School project, need help :)

[maxpayne_lhp]

I am gonna have a huge project for my Business Class...
We are supposed to run a business, sketch out our work place, list our merchandise list, create code of ethic for emplyee... and most importantly, manage it.
I went up with the idea of running a local pet store (!)
So I need helo from you... I will really appriciate if you give me what you want to expect in a pet/fish store. And it will be even great if some of you have exoerience from running your business in reality!
My first idea for a petshop is pick-up service... sometimes we don't need to waste time browsing around or waiting in line to check out some of our weekly shopping (live food, ie) so we may order online and go pickour order up. We can even have our own trucks deliver orders within a day!
Thats my first idea... what do you think?
Any idea or suggestion is appriciated!
~Max~

[ron v]

What about an aquarium maintainance business?

[Scuba Kid]

^^that would be cool. i know of a place near me that does that.

[mrmoby]

The pick up is definitely a good idea Max, delivery wouldn't be a bad idea either, but I think you would have to sell a LOT of pet products to make that aspect economically viable. That aspect would work if you set minimum orders, however, I think it would be tough to get enough people with large enough orders to make it happen. You would lose your shirt trying to make deliveries to people who order one can of fish flakes. I don't say this to squash your idea, I'm just assuming as part of the project the business must be financial viable.

My idea would be to make sure your store is stocked with quality items, and maybe have items that not everyone carries, to give yourself a reputation like" I'll go to Max's, he always has stuff like that. Stuff like repair pieces for filters, or maybe offer a service like tank resealing. People,I bet, are nervous about attemting that, and would probably gladly pay a few bucks for that service.

[Scuba Kid]

i think there should also be a delivery fee depending on where the person is located.

[mlefev]

OK well my comment/suggestion/question...where are you delivering to? Trucks take a long time to drive from place to place, so what areas are your business concentrated on servicing?

[Arlene]

I myself wouldnt go with the delivery option, as someone says you would pay more on fuel than probably the average order. The pickup option is good. What about a doctors corner? They have one in a pet shop near me and it goes down a treat. If there is something wrong with a fish just pop it in a jug and go see the fishy doc.

[TheOldSalt]

Hooboy...

Okay, Max, the pickup/delivery service is an interesting idea, but I think you're forgetting who your customers are going to be, namely, people who like hanging out in petshops. Given the choice of perusing the tanks and seeing the week's new fish or picking up my fishfood at the front counter and not looking at the fish, guess which one I'm going to choose? Come to think of it, while I'm wandering around the store, I'll probably find some items to buy that I wouldn't have noticed from the front counter. The lady who just wants a bag of birdseed would probably also be inclined to want to go look at the birds. What I'm saying is that while it could be convenient for your customers to have their stuff waiting at the counter for them, it's a very safe bet that they will almost never pick up their stuff at the counter and leave without wandering around the store anyway, so it's a wasted effort. But what the heck? If you want to at least offer it in the name of customer service, then go for it, but don't be surprised if almost no one ever bothers to use the service despite the expense involved in providing it.

How realistic is your simulation going to be, anyway? Who decides how many "customers" you get and how much they buy?
I can tell you all sorts of great features to include in a perfect utopian petstore, but how do know how your customers are supposed to react to them?

[maxpayne_lhp]

Well well... let's see we have a whole bunch pf suggestions, which is pretty cool.
Ah let's see...

What about a doctors corner? They have one in a pet shop near me and it goes down a treat

That is a good idea. I actually spare the whole second floor of the building for nursering and advice. If their pets get sick (which is quite common for unexperienced perparents) they probably find good place to have their pets being taken care of. But I have a question, will you like run a small hospital there? Will we have small cages or tanks for the sick pets? What about the VETs? Should we have some work at night to take care of the pets?
Other than that, several advisory desks can come to useful. People nowadays are more likely to study about what they are going to keep before making a purchase. So they can come to our service. Do you think this service should be free?
About the pick-up thing... I mean this for frequent customer. For example OldSalt has been in keeping fish a long time and he knows what he wants and how much. He is a loyal customer of my petshop. Then do you think its a good idea for us to issue him a membership card, which allows him to order online for 1-hour pick-up? OldSalt will probably like the idea since he needs a lot of items of livefood for his fish and he doesn't really have time? Will it be a benefit? That can even attract people who are first to be petparents in the shop. Well feel free to submit comments and your idea. Note: I will record this thread and represent some people's ideas for the class... eh hem

For today... we have new issues:
_Location: We need to find a location for my petshop. I would go for (1) Grand Rapids, where I can make interviews some petshop owners and study the industry there (2) Northern Illinois... where I know some of my friends there who can give opinions for me.
_Merchandise: Do you think besides fish... I will offer other types of pets? That really influences my sketch of the building in Autodesk Building project. Do you have a general idea of how big it should be?

____
Well thanks again for your ideas

[Baby_Baby]

ok, I've dun these things tons of times in honors classes and other such things
the number one thing that always gets u extra points: neatness
always have something very unique about it
if u have any craft stores u can buy dollhouse stuff, or barbie stuff (don't laugh) and u can make a replica (can't spell) of the petstore. I did that for an ann Frank project ( i did a model of the secret annex) its very cool and really fun to do =)
hope these suggestions help

[maxpayne_lhp]

Ok hey fellas... I have almost finished with the sketching. I will have a space of 50 x 60 ft sq for Fish section (Both freshwater and marine fish and creatures and supplies) Do you think that I have enough for the plan? I can expand a little bit if I need mpore space.

Anyone of you are running a petshop? Do you have any experience you want to share? We will go to some petshops in Grand Rapids this Xmas for interview and stuff forour project. But if you have any experience that you want to share, I will eally appriciate that.

Working schedule: I came up with the working schedule of 7AM - 9PM a day, probably 8 hours for a person. We will work on Sunday and will have a day off in Monday. (One question: Is religous issue in IL a big one? Do many businesses open in Sundays?) We will have a meeting for employees and a meeting for empolyers & employees probably every week.

And as we have a vet clinic... we probably have VETs work their all day, taking turn.


Well thats all we have worked so far, thanks for any ideas or suggestions.