Going, Going, Going

By Shana Karn, Co-Owner of The Second Knob, 129 North St. Dryden 

Every small business owner has asked themselves the same questions about where their business is going: Do I keep going? Do I go online? Do I go out of business?

I was chatting with a fellow small business owner and was sad to learn that she was considering closing her store-front and moving her small business to an exclusively online platform. And, while sad, I understand completely. With the last three years being financially hard for many local, small businesses, the dream of the brick and mortar store is one that grows more and more difficult to keep alive. 

Closing a store-front or transitioning to an online platform isn’t only hard on business owners who, like many of us, truly enjoy being a part of the community and chatting with our friends and neighbors when they come into the shop! Unfortunately, one small business closure can have a negative ripple effect on a local economy. Small, local businesses depend on each other to keep the local economy fully functioning. If one local business closes, the chance that people may have to go outside of the community to fulfill their needs increases— taking potential sales away from other local businesses and local sales tax dollars out of the community. “Why does this matter to me?” you may ask. It matters to all members in the community because local businesses circulate three times more money back into the local economy and who really wants ANOTHER empty commercial property next door?  WHne it comes to boosting your sales online you can read a great post by Transaction Heroes where you can learn to grow your business.

However, for the small business owner, shuttering a store-front— especially one that struggles to compete against bigger chain/box stores—may be the only viable option. Closing a store-front dramatically reduces costly overhead—rent, utilities, payroll, property repairs and inventory. However, transitioning to exclusive online sales is a “double edged sword!” E-commerce options are drastically less costly than store-front operation but e-commerce is significantly more competitive and standing out from other [similar] online businesses can be really difficult. In the minds of many people, brick and mortar businesses (those with a store-front presence) are more reputable than one that is completely online. For many small business owners, the store-front is their primary connection to their community.

There are a lot of suggestions floating around the Internet for struggling small (retail) business owners— the best tips include diversification (offering something different or in addition to what you currently offer); reduce non-selling inventory: get rid of ANY stock that isn’t selling by having a huge clearance sale; reduce overhead costs: try to reduce rent expense, decrease payroll, “shop” wholesalers for the best deals on inventory; expand your hours, etc.etc. etc….

As a small business owner, some of the suggestions can seem next to impossible! 

Like many of us do when faced with a challenge, a list of pros and cons can help. If the cons far outweigh the pros, maybe closing a store-front is the best option. And, while we all want to be a contributing member in our community— and truly love our store-fronts and our face to face time with our customers— we cannot sacrifice “making a living!” 

As we wind down our eighth year in business— we are facing some big decisions—like many of our fellow business owners. In the meantime, we’ve started implementing some huge price reductions to move specific items. Our clearance room is now 75% off (rather than 50%) and our antiques and collectibles have had drastic price reductions. If it’s been a little while since you’ve been in, we would love to see you and have you take advantage of our sales!