Business Finance for a Department Store

Before you can start to look at the advantages and disadvantages of different forms of business finance you have to construct your business plan. Your business plan will be the key to your business finance. It will cover issues such as:

• Have you analyzed the market for your product or service? Have you segmented the market into differing user groups? Have you formulated a marketing message that is understandable by your potential customers, have you described how your product or service will benefit your clients?

• Have you prepared a pricing schedule? Are you going to offer discounts, if so to whom and for how much?

• Have you prepared a sales forecast?

• What type of media will you use in your marketing campaign? For Web design companies it’s likely that you will be reliant on word of mouth and blogging, as the other mediums will prove to be just too expensive to justify.

• What type of after sales service/customer service or support will you offer?

• Is ‘packaging’ going to appeal to your target market, does it matter? Are you going to have a staff uniform, smart or casual what kind of image are you trying to portray to your potential employers? Distribution; how? And with what?

You should also think about what your department store is going to offer customers that they can’t already get from somewhere else, what is your Unique Selling Point ?(USP). You should also think about what your businesses strengths, weaknesses and opportunities are. What are your threats i.e. the competition and market trends/ seasonal spikes?

It’s important each and every product that you sell is accompanied by outstanding customer service, thereby ensuring a happy and content customer base and in turn customer loyalty.

Every business needs finance in some guise or another, and fortunately there are lots of different types of finance available, such as bank loans, credit cards, business angels, venture capitalists and personal savings. When approaching these lenders/investors you should be prepared with your business plan.

The first place most people will look for finance is a bank for a bank loan, the problem with bank loans is that the bank will want you to put some of your own money down as well as charge you high interest rates which most start-up businesses will find hard to pay back.

Business Angels help new businesses with the help of finance and business advice, as they have been there and able to advice you on the best methods to bring in customers look after your customers as well as making a profit. They will also help businesses that are struggling to keep afloat with the help of finance and advice when most banks etc wouldn’t take a bit of interest. They are most likely to be entrepreneurs that have a successful business of their own and they will use their money to help your business succeed and make returns on their investment.

For more information and help with business plans and getting a business angel/venture capitalist then get in touch with Angel Start-ups today.