Kids shoe shop

[Mjf]

I am looking to be open a kids only shoe shop in my local town and I am looking for peoples experience or advise in this area.

 

[papverpoppies]

I watched a programme about two women who opened up a shoe shop for kids.

They turned the shop into a kids adventure playground (almost), so that when the kids had tried on the shoes they went and played with the toys whilst parents did the paying.

They had beautiful painted scenes on the wall, it really was like a kids fantasy shop.

The shop was situated near to a school (brilliant) as well as bus stop and had really good parking.

The one thing they commented on, was how much stock they needed to carry.

If parents came in for a pair of shoes, and they did not have the size, very few parents were prepared to wait, they went elsewhere.
So in effect a lot of money was just sitting on the shelf.

They also had to keep apace with kids trends, as kids want what is in fashion (however young they are)!

They also sold smaller items, socks, gloves, etc etc.

The shop had been really well thought out, and the kids loved going there.

Not much - but hope it helps.

Good Luck

Poppy

 

[Mjf]

Thank you for that, you don't by chance remember the programme or channel?

 

[papverpoppies]

Thank you for that, you don't by chance remember the programme or channel?

It was one of those property programmes, the auction one I think.

The two ladies had been looking for some time for the right property.

This came up, it was a large and very old (beautiful shop) with lots and lots of light coming in.

It had ALL of the key ingredients, school close by, bus stop and the good parking.

What was really striking was how they had transformed the interior.
It really was a magical kids play area - and it worked well.

I also seem to recall, that there was not another shoe shop on their doorstep (so to speak).

Poppy

 

[Wavecrest Ltd]

I usually buy my son's shoes on Ebay - second hand but nearly new/in good condition. He's only a toddler and outgrows his shoes in five minutes so I begrudge spending £ 15 - £ 20 on a pair.

To save yourself a lot of cost (rent/rates etc) it may be worthwhile looking at setting up an on-line shop, perhaps with a limited number of designs to start with to keep the stock outlay low as well.

Glen

 

I love the little boutique style shops for my daughters shoes (they are 5 and 4)........they adore Lelli Kelly's and always have the new season ones and the boots in winter.

I like a shoe shop to have a wide variety of choice and as Poppy said i would not be prepared to wait if you didn't have the style i chose in the right size.

Not that my daughters have any but quite a few of my friends have bought Ugg's for their daughters this season - i think for kiddiwinkies they retail at about £75.

 

I usually buy my son's shoes on Ebay - second hand but nearly new/in good condition. He's only a toddler and outgrows his shoes in five minutes so I begrudge spending £ 15 - £ 20 on a pair

you'll be glad you have a son! My daughters summer shoes cost around £49 each and the boots for winter cost between £50-£60!!!!!

 

[deniser]

There is a children's shoe shop next door to me and they have done well on the whole during the last few years but the business is very seasonal so you have to be prepared for that.

There are other children's shoe shops in our town but not indies, only the chains so people go to this shop because they will find something different. They also have a much larger section for school shoes which is the bread and butter of any children's shoe shop. I don't think you could be successful without selling school shoes as this is the main business. So it is important that you can get Start Rite to supply you as they have all the different width fittings that you need. I think that has got to be your starting point.

You also need to make sure you can get the current fashion brands to supply you - UGGs, Crocs and Lelly Kelly have been the main ones of the past few years but there is bound to be something new around the corner and you always have to be one step ahead of the fashion as you will need to buy at least 6 months ahead for the next season.

If you haven't already done so, go and visit the relevant trade shows - it's the season now, now sure if they are all finished.

The other important thing to note about a children's shoe shop is that it is very labour intensive. It's not the sort of shop where people help themselves. Children's feet have to be measured and each pair of shoes got from the stock room. People take forever to try on different pairs and decide. You can easily spend 30 minutes with a customer and they don't even buy anything. This means a high staffing cost compared to other businesses.

You then have to couple this with the fact that everyone comes at the same time with the peak times being Saturdays and more importantly the 2 weeks before the school term starts. In those weeks you need many more staff than usual and probably also some type of queuing or ticketing system as there can be long waits. You need to ensure that you can get properly trained staff for those busy times.

Which leaves you with the fact that it is will probably be quiet during the rest of the week/school holidays.

If you have children of your own, don't forget that you will need to work when your own children are off school as shoes is something that is rarely bought without the children around (unlike children's clothes). So it is not a good business if you have children if you have to work there yourself.

Because of the seasonal nature of the business with the last 2 weeks of the Easter holidays (as the children go into summer shoes) and the last 2 weeks of August probably being the busiest as they need school shoes for the winter term (apart from you never being able to take holidays then) you will go for long periods where the takings are low so you need ample cashflow to take you through to the next peak period.

