A helpful checklist to assist in your store’s grand opening

If you’re opening a store soon then you might already be nervous about its chances of success. After all, it’s not uncommon to see new and fresh ideas outright fail, and unless you’re an experienced business owner, the chances of failure are probably higher than you like.

One of the best ways to ensure that you have a good chance of succeeding is to actually prepare for your store’s grand opening. To help you out, we’ve put together this helpful checklist of things to think about before you open your doors. We suggest going through this list at least a month or two before your grand opening to ensure you have plenty of time to prepare.

●     Design invitations

If you’re going to be inviting other local business owners and investors, make sure you create formal invitations to send them a few weeks before the big day. 

●     Prepare the interior of your store

Make sure your store is absolutely spotless and is well-designed to accommodate the increased number of visitors during your grand opening.

●     Ensure your store supports multiple payment methods

Make sure that you’re supporting multiple payment methods to make it easier for your customers to buy your goods. It’s also important to check that your card reader and other payment devices are working correctly.

●     Offer early discounts and promotions

A great way to draw in a wider audience is to give people early discounts, bonus products and promotions for showing up to your grand opening. This is a great way to raise awareness and convince people to check out your store.

●     Reach out to other local businesses

A grand opening is a good opportunity to meet with local business owners, especially if you can provide services for them in the future.

●     Schedule employee shifts ahead of time

If you’re in the process of hiring staff, make sure they’re able to show up for work on the big day and ensure that they’ve been given all the information they need to assist your customers.

●     Get business cards ready

It’s important to prepare business cards to hand out to other business owners and investors should you want to work with them in the future. Be sure to exchange business cards as you mingle with your visitors.

●     Engage with customers locally and online

It’s a good idea to start marketing your business as early as possible. This includes local advertising but also spreading the word online. This should help to get more eyes on your business. In some cases, you might even have local media show up to your grand opening if it’s popular enough.

It’s daunting to open a new store, especially if you don’t have much experience in the industry or with business in general. But with this helpful checklist, you’ll find that preparing your store for a grand opening can be a little easier than you think, as long as you’re willing to put in the work, it can be a smooth experience that leads to a higher chance of business success.