A clothing store is a great business idea because everyone needs something to wear. Therefore, there will always be demand for the product. And although today new retail outlets are opening every day, offering customers dresses, jackets, suits of all existing brands, there will always be a demand for inexpensive and high-quality clothing. So, how to open a clothing store?

The place paints the store

Not everyone knows that the location of a clothing store should be selected depending on what exactly you are going to sell. If we're talking about about elite or expensive branded clothing, it is better to open separately standing store or boutique. The same option is suitable for stock clothing. But if you plan to sell middle-class clothing, then it is better to rent space in a shopping center. In this case, advertising issues will be decided by the administration of the shopping center, and your revenue will be stable due to the large customer flow.

Business registration and necessary approvals

Once you have decided on the direction of your trade and found appropriate place for a store, it’s worth making everything official. To do this you need:

• register an enterprise (pass state registration as a company, in this case there will be less worries with accounting and reporting);
• select codes;
• choose a tax system - it can be ( single tax on imputed income), which is preferable for large stores with an area of ​​150 square meters, or (simplified taxation system), which is more suitable for small retail outlets;
• conclude a lease agreement for the selected premises;
• obtain approval from Rospotrebnadzor and the Fire Department.

By the way, there is one here important point: if you open a store in a separate building or on the first (ground) floor of a residential building, then you will have to take care of obtaining permits and approvals from the relevant authorities yourself. And in order to obtain documents for opening a clothing store, you will need to install a fire alarm, develop an evacuation plan from the store premises in the event of a fire, and purchase fire-fighting equipment (fire extinguishers).

As for the permit from Rospotrebnadzor, it involves the approval of a storefront, the conclusion of an agreement with the relevant organization for garbage removal and landscaping. But if you are planning to open a store on the territory of a shopping center, then all these issues will be dealt with not by you, but by the administration of the shopping center.

Range and legal requirements

When drawing up a business plan for a clothing store, you need to carefully consider the range of goods that you plan to sell. What should you focus on: cheap or exclusive clothes? It must be said that the demand for luxury clothing is not as high as for high-quality and inexpensive ones. So you should focus your business on the product that interests the consumer.

Women's clothing of domestic, Chinese, European and Turkish production consistently leads the sales lists. But Chinese and Turkish goods are much cheaper when purchased in bulk. This means that you can set a higher trading margin on it and, accordingly, get a higher profit.

By the way, about markups: for luxury clothes from expensive boutiques they are 200%, for stock – 40%, and for middle-class clothes from 40 to 300%, depending on how and where the clothes were purchased.

If you decide to sell Chinese or Turkish-made clothing, then you will not have to import the goods yourself; this will be done by suppliers and representatives of manufacturers, and you will simply place an order online and receive your goods. But if you decide to supply clothing from Europe, then it is better to go there yourself and find the most suitable suppliers for you, with whom you can subsequently also communicate via the Internet.

Many people at the assortment planning stage are concerned with the question: how much profit can be made, for example, from one sweater? Let's do the math: on an online site, a Chinese-made sweater at a wholesale price will cost you 300 rubles, but with a trade markup in your store it will cost 1,500 rubles. Moreover, delivery to Russia is free. This means that income from just one sweater can be 1,200 rubles. Agree, this is a serious argument in favor of such a business.

But, when planning the assortment of your store, you should not forget about the requirements of the law, according to which men's and women's clothing must have a GOST R declaration of conformity (it is issued by certification bodies after submitting certain documents), and children's clothing must have a quality certificate.

In order to receive a declaration for domestic products, you need to submit to government agency certification application for registration of the declaration, INN, OGRN, lease agreement for the store premises, technical documentation for the certified product. But for imported goods, you will also need a detailed description of the product made by the manufacturer, the charter of your enterprise (if you have an LLC), a copy of the contract for the supply of clothing, and quality certificates of the country of origin.

Retail store equipment

If you woke up one morning and thought: “I want to open a clothing store,” then get ready for the fact that you will have to solve a lot of serious issues, one of which is the purchase (or rental) of commercial equipment.

It can be wall-mounted (racks and floor hangers) or island-mounted - tables for displaying goods in the center of the sales area. The best option is modular retail equipment, since it allows you to demonstrate the existing product in all its glory.

In addition, it is worth taking care of fitting rooms, mirrors, and mannequins on which clothes will be displayed in the window and sales area. And also about cash register(if it is not there, then there must be sales receipts), a cashless payment terminal (no self-respecting store can operate without it today), a computer and, of course, we cannot forget about anti-theft systems, without which it is impossible to protect the store from theft of goods. And the main thing here is to correctly select the most convenient hidden sensors and security frames.

Staff

In clothing stores, the number of sales assistants depends not so much on the area of ​​the outlet, but on its traffic. But on average, for a large store with an area of ​​about one hundred square meters in a shopping center, five sales assistants and a cashier will be required. If we are talking about a small store, then 2 sellers and one cashier will cope quite well.

