Mini Grocery Business Tips

Starting your own mini grocery business is fun and can be profitable if you are frugal and handle your business finances well. In the Philippines mini groceries or sari-sari store business are sprouting like mushroom all over the place so starting your own mini grocery might be challenging and requires more attention and time, you might heard some stories in your area about failed grocery stores, I'm telling you now the reason why a business fail is because of mismanagement, wrong location and fierce competition, to avoid the downfall of your business those three must be avoided at all cost. This blog post will teach you how a small business idea like starting your own sari-sari store can become profitable.

Like in any other SME business it is important to find an ideal location for your business, but since this is a mini grocery you can start this in front of your home, just make sure that there are people who are willing to buy what you are selling, if you are living in a remotely secluded place then consider renting a small place in a residential area, around one thousand five hundred to two thousand pesos a month for a rent in a populated area will give you are good profit as long as you manage your store well. If you failed to choose the right location then don't start your grocery business in the wrong area because you will only lose your investments and it will give you a lot of frustrations, remember that for a business to become profitable, right location is a must! If you want to know how to start a grocery business in the Philippines which is larger than a sari-sari store then please visit my other blog post about it to learn more.

Once you secured your place then its time to prepare the goods that you will be selling, to know this you must know what the market wants, in our area basic foods such as noodles and canned goods are a big hit, candies, cookies and chips also sell well. You can also sell rice and softdrinks and different school products such as paper, pen, pencil, folders and colored paper.

To make it easier for you, go get a pen and paper and list down all the products you want to sell and list down the price. Of course you want to find a store that offers lower price for products you want to buy, this means you will get bigger profit or you can lower your prices to shake the competition in your area. Some store owners buy their items in Pure Gold or public market, you can do so but its much better to canvas first so you will be sure. Another option is to buy your items on product agents that offer lower price. Below are things you want to include in your mini grocery store

Rice, per kilo Sugar, per kilo, repack in retail Instant noodles Canned goods, corned beef, sardines, viands, tuna Bread and biscuits Candies, different varieties Soap and shampoo Softdrinks, ice candy and ice, if you have refrigerator Chips and snacks School supplies E-Load, Smart, Globe and Sun! Spices, pepper, salt and other stuffs

Start with the goods above and add different products as the number of your customer grows.

"Start Small and grow with the business"

Now its time to sell your goods, if you are a newly opened store, don't expect people to flock at your grocery store, you will have to wait for days before they become used to your existence. While waiting for customers try to repack some goods like oil, vinegar, pepper, sugar, salt and other spices. Filipino people is fond of buying retail goods and repacking will give you better profit so don't miss it.

When a customer buys in your sari-sari store be sure to treat him/her nicely, I admit that there are many annoying customers but don't let them annoy you, always think that if there are customers there are profit. With patience and good attitude towards customer you might get a lot of "suki" or people who always buy different things in your sari-sari store.

"Customer = Profit $$$"

Now its time to discuss how to avoid the mismanagement of your very own sari-sari store business, the answer is to be frugal and get some discipline, also learn to manage your own small business! Some store owners let others manage their mini grocery, it might be bad especially if the "other"

don't love your business and treat the customers badly or worse they might be bagging some the store income! Remember that if you start a business treat it well and it will also treat you well by becoming profitable. It doesn't matter if it is only a small business idea as long as you manage it well it will become big and prosperous.

How to Start Grocery Store Business

In my previous post, we discussed about the basics of starting your own mini grocery store business, now we will talk about establishing a medium sized grocery store business that sells wholesale and retail. Well you if you have what it takes to be a good merchant then this business opportunity is for you. The concept is simple, buy low, sell high, make sure you are gaining profit in order to run your business, read this blog post and learn more on how to manage and earn from your grocery store business.

First thing you need to do is to find the right location so start your business, always remember that perfect location will boost any kind of business, also remember that choosing the best location will be the hardest part so it will take time. I recommend searching in marketplace, market (palengke) is a good place for your grocery store business.

When location is already done, then its time to start searching for the products you want to sell. Make sure you have the following:

Sugar - Asukal na puti, segunda, pula and negro. Glutinous rice Flour Cornstarch Monggo - Labo, kintab and pula Canton Bihon Palabok Canned milk (Alaska, Angel) Canned goods (corned beef, sardines, tuna) Powdered milk

If you have freezer or refrigerator then you must have these:

Hotdogs (Purefoods, Mekeni, CDO) Cold cuts (Tocino, Ham, Burger Patties) French Fries (preferably Lutosa brand) Corned Beef (CDO, Argentina) Kikiam Orlian Squid Balls Chicken Balls

Also make sure you have these spices, repack them and they will be your money maker:

Paminta (Durog, buo, crack) Curry Powder - as of now P180 per kilo Dahon ng laurel (Bay leaves) Hebe (Dried shrimps) Hershey Cocoa, Class A and B cocoa Bulaklak ng saging (Dried lily flower) Star anis Linga (sesame seeds)

Don't forget some grocery stuffs:

Tomato Sauce (Del Monte, UFC) Spaghetti Sauce (Del Monte, UFC, Fiesta, Royal, Clara Ole) Pasta (Ideal, Sunmac, Delicious, Amigo, Sunshine) Macaroni (Preferably Ideal, make sure you have Elbow big, Elbow small, Shell, Salad) Liver Spreads (Reno) Black Beans Chorizo Bilbao Longganisa Macau

Powdered Gulaman and many more!

There are still a lot more of items to sell and you will discover it once the customer asks you for it, as of now stick to the said products and gradually add later until you can fill the demands of the customers. Also if you are located in public or private market, there will be sales agents who will sell you their products, they offer lower price and they have "Bad Orders" in which you can return the item if it is damaged.

Now the trick to make your business profitable is to be nice and good to your customers, I know some of them are pain in the ass but you need them in order to survive, the more you sell the more profit you will gain so sell your products and don't hide it in your stockroom. Also remember to list down your orders and keep track of them, don't forget to list your expenses, operating expense and income so you will know if your business is running up or going down.

In my grocery store, I make a target profit for each month and make it a challenge to reach that goal, try it also and you will like it. Well thanks for reading guys and hope you learned some from starting your own grocery business, there are still more business ideas in the Philippines so keep reading to learn more!

Well thanks for reading guys and hope you learned some from starting your own grocery business, there are still more business ideas in the Philippines so keep reading to learn more!