Update ! *jumping up and down*

I Filed for the LLC today! WooHoo ....So now the business name will be All Pawsible Pets Shop, LLC.  I stopped by to apply for my business license on the way home from mailing the LLC form, but the town's policy on business licenses is July -June (1 yr) So if I had paid for my license today I would have to pay it again July 1st! ...no thanks so I will get that next Friday! Then I will obtain my EIN number then I will be signing the renter's agreement and paying that within the next few days and the utilities will be turned on by the end of next week as well. Then it's off to Whole Sale Hell lol ....So....in the words of Sponge Bob Square Pants "I'm Ready! I'm Ready!" lol ( You guys with kids will get that one lol)

Strap on your seat belts ...Here we goOoOoO!!!!

Facebook Fans

I have started a FaceBook Fan Page I would like to invite you all to come be a fan!

On the Fan Page I will have info for the Grand Opening and the ribbon cutting ceremony ! I am very excited ! Once the shop is open on going specials and news will be posted as well.

Here is the link All Pawsible Pets Shop Fan Page


Thanks for all your support!

Choosing My Business Structure (Entity)

Of all the choices to make when starting a business, one of the most important is the type of legal structure to select for your company. Not only will this decision have an impact on how much you pay in taxes, it will affect the amount of paperwork your business is required to do, the personal liability you face and your ability to raise money.

Types of Business Entities
The type of business entity you choose will depend on three primary factors: liability, taxation and record-keeping. Here's a quick look at the differences between the most common forms of business entities:

• A sole proprietorship is the most common form of business organizations. It's easy to form and offers complete managerial control to the owner. However, the owner is also personally liable for all financial obligations of the business.
• A partnership involves two or more people who agree to share in the profits or losses of a business. A primary advantage is that the partnership does not bear the tax burden of profits or the benefit of losses-profits or losses are "passed through" to partners to report on their individual income tax returns. A primary disadvantage is liability-each partner is personally liable for the financial obligations of the business.
• A corporation is a legal entity that is created to conduct business. The corporation becomes an entity-separate from those who founded it-that handles the responsibilities of the organization. Like a person, the corporation can be taxed and can be held legally liable for its actions. The corporation can also make a profit. The key benefit of corporate status is the avoidance of personal liability. The primary disadvantage is the cost to form a corporation and the extensive record-keeping that's required. While double taxation  is sometimes mentioned as a drawback to incorporation, the S corporation (or Sub-chapter corporation, a popular variation of the regular C corporation) avoids this situation by allowing income or losses to be passed through on individual tax returns, similar to a partnership.
• A hybrid form of partnership, the limited liability company (LLC) , is gaining in popularity because it allows owners to take advantage of the benefits of both the corporation and partnership forms of business. The advantages of this business format are that profits and losses can be passed through to owners without taxation of the business itself while owners are shielded from personal liability. 

Decisions ...Decisions ... Decisions !! 

 

I have researched each of these types, and talked to a small business lawyer, the local Chamber of Commerce and the Department of the Secretary of State to make sure that I am confident in choosing which entity would be best for my Pet Shop. 

Grand Opening Planning

 For a new store a grand opening is a major milestone. It needs to be a smash hit! I'll want to get lots of people there, create a great atmosphere, and give them something to remember the event by.... But what to do?

So far I know I will have lots of Balloons, banners, streamers decorations everywhere. I'll hold a raffle with prizes with for my customers Also a gift ( but what?)  for them to take home to remember the store by. I could have a band and/or local celebrities ( idk who they would be ...gotta research that too lol) Have the local rescue groups with animals available for adoption.

Another idea was to run a creative art or coloring competition for the kids that features Pets some how, have a prize for the winner and hang the winning art work in the store.

And have the local radio station broadcast from the store.


Well that is the start to GRAND OPENING ideas ...Do you have any ideas that I can WOW the new customers with?!

Breeders

 

Is Anyone in Hampton Roads, Virginia or Eastern North Carolina an animal breeder?

If so I am looking for small animals such as rats, gerbils, hamsters, rabbits, water turtles etc. from reputable breeders.  If you know of someone who I could contact please let me know :0) 

Also, do any of you have friends that have animal rescue groups that would be interested in being featured a Saturday of the month with their animals to get adopted?


You may either leave a comment here OR my email address is infodesk@secretariescorner.com

Choosing a Name?

Ok ...Trying to come up with a Creative and Unique Business name with a sweet tag line ...is where I am now ...I am open for suggestions ....

It should be memorable, easy to use, and create a certain feeling ( a good feeling that is lol)  when heard.

___________ Pet Shop/Store ?

 Tag Line ideas?


I am having a brain fart lol I've looked up many a sites for ideas ...and NOTHING is 'Popping' out to me yet ....

Will this be the Pet Shop location?

Here is a picture of one of the three stores I checked out on Thursday ...They all three look the same ...just the sizes are different.