Particular attention should be paid to quality personnel selection. This means that employees must be sociable, friendly, competent and likable. The level of sales and profitability of the store largely depends on this.

Investments, expenses and income

It's time to calculate how much it costs to open a clothing store. So, first we summarize the costs of starting a business, provided that the store’s area is 50 square meters, it employs 2 sellers and a cashier, a manager (owner) with the function of an accountant, merchandiser, personnel officer, and also a cleaner:

Now let's talk about monthly expenses:

As for monthly income, they will be:

Is it profitable to open a clothing store? This question is asked by many people who dream of owning their own business. We answer: profitable. If, of course, you approach all production issues wisely and sell two-thirds of the goods at set prices (without discounts). In this case, the store will pay for itself within six months, which indicates high profitability such a business. But here you need to remember that for successful work follows:

• constantly update the collections and assortment of the store;
• choose products according to size and purchase wholesale quantities of clothing at the lowest possible price;
• offer customers a product designed for a specific target audience(youth clothing, sportswear, women's clothing);
• conduct stock promotions;
• develop a flexible system of discounts.

How to start selling clothes? Step by step guide on starting a business.

1. Decide on general concept store, what product you want to sell: women's or men's clothing, children's clothing, shoes, bed linen, and so on.

2. You have decided on the product - then you should evaluate it general state competition for this group of products in your city. Which ones exist? weak sides at existing retail outlets. What products do you think are missing from their range? It would be a good idea to conduct a survey among the population of your area, where you are going to open a business. Ask what product they would like to see, whether they are satisfied with the quality of the clothes already sold, etc.

3. Finding the location of a retail outlet. Depending on the amount of capital you have, you will choose where to locate your retail outlet: in a shopping center, in a market-type shopping center (indoor) or in a regular clothing market. Placing a retail outlet in a shopping center requires significantly larger investments than placing it on a market. Price square meter in a large shopping center is several times higher than the cost of a retail space on the market. But, the level of competition in the market is often much higher than in a separate shopping center. Trite - because more sellers.

4. Registration entrepreneurial activity . For a small retail outlet, an ordinary individual entrepreneurship is suitable. To register an individual entrepreneur, you must submit an application to the local tax office. The application is accompanied by a package of documents: a photocopy of the passport, TIN, paid by the state. duty (800 rub.). Registration period is 5 working days.

You should also write an application to the tax office about switching to a special one. tax regime - UTII. This is the most profitable system taxation for retail outlets selling clothing with an area of ​​no more than 150 m2. UTII frees you from the need to apply (settlements with customers can be carried out using sales receipt), payment of VAT, income tax and property tax.

5. Preliminary search for product suppliers. Where do you plan to buy clothes? From Russian suppliers, on wholesale markets, from foreign manufacturers. It is important to personally visit several potential suppliers, compare prices, evaluate the quality of the product, working conditions, etc. Also at this step you should decide on the approximate assortment of the outlet.

6. Conclusion of a lease agreement with a shopping center or market. When concluding a lease agreement, carefully study all clauses of the agreement. In particular, for what period is the contract concluded, at whose expense the repairs are made, the cost of rent includes fees for utilities, etc. To conclude an agreement, the market/shopping center administration will ask you to provide documents: individual entrepreneur registration certificate, tax registration certificate, passport individual, conclusion of Rospotrebnadzor for goods, certificates of conformity (children's clothing) or declarations of conformity for goods.

7. Purchase and delivery of the first assortment of goods. When making payments to the supplier, carefully check the availability of accompanying documentation for the clothing: delivery notes, invoices, certificates or declarations of conformity for the goods. If any of the documents are missing, you risk losing the goods (confiscation) in the event of a possible inspection by regulatory authorities.

8. Hiring salespeople. It’s not realistic to cope alone in the clothing trade. A business owner, in addition to the process of selling goods, needs to solve all sorts of organizational issues: searching for suppliers, returning goods, accounting, submitting reports, settlements with suppliers, etc. There may be very little time left for trading. Therefore, you must attract at least 1-2 sellers. The average salary of one salesperson is $200 + a percentage of daily revenue. With each accepted seller there is an agreement employment contract. Also, each seller should obtain a medical record (simplified form) - clothing trade, by law, requires such a document.

After accepting the first seller, the owner of the outlet should register with off-budget funds as an employer ( Pension Fund and FSS). For his sellers, the entrepreneur is obliged to pay monthly insurance premiums in the amount of 30% of wages.

Shopping remains one of the most common ways to deal with stress. Russian women do not refuse shopping even in tight financial conditions. The economic crisis, of course, affected the industry. However, the drop in volumes in the first year after the depreciation of the ruble was only 10%.

The reason for the decline was the rise in product prices. According to domestic agencies, prices increased by 12–15%. Foreign research centers claim an increase of 30–40%. Such a serious difference is due to the difference in approaches. Foreign analysts express the results in American dollars, because the Russian market is 70% dependent on imports. Our experts measure deviations in rubles.

