflets;
• holding promotions and other events.

There is no point in creating a website if the entrepreneur does not subsequently plan to sell goods via the Internet.

How much does it cost to open a clothing store

The business idea of ​​a full-fledged clothing store will require quite serious investments. Together with equipment, the creation of inventories, repairs and registration, it will take at least 1,900,000 rubles. For a small shop, starting costs start at 400,000 - 500,000 rubles. A large brand boutique will cost no less than 2.5 - 8 million rubles.

How much can you earn

The level of earnings directly depends on the breadth of the assortment, the size of the inventory, and the sales area. It is also important when drawing up a business plan for a clothing store to lay down a real mark-up with which customers will want to buy goods. In the middle price segment it is about 100%, in the premium segment it can reach 150-300%.

The total revenue for an ordinary store in a shopping center is about 1,000,000 rubles. Of these, the cost will be:

• purchase of goods - 500,000 rubles;
• salary - 100,000 rubles;
• rent - 70,000 rubles (the cost of rent in a shopping center varies from 800 to 2,500 rubles per 1 m 2);
• advertising - 15,000 rubles;
• taxes - 40,000 rubles.

From here, the net profit will be 1,000,000 - 725,000 = 275,000 rubles per month. Therefore, the profitability will be 275,000/1,000,000 = 27.5%. The store will pay off not earlier than in 7 - 12 months.

Conclusion

Opening a clothing store is an interesting idea that doesn't involve a lot of red tape compared to grocery stores. However, the implementation of a business plan will require serious financial investments, a detailed analysis of the market and competition. Beginners should try to work on a franchise - this direction in the field of clothing stores is the most promising and minimally risky today. The main thing is to choose a reliable franchisor interested in the success of their partners.

All calculations are current for 2020.

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