The Pros of Starting an Online Retail Shoe Store

Now that we’ve tackled how to start an online retail shoe store, we go over the benefits of actually starting one. You see, selling wholesale women’s shoes is not an exact science. But it isn’t all that easy either, especially if you’re not acquainted with fashion and style. On the other hand, with some marketing skills, you can easily turn your business into a success. So, what makes online shoes selling so much easier than putting up an actual store?

build a website

Easy to start

Unlike putting up your own physical store, building a website is much easier. If you’re not that technical, you can have someone create your own website for a few hundred bucks. But if you know how to work your way around a CPanel and a domain name, you can easily set up your own website within a few minutes. Now all you have to figure out is how to get a check-out counter and payment methods on your website.

Less capital

When you open up a shoe store with an actual physical shop, you’ll need a lot of money. There’s the rent for the place, equipment, counter, electricity and even water. You need a lot of capital to start your business. However, with an online retail shoe store, you won’t need as much because you’re only working from home through the internet. The rest of your budget could be used to buy more shoes instead.

Bigger market to target

If you currently live in a small neighborhood, starting a shoe store can be pretty hard, especially because you’re not in town to cater to a lot of people. You don’t have a big market to generate a lot of profit. But if you’re selling online and you market your products well, you can sell to people from different states. When you’ve grown into a bigger business, you can even tap into an international market! Having an online business can be pretty hard because of your competition. As long as you have a loyal client base, you’ll do just fine.

No hassles of an actual store

Running an actual store means that you will have to work the same amount of hours as an ordinary job. Possibly 8 – 10 hours a day, long hours on the weekend, probably even more during holidays and special sales. This is the horrors of running your own shoe shop. However, if you run an online shoe store, not only can you check your website and sales while you’re at home, you can even do it while getting your hair done or cooking dinner. No going home late at night, no worries about traffic or long hours during the weekend.

While an online store is definitely easier to handle, it’s not a job for everyone. If you think this is your type of work, go ahead. Otherwise, if you have a big market in your community, an actual shoe store also has a lot of benefits to offer.

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How to Start an Online Retail Shoe Store

Unlike starting an offline shoe store, it may be a tad easier to start a retail shoe store online. Offline stores require you to get a good space, lots of capital for the store itself, the products to sell and some good business marketing. On the other hand, if you’re to start a shoe store online, the only thing you’ll really need is capital for your first set of shoes and a website to start off your business. If you weigh the costs, setting up an online shoe store is definitely cheaper.

But how do you set up a retail shoe store for yourself?

shoes for sale

1. Find a good supplier

No retail shoe store can be set up without an actual supplier. You need to find one first before you open up shop. In order to do this, you can either look for a wholesale women’s shoes supplier online or try out different stores around the area. You can even personally pick out pairs of shoes to sell online, only this might be a little more expensive compared to buying in bulk. Once you have a good set of shoes to start selling, you can now begin the next step.

However, do make sure that your choices in shoes are those that will sell well. Check fashion magazines, online articles and Hollywood sites. Shoes that are worn by famous celebrities are those that are currently in trend and easy to sell. Be creative in finding suppliers. If you find a good pair of shoes on a celebrity, see if you can find a similar one in your supplier’s shop. That way, you can offer the same design for a cheaper price.

2. Get a website

Once you have a supplier, your next step is to buy a website. Not only should you think of a catchy domain name, you should also lay out some categories and requirements to make your website functional. First, divide your shoes into categories. Do you have boots? What kind of boots? Stilettos or high heels? Flats and pumps? This way, buyers would know where to find what they’re looking for. Next, set up a page for customer service. Give them a way to contact you easily or at least set up some social media accounts. Also make sure that you design your website to allow customers to easily navigate through it. The easier to handle the website, the more people will buy from you.

3. Start promoting

Now that you have the basic requirements for your retail shoe store, you can now start promoting your shop. Make sure to target the right market when you start advertising. Ask for help from friends and family. Regularly check your website too, just in case there are error pages or images that don’t work. These can easily turn off customers and you wouldn’t want that to happen.

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How to Tell if a Pair of Shoes Will Sell

If you own a shoe store, you need to know if a pair of shoes will sell well first before you can buy a whole set of it. Unless you’re willing to buy wholesale women's shoes and keep it stocked in the storage room, then it’s always safer to find a pair of shoes that you’re sure will sell.

