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Post by Chrissie on Sept 26, 2016 20:11:30 GMT
Hello & welcome ashyuk As soon as you do start trading, please apply for vendor status
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ghostrider1971
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Post by ghostrider1971 on Sept 26, 2016 20:27:06 GMT
Thinking aloud, I guess people go to a B&M if they need something there and then or want some expertise in person.
I went to my local one at the weekend as I was "caught short" and needed a coil - ended up paying £4 for one coil - wasn't overly happy but at least I could keep vaping!
The price of juice in a lot of shops, to me, is eye-watering - quality juice at a reasonable price - perhaps difficult but completely desirable :-)
I guess there must be a market for £20 for 30ml of juice (not me!) - maybe being able to stock something reasonably priced like rejuiced.eu liquids?
I wish you the very best!!
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TJ
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Post by TJ on Sept 26, 2016 20:56:22 GMT
Do you know in all the time I have been vaping I have only been in a B&M twice, one TW one to use a voucher I had way back when and one down my local town to buy my guilty secret treat liquid as I spied on-line that they had it on offer in the shop - LOL! Bizarrely once I'd got my starter kit it never occurred to me to actually find any shops at all, I bought everything on-line from day dot. Have never ever run out of anything so perhaps that immediately curbed my need to actually shop on foot
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striker42
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Post by striker42 on Sept 26, 2016 21:20:55 GMT
I wish you all the best in your venture ashyuk, should you decide to carry on with it. IMO, it's probably the last market I would be trying to break into at this particular time. Sorry if I sound like the prophet if doom, but if you have a pound to invest in a business, then investing in a market that so many have bailed out of with a few more having announced they will be heading for the exit door, to me, seems fraught with danger. Likewise, some of the juice companies are hinting that they will be moving more towards concentrates than premix to try and avoid the large costs involved due to the new legislation, as has been pointed out by Postmodern Smoking in an earlier post. Two things I would ask : 1. Can you bring something to the table that is going to grab the vaping public by the short and curly's ? 2. Can you provide it at a decent price ? You also stated that you were looking at a low profit line. The only way that is going to be worthwhile is by having a massive turnover, which won't be easy to achieve. I really hope the pound you invest turns into 2 pounds in the future and doesn't leave you with 10p after all the effort you put in. All the very best to you whatever you decide. I do however, having said all that, admire your ambition.
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ashyuk
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Post by ashyuk on Sept 26, 2016 22:25:50 GMT
I agree with you, I buy mainly online, but i still go into stores sometimes to test new juices, mods, and for stuff i need and don't want to wait for Vaping is so diverse now, a lot of people don't order online, or prefer hands on, even though a lot do primarily use the internet, but any shop is going to venture into the online market to i suppose, and a lot of time, the postage costs make it more expensive than actually walking to the local store, so there is still a market, the shops we've been researching locally, albeit slightly further afield have a lot of walk-ins, and these are in lesser locations than where we plan to setup From my experience i cant agree with the bit about postage costs equalling a b and m price. Most b and m shops have to sell at a higher price because of the rates/overheads. Not if your popping in for something small like a coil or a 10ml, and an online vendor is adding £3.49 postage. Overall prices yes, for small items, B&M cheaper
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Post by Perpetua on Sept 27, 2016 6:42:31 GMT
Welcome and good luck to you ashyuk. I can only echo the caution of what others have previously said . . . . you're contemplating entering this market at a time of great uncertainty as to it's future. There are very good reasons why previously successful well established Vendors have decided to call it a day of late. But, I do understand what it is to have a dream having had my own business for 20 years - if I had one piece of advice to give, it would be - don't sign up for anything that you can't extract yourself from relatively easily and without causing yourself too much financial damage. In the 6+years of vaping, I've bought nothing from a B&M shop - largely because there's very few where I live locally and those that there are tend to be very expensive compared to internet prices - even with postage. However not everyone does the internet for our supplies/equipment, many people do enjoy and look for personal service and advice to give them confidence . . . . especially when they're first starting out. I think we might tend to overlook that aspect being totally committed internet buyers. Perhaps some coiling and DIY eliquid ' workshops ' are worth considering, as again not everyone wants to watch a Youtube video to find out the ' how to '.
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Bobsbeer
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Post by Bobsbeer on Sept 27, 2016 9:33:25 GMT
Forums are probably not the best place to conduct market research for a B&M style business. Not that you won't get good advice, but those on here are just one section of the vaping community, and probably the smallest section, if you take the total vaping numbers as being accurate. Most of the respondents on here will use online purchasing, and apart from shipping time, there is no difference if purchased from a B&M online in the next town to purchasing from a warehouse outfit in China. So price becomes the dominant purchasing factor for most on here. In that regard it becomes very hard for B&M's to compete as the wholesale price will not be much better than if bought as a consumer from the likes of Fasttech etc. As others have said, I like them have only ever been in a B&M twice in nearly 2 years of vaping. TW to buy my first kit, and a local one in Kendal I spotted just after I started. I bought some juice, but have never been back. Online purchasing is just too convenient and prices tend to be better. Sadly even if you were setting up shop near me, I would probably not be someone you would convince to part with my money, certainly on a long term basis. How you reach the vapers who would be customers I don't know, but I would treat the advice on here with a bit of caution. Good luck with your venture though, and while I may not be a customer, I hope you succeed. Nothing ventured, nothing gained as they say, but it's a shark pool out there, so I hope you have sharp teeth.
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ghostrider1971
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Post by ghostrider1971 on Sept 27, 2016 10:15:38 GMT
Perpetua - Vaping workshops!!!!! - What a wonderful idea! I would be there like a flash :-)
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Lee
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Post by Lee on Sept 27, 2016 10:24:56 GMT
Asking for B&M advice on a vapers forum, is probably a bad choice as well
In the town where I live, four people I have chatted with who vape, had no idea about the online communities, let alone buying from Asia Two used the B&M shops (proper vape shops) The others used B&M stores (the store chain) because the liquids were cheap and they started vaping to save money
One online liquid manufacturer recently announced they were shutting down due to people choosing price over quality, from memory
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