Promising in terms of opening retail stores textiles, according to RBC experts, remain:

· Nenets, Yamalo-Nenets and Chukotka Autonomous Okrugs;

· Sakhalin;

· Magadan Region;

· Dagestan;

· Yakutia;

· Khabarovsk region;

· Chechen Republic;

· Primorsky Krai.

The argument in favor of these regions was the minimum number of retail outlets. The study took into account population size, the presence of large chains and average earnings.

What about the consumer?

A novice entrepreneur is recommended to study in detail the behavioral characteristics of potential buyers. Let's start with the fact that visitors to clothing stores are women aged 20 to 55 years. Older ladies make purchases 2–3 times less often, guided more by necessity than by desire.

Thus, the determining criteria in choosing a product are cost, appearance and practicality. Customers have become significantly less attentive to fashion trends. Individual style came to the fore.

Rules for opening a women's clothing store

The procedure for creating a business is standard. Previously, we have repeatedly reviewed the registration procedure and listed the mandatory requirements for a non-food store. In the case of a clothing retail organization, nothing changes.

The best options remain individual entrepreneurship and society with limited liability. In the first stages, we recommend giving preference to the first. In this case, you will be able to take advantage of the right to tax holidays and other benefits. An entrepreneur will not need to deal with issues of profit distribution and dividend payment. He does not need to conduct annual inventories and submit financial statements.

As OKVED, the application should indicate the following positions of the OK 029-2014 classifier:

The number of codes that an entrepreneur has the right to choose is not limited by the legislator. Traditionally, merchants indicate from 3 to 5 positions.

2) Taxation

Retail sales of clothing are subject to all existing regimes. Experts consider UTII optimal. This position is due to the relatively small area of ​​the trading floor. Let us remind you that the single tax is calculated based on the size of the premises. Switching to the simplified tax system remains a common solution. The system attracts entrepreneurs with its simplicity and minimal amount of reporting.

Important! Payers of the simplified tax system and special tax system have the right to take advantage of tax holidays. The benefit is valid in almost all regions of the country with the exception of Sevastopol, Tatarstan, Vologda region, Karelia and Kabardino-Balkaria.

3) Requirements for the store

The minimum size of a retail outlet will be 18 sq.m. The store can be located in a separate building, an attached structure, or in a non-residential part apartment building. Required terms are availability:

· isolated input/output;

· heating;

· lighting;

· toilet room for staff.

As additional systems support includes fire and security alarms, smoke removal mechanisms, and air conditioning. Acquainted with detailed description non-food store is possible.

Let us remind you that it is allowed to sell textiles different ways. The legislator does not prohibit the sale of goods via the Internet or in markets.

4) Equipment

Opening a clothing store will require purchasing furniture and equipment. The guidelines should be the rules for retail trade in textile products, approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 55.

The owner of a clothing store cannot do without stylish lamps. Proper lighting will allow you to delay the visitor and provide maximum comfort.

5) Sales organization

Before being released onto the sales floor, textile products are carefully inspected. Employees are required to check the availability of certificates and labels, evaluate the strength of seams and fittings. It is allowed to offer visitors products that do not have external defects. If necessary, store employees will organize cleaning.

In the hall, products are sorted according to a number of criteria:

· seasonality;

· type of fabric;

Experienced marketers will help you create a product layout diagram. So, experts recommend placing racks with accessories in the immediate vicinity of dresses. Each model must be accompanied by a price tag indicating the name, cost, and article.

Alternative choice: specific directions

Retail women's clothing is not limited to one segment. The market is stratified, and stores are classified according to dozens of criteria. We decided to briefly describe the most interesting areas.

Organization of fur retail sales

New trading rules in this segment came into force in April 2016. A pilot project aimed at improving quality was launched at the federal level. Manufacturers of fur coats and sheepskin coats were asked to confirm the originality of their products with special markings. The procedure was planned to be made mandatory in October. However, the deadline for the transition to the system was extended until early December.

Despite the loyalty of the authorities, changes will need to be taken into account when opening a fur clothing store. All products presented in the line must have the appropriate chips. All skin products are subject to the new standards:

· rabbit or hare;

· foxes and arctic foxes;

· nutria;

· sheepskin;

The most complete coverage is ensured by the inclusion of a special category “other items of clothing” in the list. This measure will not allow gaps in legal regulation to be used for the purposes of illegal trade.

The seller is required to comply with the following rules:

· concluding agreements with the supplier of fur coats and sheepskin coats with the provision of labeling;

· checking the presence of chips on each product received in the store;

Confirmation of inclusion of information about the product in the database of a single information resource;

· refusal to sell unlabeled products.

Both direct producers and intermediary organizations can register fur products. The legality of ownership of the goods is recognized as a condition for entering data into the register.

The store owner is allowed to sell fur coats and sheepskin coats with sewn-in or applied control marks, as well as adhesive-based chips. The only requirement is their validity.