But, how would you know if these shoes will sell if you don’t try?

Good question. However, unlike other types of businesses, shoes are usually predictable, especially because its sales depend highly on a number of factors. These factors can help you tell if a pair of shoes will successfully sell to your customers.

current fashion trends

The current fashion trends

As one of the most important factors in selling shoes, what is currently trending will help you tell which pairs of shoes will be a success to your customers. Many people love to copy the look of their favorite celebrities. Some people get style ideas from celebrities and if you pay attention to the hottest celebrities in your town, you’ll help yourself decide if a pair of shoes will look good.

If you need help knowing who the hottest celebrities are in your area, you might want to take a look at the hottest movies showing in the cinemas. You can also go to food joints and stores; you’ll probably see the most famous celebrities with sponsored ads. If that doesn’t work, ask your teenager. They’ll probably know more than you ever really want to.

Weather condition and current season

winter shoes

The weather plays a very important factor in selling shoes. Despite the current fashion trends, if the weather doesn’t permit it, people won’t wear it. If you’ve lived in your town for a long time, then you already know when the weather is bad and when it’ll feel like summer. Play up these weather conditions and offer shoes that are appropriate for it. For example, during the summer, selling fur boots may not be as wise as selling gladiator sandals.

The Usuals

Sometimes, there are just some pairs of shoes that will never run out of season. Otherwise known as the usual pairs or the common pairs of shoes, these are the shoes that are always going to be needed by the people in your town or vicinity of service. Formal shoes, black high heels – these are just two types of shoes that will probably always be in the market. Until companies stop requiring interviews, these shoes will never run out season. Make sure you have a good set of designer, formal high heels to keep your regular job hunters satisfied. And don’t worry, there’s also a big possibility that you’ll never run out of job-seekers in your area.

Buying stocks for your shoe store is an investment and you have to be careful as to where you put your money. However, you also have to remember that sometimes, business risks can also be the most worthy of them all. Learn to calculate your risks and be prepared for any fallbacks.

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The Benefits of Getting Pre-Ordered Shoes

There are many ways to get wholesale women’s shoes for your shoe store. You might visit your supplier every other week to check their new arrivals. Maybe you have a favorite online supplier that you check stocks every day. But then there are also some pairs of shoes under the pre-order category.

If you’ve already started buying wholesale shoes online, it might be time to start investing in pre-ordered shoes as well.

Pre-ordered shoes

But before we go on, you need to know what Pre-Order means.

Pre-ordered wholesale shoes are usually those pairs that are currently not in stock – at the moment. If there are New Arrivals to your supplier’s store, there are also those “Will be arriving soon.” These stocks are much more updated than those in new arrivals and a good supplier will give their clients a chance to order them before they run out of stock.

Then again, if you are a shoe store, why should you get pre-ordered shoes for your shop?

1. You’ll enjoy the latest designs and pairs of shoes.

There’s nothing like the joy of knowing that you have the latest when it comes to your shoes. You get to have new designs first. If your shoe supplier offers the pair of shoes similar to that of a famous celebrity, you can easily be one of the first to get your hands on it. If your supplier has an online page that showcases the designs, you’ll also be able to see the upcoming styles of shoes, choose which ones you think will sell and you can use that and pre-market the design to your customers.

2. Your shoe stocks are much more updated than many other shoe stores

Nothing like a healthy competition to keep the ball going, right? Every shoe store has to fight their competitor at being the top-selling store in the area – maybe even in the county! The only way they can do this is to prove to customers that they have the most updated fashionable shoes than any other store. With this advantage over the others, you can be sure that people will keep coming back to your store to check out what’s new in the latest shoe fashion.

3. You get to give your customers a chance to be ahead of everyone else when it comes to fashion.

And because you have the latest stocks when it comes to shoe fashion, you can give your customers a chance to own the newest pairs of shoes. Just like you, fashionistas love to be ahead of everyone else when it comes to making fashion statements. By offering newer than new arrivals, your customers will appreciate your help in giving them a fashionable edge over other fashionistas.

