| Subject | Date Asked | Expert |
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| value addition | 10/5/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: in a niche market segmentation how do you think that we could add value to our customers specially ...
A: Ash, Almost impossible to answer this when I do not know what type of Department Store you are. Are ...
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| value addition | 10/5/2008 | Jeff Bender |
Q: in a niche market segmentation how do you think we could ADD VALUE TO THE CUSTOMERS? specially being ...
A: Ash, I'm not certain if you meant that your are a niche segment of a department store, or that that ...
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| Debating on Type of Clothing Store to Open | 10/1/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I have been debating for quite some time on what type of women's apparel store to open. I realize ...
A: Jennifer, I would go for the plus size business as it has less competition than boomer clothing ...
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| Masstige growth statistics in US | 9/30/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I'm doing a report on the growth of "masstige" sector of the skin care market. Could you tell me ...
A: Susan, There is no common agreement of what the masstige sector of skin care is. The name/category ...
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| Margins | 9/28/2008 | Jeff Bender |
Q: I own a boutique in California that's been open for 14 months. After my first year I averaged a ...
A: George, I understand and empathize with your dilemma. Prior to opening another location, I would ...
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| markdowns | 9/25/2008 | Jeff Bender |
Q: Can you tell me how I can calculate my markdowns (I plan to open a clothing and accessories store). ...
A: pernament, sorry for the delay. There are generally two types of markdowns. 1) Hard marks (often ...
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| Merchandise - to box or not to box? | 9/22/2008 | Jeff Bender |
Q: Each item has been wrapped and is in a protective box, but the boxes are not the caliber of boxes ...
A: Sorry for the delay Kori. Think of the packaging like an interviewer for a job. If you go into ...
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| mass marketing | 8/15/2008 | Jeff Bender |
Q: Jeff ... I have recently been approached by someone who wants to develop, produce & market my ...
A: Pamela, First, that is great news for your. Yes, I would definitely contact a lawyer. You're ...
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| wholesale markups | 8/9/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I recently sought the advice of a fellow manufacture concerning wholesale prices. we have been on ...
A: Brian, You have a ceiling price of 99 cents and a cost of 19 cents. If you wholesale at 49 cents, ...
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| wholesale markups | 8/9/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I recently sought the advice of a fellow manufacture concerning wholesale prices. we have been on ...
A: Brian, You begin with the premise that I stated, you start with a realistic retail value of $10. ...
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| distributing | 8/7/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: Dion, I am starting a business importing planters for hydroculture from Italy. What distribution ...
A: Toni, With no room for storage your distribution strategies are very limited to say the least. You ...
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| retail abbreviations | 8/5/2008 | Jeff Bender |
Q: I was hoping you could direct me where to go to garner a list of retail abbreviations thanks
A: There is a lot of terminology related to retail which can be either from the retailer aspect or the ...
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| wholesale markups | 7/31/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I recently sought the advice of a fellow manufacture concerning wholesale prices. we have been on ...
A: Brian, Markups are always what the market will bear not always a specific percentage. You are also ...
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| mark up and margins to retailers | 7/27/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: what is the typical margin/profit that retailers need to make for vanity sinks? if my cost is $100 ...
A: Ronnie, If it cost you $100 the retailer will need to make at least 40% if not more on retail so if ...
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| How do I start a boutique with no money | 7/21/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I am interested in starting a children and maternity clothing boutique in my hometown on the square. ...
A: Kelly, You could try approaching the small business centers located in larger cities in the U.S. ...
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| Mark-ups | 7/21/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: What would be the mark-ups and/or margins for golf putters sporting equipment, from the manufactures ...
A: J.D. It would vary from name brand to name brand and to private label also. Most common is ...
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| Wholesale/Retail | 7/15/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I need to know what the proper percentage for wholesale mark up is. I am selling a plastic phone ...
A: Katie, The retailer would take the product and in most cases double the cost to arrive at a retail ...
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| Wholesale/Retail | 7/15/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I need to know what the proper percentage for wholesale mark up is. I am selling a plastic phone ...
A: Katie, Although wholesale margins can vary from company to company, you likely need to have at least ...
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| opening an online boutique | 7/7/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I am in the process of putting a business plan together for a womans clothing boutique. I decided ...
A: Vanessa, Your idea of starting on the web before you move to brick and mortar is a good one. ...
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| Markup Costs?? | 6/19/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: Greetings, I would like to know if you can help me with an issue on markups. I have a patented ...
A: Ken, Most retailers are going to want to make at least 40% margin on an electronic product, so if ...
