Time to think like a start up

Yes, 2007 stunk. At least it did for most retailers.

So what do you do now that the page has turned? How do you get out of the gate ahead of the competition?

You do it by thinking like a start up…like you did when you first opened your store. That other time it was all expenses with no income. That other time you had to wheel and deal or live on macaroni and cheese for six more months.

On this morning’s edition of the Today Show, Donny Deutsch spoke with great enthusiasm about how this is the ideal time to start a new business. According to the renowned marketing guru:

…you can get vendors cheap, get suppliers cheap, people cheap. This is the time.

Now, before the alarms go off, I’m not suggesting you spend your winter gift show trips trying to strong arm vendors into bottom basement pricing. What I am suggesting, however, is that there will be a lot of deals out there to be had, but if you don’t ask, you may not hear about them. After whittling down the list of lines you’re still willing to bank on (which I sincerely hope you’re doing), put the question to those companies-—what can you do to help us both make the sale? Might be dating. Might be free freight. Might be offset product. Might be better pricing. Ask.

Also, please please please please please look at any leases you have. If you’re within two years of expiration on your store space and know you want to continue forward, call the landlord now to renegotiate, then negotiate hard. Same for equipment leases. Consider long term extensions with heavily discounted rates. Same thing with your insurance policy. And your merchant services provider. Ask them to get competitive if they’d like to retain your business.

If they don’t get competitive, start calling around for other bids.

Potential new store owners have even more options. Companies are desperate to sign up new accounts, from vendors to landlords to signage companies to insurance agents. You’re in the driver’s seat right now. Get multiple bids. Don’t be shy about it. Wheel and deal. Odds are good you’re upstart costs will be far less than if you’d done this a year ago, and significantly lower than if you wait another year when the market‘s more slim, trim, and inching closer to its sparring weight.

There’s a silver lining to every down situation, and this one’s clear: It’s a buyer’s market, and you are the buyer. Remember how valuable you are to each and every company you do business with, then approach them with realistic, responsible requests. In the end, your bottom line will be healthier, and they will have retained a customer.

If you want to survive long term, you’re gonna have to think like a startup.