Trade in designer clothes

An equally specific area is the sale of original models. In specialized salons, they not only sell original new products, but create a harmonious image. Trade here is inextricably linked with the provision of services by professional stylists, fashion designers, and seamstresses. A fashion house can hardly be called a clothing store. However, it is on the basis of a branded boutique that famous brands are often created.

Most simple circuit business organization in this segment is as follows:

· opening of a retail outlet with fitting booths, an assortment of ready-made designer novelties and a display room for current models;

· concluding a contract for tailoring products with the studio;

· formation of a team including an experienced fashion designer, stylist, image maker;

Refusal to organize your own clothing workshop significantly reduces the entrepreneur’s expenses. In addition to cooperation with the studio, contracts with design studios and private fashion designers can serve. Freelance artists willingly enter into agreements with retailers, regularly offering original collections for sale. In this case, the merchant does not spend money on purchasing goods at all, paying the author of the product upon sale.

Important! The activities of fashion houses that do not have their own production fall under the definition of retail trade. However, when registering, you will also need to indicate a number of service codes as additional ones.

Sale of underwear

This segment deserves special attention from entrepreneurs. Most domestic businessmen rely on a universal assortment, assigning underwear the role of a related product. As a result, Russian women can purchase truly beautiful and high-quality models only in elite salons or online stores. The niche is not fully occupied, and the market is not saturated. There are few well-known networks here. Thus, in the premium segment, the leading players remain “Wild Orchid” and “Bustier”. The cost of kits in salons varies from 150 to 800 dollars. In the middle price category there are “Golden Dragonfly” and “Camellia”.

Among the advantages of the direction, experts name:

· maintaining the relevance of models long time(minimal risk of obsolescence);

· stable demand;

· low start-up capital;

· no special storage requirements and low weight of the goods (saving on delivery).

The implementation of the project will require certain preparation from the entrepreneur. Sellers must be familiarized with the rules of sale, the grounds for returning or exchanging goods.

Important! According to Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 55 of January 19, 1998, trade in used underwear is not allowed. Analyzing the content of the regulatory source, we came to the conclusion that there is an indirect ban on trying on. The owner of a store whose assortment includes only underwear and hosiery is not required to install closed booths. The products are offered to visitors in individual packaging indicating the sizes and all characteristics.

We also remind you that women's underwear cannot be returned. The rule applies only to quality goods. Products with defects are accepted by the seller with payment of their purchase price, or exchanged for a similar model.

Tax risks of UTII

In theory, setting up a business looks like a fairly simple procedure. In fact, an entrepreneur will face many difficulties. The situation is complicated by the discrepancy between the official position of the regulatory authorities and judicial practice. We analyzed the accumulated materials, highlighting the most common problems.

What area will the tax be taken from?

Since UTII payers calculate the amount of obligations to the budget based on the square footage of the store, the question of excluding non-trade zones from the taxable base often arises. This approach is quite reasonable. However, territorial inspectorates with enviable stubbornness refuse to recognize the legality of such decisions. The tax authorities declare that there are no relevant provisions in Article 346.27 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Domestic courts support entrepreneurs when disputes arise. It is allowed to exclude from the calculation base:

· administrative zones;

· premises used for the purpose of storing goods and their pre-sale preparation;

· objects being repaired.

The condition for recognizing the actions of the UTII payer as lawful is the refusal to use the space in retail trade. Confirmation of this fact may be documents confirming the presence of partitions, for example, technical inventory passports. Unfortunately, you will have to defend your case in court.

Sale of goods under the contract system

The procedure for taxation of transactions concluded within the framework of Law No. 44-FZ causes heated debate. A clothing store can participate in the tender process. However, such sales will not be recognized as retail sales. If an entrepreneur has chosen UTII as the regime, he will not be able to avoid additional charges. Income from the sale of clothing under state and municipal contracts must be taken into account separately. The type of activity in question must be translated into the simplified tax system or the operating tax system. The official position on this matter is set out in the reasoning part of the decision of the Autonomous District of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug in case No. A81-5167/2016.

Form of payment

Lawyers strongly recommend that the store owner refuse to make cashless payments to customers. The fact is that the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation and the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation refuse to apply the UTII system to income received in this form. According to officials, entrepreneurs can pay the single tax only from cash amounts, as well as payments received through special terminals. Direct transfers to the account are classified as other income. In the absence of appropriate statements from the merchant, they are subject to personal income tax, VAT and other DST fees. It was proposed to familiarize yourself with the position of federal departments in the open letter of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation No. 01-2-02/1086 dated 08/02/2005.

In conclusion, let us recall the peculiarities of domestic regulation. Amendments to existing regulations are contributed annually. This significantly complicates the rules of the game in the market. Systematic study of official websites allows you to learn about all changes in a timely manner. Thus, up-to-date information on the procedure for applying special regimes can be found on the website of the tax service, and you can find out about the requirements for policyholders in the virtual reception offices of the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation and the Federal Social Insurance Fund of the Russian Federation. The government services portal is becoming increasingly important.

