I’m in charge of the bookstore for a small non-profit I volunteer for. When I got my first pricing gun, just before a big event, I was like a kid in a candy store. I spent hours in a hot, muggy storage unit, pricing all the items for the event and didn’t even notice it.

Maybe I should have opened a retail store. I worked retail during the summer’s when I was in college and really enjoyed it. I just never considered the possibility of actually owning my own store.

Eco-friendly wood shelves would be perfect for my store!

However, maybe you have, maybe you’re even in the process of drawing up your business plan. There’s so much to consider. One of the biggest expenses in opening a retail store, besides the products, are the retail store fixtures. How are you going to display your products to entice people to buy them. Think about your favorite store? Did they have a unique way of showing off their products? What was the feeling the store left you with? You’ll want to consider these ideas when deciding on your fixtures.

There are a lot of store supplies you’ll need, as well. You might want to peruse a few supply companies web sites, to see what’s available. I took a peek at Retail Resource’s site and could feel the excitement bubbling up in me. Strange that I could enjoy perusing retail store supplies. Looking at all the racks, shelves, tables, even pricing guns is fun! I can imagine my own little store with all kinds of sustainable products lined up for people to buy, decorated sustainably using non-toxic paints, and lots and lots of bamboo, because I love bamboo.

Take the time to make a complete layout of your location. That way you’ll know just how many and what kind of racks you’ll need. How much area is going to be taken up with things like storeroom, dressing rooms, bathrooms, break room, etc. That will keep you from buying more products than will fit in your location. Then look for fixtures that will give the feel you want when people first walk through the door. If you’re high tech, then slick and shiny is probably in order, for a sustainable store, like I’d be interested in, you want to use more natural products and colors that invoke nature, peace and calm. Have fun getting set to open your store, and remember a retail wannabe sitting at her computer blogging.