Launching an Independent Bookshop
by Sapphire Bates @sapphirebates
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Book Bodega is my third business and is an independent bookshop by the sea in Ramsgate, Kent.
I have always dreamed of opening my own bookshop and with so many commercial spaces up for rent in Ramsgate town I decided to take the plunge, take out a personal loan and give it a go because if you don't try then you never know.
This business is perhaps the scariest launch to date. Despite, at this point already have several successful companies under my belt and having learnt a hell of a lot about running all different kinds of companies... I launched this one in a pretty precarious time. We've just come out of a global pandemic that lasted way longer than I think any of us could have imagined (and still hasn't disappeared!) and are now in a recession. A time when my potential customers have far less disposable income than they may have had in the days before viruses and recessions. Not too mention a time too when my own bills are rising and living costs are getting more and more everyday.
I decided to go ahead anyway, I felt I needed a new challenge and I believe bookshops have a lot to offer their local communities, whether or not people can afford a full-priced book. I felt that with everything I've learnt on my journey so far I'd be able to ride this new wave in whatever direction it might take me.
Launching Book Bodega meant once again designing a brand, coming up with a name for the business, thinking about the target audience and what would appeal to them, creating new social media accounts and ensuring I was picking the right platforms for my local audience, working out how to actually run a bookshop, choosing POS systems, fitting out a shop and hiring staff.
This is still a project in process, the business is only three months old but as with all of my businesses, it has been turning a profit since day one of opening which is a good sign to me.
Once again, with this business, I am heavily reliant on harnessing social media in order to get sales for the bookshop. Albeit, in a slightly different way, as this time around I'm looking to target people locally and get them to physically walk themselves through our doors but I'm able to apply similar techniques that I've used in my other businesses to do this.
This process has really enforced to me how important it is to really be strategic with your social media and what you put out into the world, if you have a plan and a strategy you can grow an audience and get sales.
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