Section III of the Sales Rules (Resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation of January 19, 1998 No. 55 “Rules for the sale of certain types of goods”) is devoted to the peculiarities of the sale of textile, knitwear, clothing and fur goods and footwear. According to this section, these goods must undergo pre-sale preparation before being placed on the sales floor. The concept of pre-sale preparation includes the seller performing the following actions:

· unpacking the goods;

· sorting of goods;

· inspection of the goods;

· product quality check external signs;

· checking the availability of the necessary information about the product and its manufacturer;

· cleaning of products;

· ironing and minor repairs of products.

The last two actions are performed if they are necessary.

On the sales floor, goods should be grouped by types, models, sizes, heights. Depending on the specifics of trade, samples of goods offered for sale may be displayed on the sales floor to enable the buyer to more correctly and easily select and buy the required product.

When grouping, it is necessary to comply with the following requirements contained in the provisions of the Sales Rules (clause 40)

“Knitwear, clothing, fur goods and shoes for men, women and children must be placed separately in the sales area.

Fabrics are grouped by type and type of fiber from which they are made, fur products - by type of fur.

Each fabric sample must also be accompanied by information about the percentage of fibers from which it is made, and fur products - information about the type of fur.”

All products must have labels indicating:

· Name of product;

· its article number;

· size (in relation to clothing, underwear, other garments, shoes, hats);

· growth (in relation to clothes and linen);

· type of fur and its color (for clothing, hats and fur collars).

The above requirements can be illustrated with examples from judicial practice. For example, at an entrepreneur’s point of sale, information about the product and the manufacturing company in Russian for women’s windbreakers and men’s raincoats was not brought to the attention of customers. In addition, the women's windbreakers did not have the name of the product, the name and location (address) of the manufacturer, or the designation of the standard or technical specifications; on women's windbreakers of the CAPRICE brand - the name and location of the manufacturer, thereby violating the Rules for the sale of goods. For violation of these Rules, Article 14.15 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation provides for liability in the form of a fine (Resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Volga-Vyatka District dated May 6, 2004 No. A82-295/2003-A/5). Often in such cases, entrepreneurs challenge administrative penalties in court, citing the insignificance of the offenses committed as a basis. However, such arguments, as a rule, are recognized by the court as untenable (Resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the North-Western District dated April 19, 2006 in case No. A13-14634/2005-23).

There is an explanation of the Supreme Arbitration Court on this matter Russian Federation, contained in the Resolution of the Plenum of June 2, 2004 No. 10 “On some issues arising in judicial practice when considering cases of administrative offenses,” which says:

“... when qualifying an offense as minor, courts must proceed from an assessment of the specific circumstances of its commission. A minor offense occurs in the absence of a significant threat to protected social relations.”

The seller’s responsibility is to create and provide conditions for trying on goods when purchasing clothing, outerwear, hats, fur goods and shoes. For this purpose, trading floors should be equipped with fitting rooms with mirrors, banquettes (benches), and stands.

Clause 43 of the Sales Rules provides for the requirements for measuring fabrics. Thus, measuring woolen fabrics, batting and other heavy, bulky fabrics should be done by placing a rigid standard meter on the fabric lying on the counter or table in a loose state without folds.

And thin and light fabrics are measured with a rigid standard meter by throwing the fabric onto the counter with a free application of the fabric to the meter without tension.

In addition, measuring all types of fabrics, except for woolen fabrics and knitted fabrics, can also be done by placing the fabric on a counter (table), on one side of which a branded metal measuring tape is mounted.

The sales rules prohibit the addition of cut fabric to the purchase. As well as the sale of fabric with a factory label (the so-called haz ends), if the factory finishing is damaged and the mark is not placed on the wrong side.

In addition, a person selling fabrics, clothing, fur goods and shoes, when releasing goods in the presence of the buyer, must check the quality of the goods, the accuracy of the measure or quantity of the goods and the correctness of the calculation of the purchase price. The quality of the goods is determined by external inspection.

Fabrics, clothing, fur goods and shoes are delivered to the buyer in packaged form. The seller should not charge extra for packaging.

Along with the goods, the buyer is given a document, which is a document confirming payment for the goods. The sales receipt indicates the name of the product and the seller, the date of sale, article number, grade and price of the product, as well as the signature of the person directly carrying out the sale.

Thus, the presence of a sales receipt as a separate document and the need to transfer it with the goods to the buyer is a mandatory requirement of the Rules for the sale of certain types of goods. Violation of the established rules for the sale of certain types of goods entails the imposition of an administrative fine on citizens in the amount of 3 to 15 times the minimum wage; for officials - from 10 to 30 minimum wages (Article 14.15 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation) (Resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Central District of May 16, 2003 No. A62-3827/02).

