Have you ever thought about starting a business that sells toys? With catering to such a specific market comes with challenges different to catering for just a specific group of people. A toy store is a gamble that can come with a big payoff. We all want to be a big kid sometimes, and running a store, online, or in a shop that deals with toys may feel like a good excuse to play with action figures all day. But if you really want to corner the market, bear these things in mind.
Hiring Staff
Hiring workers for a toy business, in one respect, should be like taking candy from a baby. The idea of working for a toy company for most people sounds like a “dream job”. So where do you begin? Do you want to hire a big kid that will play all day? Or do you want to hire experienced retail staff members? Be sure to strike that fine balance. Having staff members demonstrate toys instore generates enthusiasm. It will make your staff appear friendly and approachable.
Also, don’t forget to hire staff that have had their criminal checks, as they would be working with children.
Get Feedback
Have you had an idea for a toy? Why don’t you get a prototype made up and get children to play with it? You may be surprised that the market you intended it for is completely the wrong one! Beware asking for children’s feedback, they can be too honest and will go into a lot of detail why they don’t like something.
Also, don’t forget to ask the parents! Parents will know their children’s tastes and preferences better than anyone.
Marketing Is Vital
Creating something that grabs the attention of kids requires you to look at what you were like as a kid. It is so easy to put a colorful sticker on and say it’s for kids. But when you think about children, you have to split them up into different markets. So who do you want to sell for? Are you selling to babies, or 3 to 6 year olds, teenagers? If you want to sell to all of them, you had better come up with a big marketing strategy. Babies need more sensory toys to help them develop. While the older child may want something brash, in your face or the latest accessories.
The key to promotion for children is to encourage “pester power”. This is the child’s ability to nag their mother or father to the point of them buying the toy, regardless of the cost. So, it is worth bearing this in mind.
Laying Out The Shop
Appealing to children’s’ attention span is what you will need to do here. Again, encouraging pester power by having items next to the cash register can help generate last minute sales. Think also about having a user friendly system for the day to day running of the store. Having a manageable system like TallySales Toy Store POS can help with this.
Overall, being in an environment with toys can be wondrous. Make sure you keep that wonder running!
This article was provided by ellie jo