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 Veteran
Posts: 140
 
| A friend of mine has a small mom and pop tack shop and has hit a hard spot when it comes to selling anything lately. He is revamping his inventory to try to help with business. My question for you guys is, when you are at your local tack shop, what products and brands are you wanting to purchase? Tack, blankets, halters, brushes, supplements ect. I am looking for some ideas on what may sell well in a small mom and pop tack shop | |
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Regular
Posts: 81
| I owned a boutique for approximately a year and my goal was to stock affordable items that almost anyone can find a price point at. What I learned was (from a business standpoint) is that it is significantly cheaper to sell 1 - $100 shirt then 10 - $10 shirt. If I had it to do again I would have upped the quality of goods that I sold and hit a higher price point.
My advice would be stick with the 5-star pads, become a distributor for iconoclast boots, PHT, BOT items, good - quality tack. Look at the bits/headstalls/tack that the 'pros' are using because it never fails that if someone does well - people will follow in purchasing what they used to find success. I mean really, who would have thought tye-dyed pants would EVER be a thing??
I also made most of my money going to vendor shows and setting up booths. There is very little overhead and people are looking to buy things there. I would also up my social media presence. The business owners that are getting LOADS of 'likes' and 'followings' do the - If you share you'll be put in a drawing... etc. Just make sure they ACTUALLY do the drawing.
Bottom line is - purchasing lower cost items may go faster but your return is not necessarily what it needs to be to make ends meet. Know your business objective, your market, and create a business plan accordingly. I wish I hadn't been so afraid of debt and understood what I do now about how to balance. Goodluck to them!! SUPPORT SMALL BUSINESSES!! YOU'RE MORE THAN LIKELY FEEDING SMALL KIDS VS A 4TH HOME!!!
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Veteran
Posts: 140
| Thanks for the advice! Almost all of his merchandise are the cheapest prices you can find but the quality of it is also pretty low. That's why he is revamping it. I will make a list of what you said and pass it on. Thank you!! | |
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Meanest Teacher!!!
Posts: 8555
   
Location: sunny california | i think you need to have balance and have both types of items. one thing that I will pay without looking at price is emergency supplies, bandaging supplies. I do get mad when vet wrap is too high though LOL. i know what i can get that for online, the rest is not memorized so I just grap and complain later. Think about someone might need on the fly and make sure you have those items. Most of these are things i paid good money for on short notice. some where not that high priced so i would go back and look for them whenever i got low.
vetwrap
elastikon
bandaging cotton
sterile gauze
standing wraps- cheap and high quality ones
no bow wraps/quilts- cheap and high quality ones
polos- cheap and high quality ones
colored electrical tape for the polos
some types of iceboots
hoof soaker boot
box of blue medical gloves-could sell by pair and make good profit.
Hay bags/nibble nets
bucket straps
box fan and the hanging straps
muck buckets*****
better bucket large*****
Rubber feed tubs*****
Fly masks- I get one that covers the nose for a cremello
mounting block*****
water tank for trailer****
good quality extension cords/hoses for LQ trailers
blue water can- 6 gal like a gas can
water filter that attaches to a hose. horse hydrator???
nice set of portable panels****
high quality deer skin gloves
cheap but soft leather work gloves
needles and syringes
feeding syringes
duct tape
muck boots
insulated cover alls
beanie type hat/ insulated gloves
replacement fork heads
snow shovel
rubber mat gripers--made nice christmas present!
extra good quality hole punch- don't bother with cheap as your customer might be a lady with small hands and cuss you when she can not get a hole punched.
**** denotes high shipping rates so no one wants to order these online. i did not include grooming or training equipment nor supplements/feed because they are indivual posts!!!
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Meanest Teacher!!!
Posts: 8555
Location: sunny california | Vmtaylor - 2016-09-24 4:39 AM I owned a boutique for approximately a year and my goal was to stock affordable items that almost anyone can find a price point at. What I learned was (from a business standpoint) is that it is significantly cheaper to sell 1 - $100 shirt then 10 - $10 shirt. If I had it to do again I would have upped the quality of goods that I sold and hit a higher price point. My advice would be stick with the 5-star pads, become a distributor for iconoclast boots, PHT, BOT items, good - quality tack. Look at the bits/headstalls/tack that the 'pros' are using because it never fails that if someone does well - people will follow in purchasing what they used to find success. I mean really, who would have thought tye-dyed pants would EVER be a thing?? I also made most of my money going to vendor shows and setting up booths. There is very little overhead and people are looking to buy things there. I would also up my social media presence. The business owners that are getting LOADS of 'likes' and 'followings' do the - If you share you'll be put in a drawing... etc. Just make sure they ACTUALLY do the drawing. Bottom line is - purchasing lower cost items may go faster but your return is not necessarily what it needs to be to make ends meet. Know your business objective, your market, and create a business plan accordingly. I wish I hadn't been so afraid of debt and understood what I do now about how to balance. Goodluck to them!! SUPPORT SMALL BUSINESSES!! YOU'RE MORE THAN LIKELY FEEDING SMALL KIDS VS A 4TH HOME!!!