Learn more about the features contractual relations in the trade of clothing and footwear, and trade rules, you can in the books of the authors of JSC " BKR Intercom-Audit": "Light industry" "Wholesale and retail trade" and "Trade rules. Legal regulation. Practice. Documentation".

Approximate data:

• Monthly income – 1,050,000 rubles.
• Net profit – 250,750 rubles.
• Initial costs – 1,999,300 rubles.
• Payback – from 8 months.

In this article we will draw up a detailed business plan for the store. women's clothing with calculations. But remember that this business plan can be applied to absolutely any clothing store (not just women’s).

Description of service

The business plan discusses the features of opening a women's clothing store intended for the middle price segment. Let us remind you once again that this business plan can be applied to men’s clothing, outerwear, underwear, etc. The amount of investment will differ depending on the cost, type of product and its quantity.

The entrepreneur administers his own store, which is located in a shopping center. It also contains information that may be useful to the reader about other formats and possibilities when working with them.

Market analysis

Many people, dreaming of their own business, think about opening a clothing store. Some want it to be a luxury boutique located in the very center of the city, others choose an online store, and others decide to open a discount clothing center. Of course, all this can bring income with the right approach to work. But still, before choosing one or another store format, it is worth carefully analyzing the market, because there are quite a few competitors in it.

It must be said that many people believe that opening their own clothing store requires a lot of money. This is not always the case and depends on many factors. There are also formats that require investment only in purchasing inventory and some other expense items. To understand the picture, you need to consider in detail the possible store formats.

Today, in a broad sense, the following options for opening your own clothing outlets are being considered:

• “real time” stores (these are ordinary stores where customers come and see the available goods, can try them on, and choose suitable clothes);
• online stores (this may include large online stores, one-page sites or stores on social networks).

Both options need to be considered separately to understand the aspects of working in them.

I would like to warn budding entrepreneurs : Many naively believe that the main thing in the success of a store is investment. No one is more interested in the success of a business than an investor, because he takes risks in this situation a large sum funds. Experienced businessmen advise not to put the management of the store in the wrong hands, at least for the first six months. People who did otherwise, in most cases, failed and went bankrupt.

Now let's look at specific store formats.

1. Regular store

This format is the most common. Here you can include two subformats, each of which has its own specifics:

• Store located in a shopping center

Such stores usually sell items in the lower and middle price segments. An undoubted advantage is that there is no need to spend a lot of money on placing additional advertising. When people come to a shopping center, they most often visit several departments at once. That is why it is very important to choose a shopping center that will attract the right audience.

• Store located in a separate building

Such stores usually sell items in the above-average price segment. This includes luxury, designer goods and creative designs from talented designers. You will have to spend a lot of money to attract customers.

When calculating the necessary expenses, you will need to include:

• purchase of product range;
• rent;
• necessary equipment;
• wages staff;
• taxes.

The average cost per 1 m2 is about 50 thousand rubles. And this is if the store sells goods in the mid-price segment.

You need to understand that initially the store will cover the initial costs. There will be net profit, but in fact it will cover only the amount of invested funds for some time. Therefore, it is very important to have a certain reserve of money “just in case.”

Another very interesting option for a “real-time” store is the so-called "showroom at home". This option is suitable for those who have a very small initial capital. There are benefits in this case, they are quite large:

• no rent;
• no salary costs.

Of course, there are also disadvantages. For example, not everyone decides to set up such a store at home. Indeed, in such cases, people should be invited to your territory to try on and view existing things. It is very difficult to find customers here, and even more difficult to attract them and persuade them to buy. Although, if they come, they probably intend to buy something.

Stores like these are usually used as a source additional income. Often such impromptu retail outlets are opened by hairdressers and manicurists who work from home.

1. Online store

Today, such a type of clothing sales as sales through an online store is gaining particular popularity. It is very important to assess opportunities, competition and occupy the most preferred niche.

The savings here are quite significant. There is no need to spend money on equipment, staff salaries, or renting store premises. Everything happens online. Customers don't come to try on outfits, they buy them after seeing a picture on the Internet.

Most often, novice businessmen who want to work in the fashion industry start with such stores.

Above is a sales chart and its forecast for subsequent years. As you can see, every year there is a significant increase in the volume of products purchased via the Internet. This is a positive factor for those who are planning to open such a retail outlet.

According to this graph, the “clothing and accessories” category is the most popular among the population. However, we see that only 14% purchase these goods online, while the rest prefer to visit stores on their own.

From this we can conclude that more sales can be obtained by opening a store in “real time”.

I would like to add that it is better to open an online store for residents of a specific city, and not for the entire country. At least at first. Later, you can increase your reach to potential customers.

When opening an online store, you should not be scattered across many product categories at once. It is better to focus on one variety and establish sales.

Most often, people buy clothes online on sites where there is no pre-order. However, in this case, a large investment will be required to be able to send the goods immediately after the customer places an order.

But waiting is suitable for those stores that offer consumers some unusual or exclusive products. For such things, people are willing to spend some time waiting. By the way, this includes not only expensive things, but also those that, on the contrary, are very cheap.