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| student from india | 6/18/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: Respected sir, This is sriram, pursuing my MBA @ sri sathya sai ...
A: Sriram, I generally do not answer homework questions for school! You can find a good white paper on ...
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| Boutique clothing store | 6/14/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I am currently putting together a business plan for a university subject. My business idea is for a ...
A: Olivia, We have four seasons in Chicago too! I also will be in Melbourne in early September. As to ...
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| A supermarket in USA with volunteer discount | 5/26/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I've started a small community-shop-like minisupermarket here in Denmark, selling organic foods. The ...
A: Thomas, Yes there are similar concepts in the US, they are often called co-ops short for cooperative ...
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| importing | 5/13/2008 | Jeff Bender |
Q: We would like to import musical instruments from China. I have the name of a good company, and ...
A: Dick, What tends to be the most difficult issue with the importing of product, whether samples or ...
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| Customers with skin disorders. | 5/12/2008 | Matt Anderson |
Q: I am a manager at a building material yard. I want to know what are my rights when dealing with a ...
A: Well Juan, This is a tricky one. I'm not very familiar with laws in the united states that relate to ...
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| Merchandise abandonment | 5/12/2008 | Jeff Bender |
Q: I am the general manager for a private retail company. We sell home improvements like a smaller Home ...
A: Kirk, It is situations like this that make me believe that customer is not always right. Four years ...
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| Specialty party supply ebusiness | 5/6/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I am in the process of planning an ebusiness in which will provide ...
A: Maria, I just did a Google search on Christian Baptism Supplies and it returned over 1.5 million ...
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| Specialty party supply ebusiness | 5/6/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I am in the process of planning an ebusiness in which will provide ...
A: Maria, The first question you have to answer is why. Why would I or any other customer use your ...
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| Mark-up | 5/6/2008 | Jeff Bender |
Q: I was hoping you could help me with this...I would like to know what the formula is when calculating ...
A: Donielle, Sorry for my delay in my response. If I understand your position in the question ...
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| Paint Your Own Pottery | 5/2/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: In the paint your own pottery (PYOP) industry, there are a lot of theories on pricing. I would ...
A: Lisa, As I said in the first answer, generally retailers use a "what the market will bear" approach ...
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| Paint Your Own Pottery | 5/2/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: In the paint your own pottery (PYOP) industry, there are a lot of theories on pricing. I would ...
A: Lisa, One of the oldest concepts in pricing and retail is to price what the market will bear. In ...
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| Importing and distributing cosmetics | 5/1/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: My husband and I are negotiating with a cosmetic manufacturer in Israel to distribute their product ...
A: Marna, There are trade organizations for cosmetics, such as the International Esthetics, cosmetics ...
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| How can I get more store to stay neat and sized? | 4/20/2008 | Jeff Bender |
Q: I was just browsing the internet and came across this site, asking a question for free...wow....Well ...
A: Amy, Thank you for your question. This is a very common issue and my experience within a large ...
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| Jewelry Wholesale / Retail | 4/14/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I'm looking into starting a business to import and resell children's jewelry. Do you know of any ...
A: Adriana, Yes, there are regulations about the amount of lead and other potentially harmful materials ...
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| wholesale profit vs retail profit | 4/10/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I buy shoelaces from Korea at $.22 plus shipping. If I sold to retail chains, how much can I mark up ...
A: Tracy, the most common terms are net 30 which mean that they will pay you 30 days after the goods ...
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| Contracts/deposits | 4/8/2008 | Matt Anderson |
Q: I'm not sure if this is an area you are familiar with but I recently gave a deposit (10%)to a flower ...
A: I'm sorry to hear about this problem you are having. Unfortunately, this is not in my area of ...
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| Selling in Europe | 3/30/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I would like to know if there is a market in Europe for used clothing; especially Jeans. I am ...
A: Tahir, Sorry it took this long to reply. Their is not a large market in Europe for used clothing, ...
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| How do I determine wholesale price in liquidation/buyout scenarios | 3/28/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: boutique brand children's clothing. I have uncovered an opportunity to buy directly from a ...
A: Geri, The only way to value any inventory is to start with the market value, not the original cost, ...
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| licenses/permits need for home based online retail business Chicago | 3/22/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I am planning to start a home-based online retail business selling apparell and accessories. I am ...
A: Lauren, You will likely need a generic City of Chicago Business license, it costs $250 for two ...
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| EBAY STORE | 3/20/2008 | James E. Dion |
Q: I set up an ebay store this January 2008...How can I get people into the store...Most sales have ...
A: Yamilette, I don't know what type of merchandise you are selling. If it is generic like jewelry or ...
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