I try to not spend on corporate products especially food. they do not care about you and will cut corners until they kill you or your pets | |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 702
Location: MN | I work at a small ma and pop tack store in a very small town. The tack we handle is very good quality but reasonably priced. It's a lot of working tack but it's stuff that will last and it's not name brand. We refuse to carry any of the cheap tack made of cheap leather from India. Same goes for saddles. We carry quality suff that we stand behind.
We do carry name brands like Classic Equine, Weaver, Diamond Wool Pads, Montana Silversmiths etc. Carry some of the brands people are familiar with and trust. Example: we carry the Legacy boots by Classic Equine and we also carried a no name boot that was similar. We filled in on the Legacy boots probably 5 times before we even sold 1 pair of the no name. People want to spend their hard earned money on quality products.
We also have a had a Facebook page for some years and this year we created a website. Although one cannot order from the site but people call and we ship stuff out. We also have a tack trailer that we haul and set up at rodeos, horse shows etc. This isn't a huge money maker but excellent advertising. How does he advertise?
Hope things go better for your friend! | |
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 Expert
Posts: 3815
Location: The best kept secret in TX | lilac lane farm - 2016-09-23 11:38 PM A friend of mine has a small mom and pop tack shop and has hit a hard spot when it comes to selling anything lately. He is revamping his inventory to try to help with business. My question for you guys is, when you are at your local tack shop, what products and brands are you wanting to purchase? Tack, blankets, halters, brushes, supplements ect. I am looking for some ideas on what may sell well in a small mom and pop tack shop
I think you need to look at the Economy, location, and demographic of the area.
Are the people very low income? Are they knowledgeable about tack? Are they mainly show horses or work horses that need outfitted? This will determine what needs to be stocked. If the are low income, buy lower priced tack. If they know tack, buy quality items. If you mainly have show horses think about expanding your animal health section and halter section. Work horses? Expand your harness leather simple headstall tack. Maybe carry a few Cowpuncher buckles and hardware for tack in case a Dayworker wants a nicer buckle on the headstall.
Unless you sell online to people of all incomes and disciplines I feel like your questions aren't going to help your friend. I could stock the store with Leddy, Coats, and Martin's and not sell a single one if the people of the town are lower income. Tack quality doesn't matter. The people in the area do. Unless you sell online.
For example: I could buy the best of the best products, and as long as the people in the town don't have the money or can find cheaper prices close by, I won't sell anything. At the same time, If I hire one person to help me with advertising and social media, I can sell a few of the higher priced handmade or well put together items online and still be able to stay a float. Even if a single soul never stepped foot in my shop that week. I still made money because I had a social media following.
If I was your friend I would consider location, economy and need. After I assesed this, I would stock accordingly. I would maybe even move the shop to be more accessible, or less expensive to rent/own. You also need to look at changing seasons. Keep a few blankets in stock if it's winter. Have a good size selection. If it's summer, stock a few fly sheets. If they aren't selling, throw them on a facebook sell site and get what you paid for back. Doesn't matter what is in the shop if no one needs the itmes you are stocking. Also, try and have your friend find a product, brand, or service that no one has in the area. Ask local artists if they would like to rent out space in the shop to sell their own handmade goods with your friend getting a percentage off each item as well. These could be items such as wallets, tack sets, purses, etc. It will give you extra income without the burden of purchasing and trying to sell extra goods.
Good luck to your friend. | |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 788
| Ill be honest with you. I don't remember the last time I bought something for my horses (other than feed itself) by walking into a store. Yes, I buy stuff from people that have stores, but its all online. Advertising well and selling online would be the best thing. I think high quality items that people everywhere want, is what they need to sell. I am willing to drive out of my way to get something from a small town store if the prices are good and it saves me shipping costs, however, I don't have high quality stores anywhere near me, therefore, I buy online. And I am a clearance guru! I buy stuff even if I don't need it right then if it is a really good price (I know, BAD but you can never have too many pairs of horse boots lol) | |
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 Queen Bee Cat Owner
Posts: 3629
Location: Way up North | I agree with the quality with Classic Equine and Professionals Choice, they are tried and proven and people are usually willing to spend the money on them from boots to tack. If he has the space and want to I would suggest adding clothing and boot lines. People still like trying on clothing and knowing it will work vs. buying tack online.
I will agree with the others about needing a strong online presence. I know a lot don't like to mess with it but if things are slow instore it might be worth while. I make leather goods and just created a website with Wix and I would highly recommend them. It was a big time commitment to get everything up but super easy to design and get the ecommerce side together. Facebook is huge for getting recognition and then redirecting them to the website. Promoting new products on Facebook is a big part of it too. People are always on Facebook but they aren't always Googling tack stores. With Christmas coming up I would really push all the new patterns coming out and any sales coming out. Good pictures are a must for online sales so he would need to consider that. | |
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Veteran
Posts: 140
| Thank you everyone for the info and advice! I will be sure to pass it all along to my friend | |
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 Expert
Posts: 1482
Location: on my horse | I haven't read the responses but when I worked for a mom and pop tack store, our biggest seller and best tool was online marketing, online sales, and social media. We got in a ton of consignment saddles, some nice, some ok, some just junk and I kept a rolling folder on our Facebook page where each saddle was presented priced and measured. I also kept up a craigslist ad with the same pics etc. After I started doing that we almost doubled our saddle sales. | |
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