I would like to note that today entrepreneurs enter regional markets in one of the following ways:

• opening your own store;
• work as a distributor;
• work under the franchising system.

It is worth noting that the latter option is in greatest demand today.

According to statistics, to enter the clothing market you need at least 1.5 - 2.25 million rubles. To reach the international level, 5 times more is required.

So, we have decided that an “offline” store can bring great profits in the long run. It is his discovery that we will consider. Now you need to decide what clothes to sell (women’s or men’s) and what criteria to pay special attention to.

More women follow fashion than men (72% vs. 45%). Yes, it is ladies who make purchases much more often than men. This is why it is best to open a women's clothing store. If possible, you can combine both directions at once.

When choosing clothes, people pay attention to the following signs:

• suitable item (60%);
• quality (15%);
• practicality (7%);
• compatibility with other wardrobe items (7%);
• exclusivity (5%);
• brand awareness (1%).

Therefore, our store should sell high-quality, practical and comfortable items that fit in size.

It must be said that the middle-income stratum makes up the overwhelming majority of the population. These are the ones you need to focus on when opening a store.

Thus, our store will sell women's products at an affordable price in the shopping center, targeting women aged 18-45 years.

I would also like to say that every consumer has hidden needs. Based on them, you need to choose a work strategy.

This table informs you about the hidden needs of each category and helps you understand how to work with it.

SWOT analysis

Before opening your own store, you need to analyze hidden threats and opportunities that can significantly affect the functioning of your own business. In such cases, factors are usually divided into external (which cannot be changed) and internal (which can be changed).

TO external factors can be attributed:

1. Possibilities:

• high and constant demand for goods in this category;
• relative inelasticity of demand in a given market segment;
• the possibility of expanding the assortment with other product categories and adding items for men and teenagers to the product matrix;
• opportunity to order goods at competitive prices.

1. Threats:

• high level of competition in this market segment;
• lack of controlled market share;
• increased competition;
• it is possible that legislation will become stricter, which will create obstacles to work in this segment;
• economic downturn negatively affecting economic indicators store.

Internal factors include:

1. Strengths:

• increasing staff motivation to work;
• the opportunity to find bona fide suppliers;
• the ability to work at a high premium;
• wide range of goods;
• the ability to set a fairly wide range of prices for goods;
• convenient and favorable location for sales;
• convenient working hours.

1. Weak sides:

• lack of experience in this field;
• lack of knowledge;
• lack of business reputation and loyal consumers;
• lack of a circle of regular customers;
• lack of a network of suppliers;
• unknown store;
• lack of trained personnel.

Opportunity Assessment

Our store will operate according to the following schedule:

Total: 79 hours per week, 338 hours per month.

There will be 2 shifts working in the store on a schedule of 2 through 2. Each shift will have 2 workers, since the premises will be quite large. The cleaning will be carried out by the shopping center staff.

The entrepreneur will not sell products through the online store. It will be necessary to promote your own brand and attract customers.

Organizational and legal aspects

1. Perhaps or. It is worth noting that registering an LLC in this case is inappropriate. When registering, it is important to indicate OKVED codes. In this type of activity it could be:

52.42.1 Retail trade in men's, women's and children's clothing;

52.42.2 - Retail trade of underwear;

52.42.3 - Retail trade in fur products;

52.42.4 - Retail trade in leather clothing;

52.42.5 - Retail trade of sportswear;

52.42.6 - Retail trade in hosiery;

52.42.7 - Retail trade in hats;

52.42.8 Retail sale of clothing accessories (gloves, ties, scarves, belts, suspenders, etc.);

52.43 — Retail trade of footwear and leather goods;

52.43.1- Retail sale of footwear;

52.43.2 - Retail trade of leather goods and travel accessories.

Note! In your case, there may be more codes or some of the ones presented may be missing. Therefore, it is important to understand exactly what you will do in your own store in order to reflect all types of planned activities at once, rather than making changes to the documents every time.

1. An entrepreneur can choose either UTII. In the second case, two options are possible - simplified tax system “Income” 6% or simplified tax system “income minus expenses” 6-15% (the rate is determined depending on the region).
2. A certificate of entry into the general trade register is required. In our case, the store will be opened on the territory of the shopping center, which will determine the receipt of the necessary document.
3. You will need to obtain permission to carry out trading activities.
4. Conclusions from State Fire Supervision Authority and Rospotrebnadzor are required.
5. It is necessary to have an official lease agreement and a garbage removal agreement.
6. You will need permission for outdoor advertising, if any.
7. Don’t forget to register the cash register with the tax office.
8. You will need Goskomstat codes.
9. If you plan to sell any products that require a license, you will need to obtain one.
10. Employees must have medical records (do not forget about the regularity of passing commissions).
11. You will need a list of goods and certificates for them.
12. Do not forget about the need to have a sanitary passport.
13. For non-cash payments it is necessary.

