The question “where do I get my product?” – is extremely important in this business. Its decision will affect the likely amount of your income. You can focus on cooperation with local wholesale companies. Draw up contracts for bulk purchases from leading manufacturers, or buy your own goods abroad. If you use only the first option, then go to a great profit is unlikely to work, because you will not be able to put a high markup on the goods. Cooperation with well-known manufacturers is a more promising option, because they can provide you with good discounts on large orders of goods. The main difficulty here is to establish contacts with these companies. But the markup that you can put on their goods is very gratifying. It can be 50%, and even 70%.
If you yourself have the opportunity to go abroad and purchase goods, then by all means do it. Usually the most successful and profitable sports nutrition stores operate under this scheme (or combine it with the cooperation with wholesalers).
And the main thing you must remember when working with absolutely all suppliers is the availability of certificates for their products. Check them thoroughly before concluding contracts, if you do not want to have problems with customers who will complain about low-quality or expired goods.
If the range of goods will be quite wide, it is better to choose a self-service format for the store. Place the goods on shelves and racks throughout the sales area, and at the exit set the rack with a cash register. In case there will not be a lot of goods, and the area of the store is not very spacious, it is worth stopping at the traditional format of trade. The seller behind the counter will show each buyer the product of interest to him. This way customers will not have free access to the goods, which significantly reduces the likelihood of theft.
When purchasing merchandise, focus on the most popular products among athletes. Sit on major sports forums and find out what kind of nutrition consumers like the most. Read reviews and opinions about different types of sports nutrition. This information will be useful to you when you start building your store’s product line.