The other factor to take into account is the weather. If you get the wrong weather and it is too mild in winter (which it usually is - this year is an exception) then you can't sell any winter boots and if the summer is slow to start, then you can't sell any summer sandals. This then pushes you into the sale season of the chains so that if it only warms up in June, you only have a couple of weeks to sell your summer sandals at full price and will then be forced to join the other shops in sale discounting. Which won't leave you enough margin to cover your overheads.

One bonus is that on the whole you don't have the internet competing with you. Most people wouldn't buy shoes online as they want to get shoes that fit properly so you don't have that problem; conversely you don't have that benefit either if you did want to sell online.

So it is not an easy business to run but it can be successful if you bear the above factors in mind.

Good luck!

 

[Connections_Media]

MJF, Your not Michael Jacksons Frankenstein are you?

 

[Mjf]

I usually buy my son's shoes on Ebay - second hand but nearly new/in good condition. He's only a toddler and outgrows his shoes in five minutes so I begrudge spending £ 15 - £ 20 on a pair.

To save yourself a lot of cost (rent/rates etc) it may be worthwhile looking at setting up an on-line shop, perhaps with a limited number of designs to start with to keep the stock outlay low as well.

Glen

Thanks for the tip might just try that! Cheers

 

[Mjf]

Thanks Deniser for this very informative and helpful message, no doubt I will be back onto you for more advice soon! Thanks again.

 

[deniser]

Thanks Deniser for this very informative and helpful message, no doubt I will be back onto you for more advice soon! Thanks again.

My pleasure but do remember that on the whole, shoes are one of the few things that do not sell well online.

 

[BusinessDeli]

I think the main points have been covered. I helped out a new kids show shop open locally and frankly I'm surprised they're still trading. Every time I go past the store is empty apart from the odd week before a new term. Due to this I'd suggest realising other opportunities within the shop, something to complement the shoes and that isn't so reliant on a season.
EDIT: Just had a thought - could you approach some local schools and set up a 'visiting shoe hut'? If you turn up and get some sizes perhaps with some stock in the van too so parents could buy direct from the school area instead of making a special trip. Maybe, if a school has the space you could open concessions? Needs more thought but it might work (stock levels may be key)

 

[Vectis]

I usually buy my son's shoes on Ebay - second hand but nearly new/in good condition. He's only a toddler and outgrows his shoes in five minutes so I begrudge spending £ 15 - £ 20 on a pair.

To save yourself a lot of cost (rent/rates etc) it may be worthwhile looking at setting up an on-line shop, perhaps with a limited number of designs to start with to keep the stock outlay low as well.

Glen

How do you know what size shoes to buy online? Ok, when your older your size remains the same, but with a toddler or small child?

 

[Wavecrest Ltd]

How do you know what size shoes to buy online? Ok, when your older your size remains the same, but with a toddler or small child?

We go to a shoe shop like Clarks, get the feet measured then buy the shoes online instead of paying rip off prices.

 

[deniser]

We go to a shoe shop like Clarks, get the feet measured then buy the shoes online instead of paying rip off prices.

Aaagh! The bane of every shopkeeper's life!

How will you get feet measured when people like you cause shops like Clarks to go bust and close down? Do you not think that the "rip off prices" are there to cover the staff costs and retail overheads?

 

[Wavecrest Ltd]

Aaagh! The bane of every shopkeeper's life!

How will you get feet measured when people like you cause shops like Clarks to go bust and close down? Do you not think that the "rip off prices" are there to cover the staff costs and retail overheads?

When Clarks are having kids shoes manufactured in the third world for a couple of quid and then selling them for £30 that's a rip off in my view. If they were £15 I would have no problem with it.

 

[Mayor]

When Clarks are having kids shoes manufactured in the third world for a couple of quid and then selling them for £30 that's a rip off in my view. If they were £15 I would have no problem with it.

So the balance between rip-off and acceptable price point rests solely (sorry - couldn't resist the pun) on a company's mark-up ? Bizarre. In that case Diamonds are a rip off - it's just a lump of squashed coal dug out of the ground. Food - rip off - just throw some seeds into the ground, it grows itself.

To me a rip off, is when you buy a product (probably online) and when it turns up, it is half the size and nothing like the product description.

If you begrudge paying for assistance from trained staff, being able to try stuff on in comfortable surroundings, and get a proper look (and feel) at the goods you are interested in, then by all means buy on-line but please stop "ripping off" a store owners time and expertise.