Documents such as a contract for the removal of solid waste may not be needed if the cleaning is carried out at the expense of the landlord and he has a general contract for the maintenance of the entire building. In this case, a certified copy will be sufficient.

Marketing plan

Of course, the promotion and advertising of the department will largely depend on the shopping center. Some of them take on this work themselves. But don’t forget about your own promotion. So, the marketing plan will include the following promotion methods:

• Increasing customer loyalty. This technique is based on holding commodity days, when the cost of specific goods is reduced to cost or close to it. At the same time, it is very important to present the idea in an interesting way, so that the store is remembered by the consumer, and he comes here to shop again.
• Informing your consumers through a group in social network, own website. It is very important here that the site and group are active. To do this, it is necessary to timely add relevant and interesting information– about possible promotions. You can hold drawings, for example, to receive a 50% discount.
• Contextual advertising. This method will also be effective and more or less affordable. But you still shouldn’t get carried away with it.

Placing information in the media will not be cheap. And these expenses are unlikely to pay off. Therefore, it is better to refuse such methods of promotion if we are talking about a small store intended for representatives of the middle and below-average price categories.

Calculation of projected income

It is quite difficult to calculate possible income. We will proceed from the amount of costs for purchasing the goods and the average size of the product margin in the industry.

The average margin in this industry is about 100%, sometimes more. Let’s take revenue equal to 35,000 rubles per day. The amount is averaged based on the indicators for the entire week. Subsequently, revenue will increase.

Thus, monthly revenue will be about 1,050,000 rubles. And the cost of purchasing the goods will be 525,000 rubles.

Production plan

The store premises will have an area of ​​70–90 m2. You can rent it in a shopping center for 80,000 – 90,000 rubles.

At the same time, there will be no special expenses for repairs, but it will be simply necessary to equip it. You will need:

• sign (40,000 rubles);
• showcases (25,000 rubles);
• shelving (20,000 rubles);
• mirrors (35,000 rubles);
• hangers (45,000 rubles);
• KKM (8,500 rubles);
• computer (30,000 rubles);
• anti-theft system (40,000 rubles).

We will also need furniture:

• shelves (15,000 rubles);
• mannequins (60,000 rubles);
• sofas (35,000 rubles).

You will also need various lamps and other lighting methods.

Employees' wages are 30,000 and 25,000 rubles for a senior seller and a regular one, respectively, including taxes. Total wage costs are 110,000 rubles.

Organizational plan

Financial plan

• Profit before tax: 1,050,000 – 755,000 = 295,000 rubles.
• Tax (we calculate the simplified tax system at 15% of the difference between income and expenses): 44,250 rubles.
• Net profit: 295,000 – 44,250 = 250,750 rubles.
• Profitability: 250,750 /1,050,000*100% =23.88%.
• Payback period: 1,999,300/250,750 = 7.97. Therefore, the store can pay for itself in 8 months.

Risks

The following risks can be identified:

1. Increase in rent cost.

This risk could cause a significant reduction in sales revenue. Another option is a forced increase in the cost of the goods offered. This in turn negatively affects demand and sales.

To avoid given risk, it is necessary to work out in detail the contract agreement with the landlord. Important conclude an agreement for a long time, fixing the cost and a critical point of attendance, upon reaching which the parties revise the rental price.

1. Increased competition.

As a result of this situation, the number of visitors will decrease, as will sales volumes.

The following ways to overcome the situation are possible:

• develop and use a unique store concept;
• offer your consumers a unique product;
• carrying out various promotions and offering discounts.

1. Unprofessionalism of sellers and other personnel working in the store.

As a result, visitors may not be satisfied with the service. As a result, overall sales volume will decrease, and business reputation may turn from positive to negative.

These risks can be overcome with an integrated approach, including:

• ongoing staff training related to sales and service training;
• informing about the features of fabrics, materials, products and their care;
• development and use of financial and non-financial motivational levers;
• placement of CCTV cameras (they will also reduce the number of thefts in the store).

1. Products going out of fashion, their irrelevance.

This can threaten quite serious freezing of positions, a decrease in purchasing value and, as a result, a decrease in the overall profitability of the business.

To avoid such problems, it is necessary to constantly monitor the media and other sources of information. Additionally, it is worth holding regular sales so that there are no leftovers of stale goods.

Franchise business

You can also consider the option of opening a franchise clothing store, where you will receive a fully step-by-step model for opening a store of a well-known brand. Franchising is a less risky start because the business model has been tested and works successfully.

To find a franchise, use ours!

Important: Remember that you can independently create a business plan specifically for your business. To do this, read the articles:

One last request: We are all human and can make mistakes, leave something out, etc. Do not judge strictly if this business plan or others in the section seem incomplete to you. If you have experience in this or that activity or you see a flaw and can add to the article, please let me know in the comments! This is the only way we can jointly make business plans more complete, detailed and up-to-date. Thank you for your attention!