Advice for Opening a Store

[fencepost]

It may not be pretty, but it's cheap and easy!

I'm thinking I may not be able to officially run out of my home as a primary place of business - I live in a town that (unlike most in the area) doesn't have residential property taxes for the municipality itself (library, schools, parks, etc. are separate) but instead is entirely funded by sales and business taxes. Combined with living in what's officially condominiums with a condo association (with associated rules and usage covenants) that may make it more reasonable to have inexpensive office space elsewhere.

I'm still thinking about what it'd take to convert the very inner part of the garage into a workshop area, including possibly a bench that would actually be above the hood of a car parked in the garage.

 

[Porthos]

I'm still thinking about what it'd take to convert the very inner part of the garage into a workshop area, including possibly a bench that would actually be above the hood of a car parked in the garage.

I have never parked in the garage. It is a very small garage could barely open the car door enough to get out. I do have a carport though to parl one car under.

 

[ComputerExchange]

In 2015 we had four stores up and running. Last month I closed our last satellite store and am down to our original location. We have been here for 24 years and although traffic is brisk it is very difficult to make a good living. The future is MSP and if we didn't have a decent MSP and break fix model operating out of this retail location we wouldn't be able to break even.
Start with the lowest overhead you can manage and work 7 days a week for a couple of years and you might be able to make it work. As a retail store it will never run itself.