Location! Location! Location!

People will often tell you that choosing your location is the most important decision you’ll ever make for your business. Guess what? They’re right.  Location is of utmost importance. Having an appropriate location can even attract pet lovers that only happened to pass by my store. This means I'm going to need visibility to my store – I'll need to attract drive-by customers too. 

I found it! It's puurfect! A shop right on the main interstate and completely visible to passing traffic ... three shops are available ranging in size ...small, medium and large ...which one will I need? I called the number on the window and asked some questions Hmm the cost for Rent was cheaper than I was expecting ...sweet! I wanted to go inside ...So I had made the appointment for this past Thursday. I asked my Dad to come from Virginia to go view them with me,  ...now I was inside my potential shop ...THAT was very exciting! I looked around and started to picture in my mind where everything was gonna go. After viewing the three shops, the owner says he has one more property down the street he thinks would work well and it was bigger and cheaper? ...Ok! let's go....It was a Log Cabin! ...yes really ...very cool and big just like he said and it had a fenced in yard which could hold the dogs or any other animals from the Rescue Groups ... but once inside ...I saw right away it was not going to work for a Pet Shop. 

So now to make the decision from the first three shops ...

Slightly Freaking Out ...

I had made the decision to do this "New Adventure", and I was so excited. This is probably the biggest thing I have ever done, I have faith in myself I can do it and was ready to get started.

Step one was to see if I could even get a loan ...after a long waiting game that stressed me out YES! okay NOW it's time to get started.

Now as I begin I am reading and reading every "How to Start a Pet Shop" link I could find ...I don't want to miss a thing. Then I found a link yesterday, it was a year long diary basically of a pet store that was not doing so well that they decided to give their store a make-over and do a RE-GRAND OPENING ...so I thought ok ...so they are back to square one pretty much so I read all the entries ...boy was it helpful to me ...but they had one thing I don't... a massive team put together to make this happen ...

I sat here looking at two notebooks that I have kept notes in, things to do, ideas etc for my "New Adventure" ...then I thought " How can I accomplish the work of say 10 people all by myself?" ...I scratched my head then thought "what was I thinking?!" there is so much to do, and even with all that I have accomplished ...already that hasn't even made a dent on my "to do" list....slightly freaking out at this point ...I keep plugging away but feeling very overwhelmed ...I have got to organize my list, get my thoughts straight ...and tell myself everything will be just fine ... right ? ..........right!

Rules, Licenses and Permits ...Oh My!

Okay another aspect of this is finding out what I can and can't do? If I can, what do I need ?

Obviously I need a Business License that is $50.00  ...Business Entity ...which one?

To open a Pet shop, am I allowed? That gets turned over to zoning, turns out I can have a shop where I want and I just need a "zoning permit" and that is FREE! I like Free lol

I want a sign too ...hold on before you design that lady ...there are RULES, REGULATIONS and oh yeah you need a permit for that too! "but before that you have to bring me a picture of what you want your sign to look like so that I can ok it" ... but the sign permit is FREE! ...

Sign Rules and Regulations: 

1 sign, NO back lighting, ONLY two colors - besides black,grey, or white and the maximum size is 50 square feet.  That is pretty darn big lol and probably very expensive I have a friend that does signs ...but I haven't priced signs YET ...I have to still decide on the name, color scheme, etc ...lol 

Whole Sale Hell

In my Pet Shop, I will sell from food and grooming to toys and everything in between for dogs, cats, small animals, birds and fish. So with that being said ...


I went straight to the internet and began searching "whole sale pet food" or any other term that I thought would bring up what I was looking for.  Hundreds of thousands of links to choose from, after two days I had located pretty much all the wholesalers that I "think" I need for now to cover the food for the animals.

Next was to find other items such as cages, crates, toys, leashes, flea and tick, etc. in a whole sale search.  This search was much more difficult than the food...sheesh. 

Now to search for the "live stock" ...local breeders ...what kind of small animals do I want to sell? what kinds of animals do people want to have? decisions decisions! So far I have decided to have Birds, Fish, gerbils, hamsters, rabbits oh and various water turtles. I do not want to sell puppies and kittens for two reasons 1. the state license is expensive lol 2. I think it would be better to invite animal rescue groups to the store and get some of these orphaned animals a new loving home.  :)  So now that I have decided that now I have to find these local rescue groups ...so add that to the "to do list" too.

Ok after all that researching ....back to the whole sale search for shelving, displays, check out counter and other things I will need to display the inventory and animals for sale. Now the questions start coming again...What colors do I want to use? What will the theme for my store be? I need a Floor Plan? so that the customers flow through the store ...etc. So I can look for basic shelves ...I have yet to come up with a name for the shop, a color scheme, or theme so I can't go forward in to WHOLE SALE HELL any further until I make these decisions ....