Don’t let your competitor get the latest pairs of shoes before you. Be ahead of the shoe fashion industry and help your customers do the same too! Happy shoe shopping, sellers and enjoy the healthy competition!

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Characteristics of a Good Wholesale Shop

One of the most important factors in putting up a shoe store is finding the perfect wholesale shoes supplier. Part of your success and the ability to stretch your budget well will be put onto how you and your supplier will get along. It is essential that you are satisfied with your supplier before moving onto creating a physical store or opening up shop for your customers. Otherwise, not only will you be wasting money, you’ll also be wasting a lot of time and effort in marketing your products.


When you’re looking for a good supplier for your shoe store, it might be a little hard for you to tell which suppliers are legit and which are just in for the money. If you’re hoping to find a good supplier online, it is advisable to take extra care, especially in choosing the best supplier for your shop.

In order to know if you have found a good supplier, you need to look out for these characteristics:

customer service has to be excellent! Image from forbes.com

Customer Service

Suppliers need to have good customer service if you want to build good relationships with them. If you would like to build trust between you and your customer, a good supplier will also want to build a good relationship with you. Make sure that your supplier can offer real and above-satisfactory customer services. That way, if you have questions, suggestions or feedback, you can easily contact them. It will also be best if they have good means of communication – like chat, email, phone numbers and the likes.

Variety of styles

When you’re buying wholesale women’s shoes for your store, you need to be open to purchasing a variety of styles. Women love shopping and if they can only find limited designs in your store, they’ll easily forget your store and move on elsewhere. A good supplier should also offer a variety of styles for their customers. If they can offer different styles, it will be easier for them to gain loyalty because all of their customers won’t have to look elsewhere just to find a specific style of shoes.

Discounts

Since you are buying shoes on wholesale, it also means you’re looking for a huge discount. Suppliers should know this. In fact, they should implement it because they are, after all, selling on wholesale. Before you agree to partner with a supplier, make sure they give away good discounts for their clients. You’d want a supplier who truly cares about your business, rather than just making money. Also be open to suppliers who regularly give discounts especially for the opening of fashion seasons. Your store will benefit greatly from these kinds of sales.

Updated Trends

updated trends make a supplier reliable

Just like you, who has to keep up with the updated fashion trends in order to attract your customer’s attention, suppliers also have to be attentive to these stuff. Since they will be providing stocks for your store, they should know what you want and need too. It’s disappointing when your supplier seems to have outdated stuff that might not sell anymore. Having a supplier that regularly updates their stocks according to the fashion industry will help you sell better.

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The Benefits of Ordering 6 Pack Pairs of Shoes for Your Shop

Starting a shoe shop is never easy. You’ll have to go through so many decisions before even buying your actual products to sell. But even before that, you have to consider your budget. Do you have enough money to buy a variety of shoes? Or would you have to settle for co-signing your products?

While co-signing has definitely been beneficial for many shoe sellers, it is not always the best decision, especially for those who want variety and freedom of suppliers for their shop. This is why it might be a good idea for you to invest on 6 pack wholesale shoes instead.

buying wholesale shoes can be very beneficial

But why a pack of 6 pairs of shoes? Why not just 2 pairs? There are many benefits of getting a 6 pair pack and you’ll be able to use these benefits for more profit.

By ordering 6 pairs of shoes, you have enough supplies, but not too limited

The situation in buying a 6 pack is that you only have 6 pairs of shoes. If the style or design of these shoes apparently sells well to customers, you have enough pairs to sell to your customers. But if the shoes are currently not in season and the sales are slow, you won’t have to worry because you only have 6 pairs of it! By ordering only 6 pairs of a specific design of shoes, your supplies are not limited and at the same time, not too much, no matter how the shoes sell.

different styles of shoes

Variety of shoes

Buying a 6 pair pack will also allow you to get a variety of designs for your shop. This way, you can buy more packs in different designs and offer variety to your customers. Variety is also important to keep your customers happy. If they see that you have limited designs, they’ll easily lose interest. But if you happen to sell all of the latest pairs of shoes, you may be able to get yourself some loyal customers.

Budget constraints

In building a business, budget is one of the most important factors. If you have a limited budget, getting 6 pairs per design will allow you to limit the amount you spend on each style. This way, the rest of your budget can go to different styles and you won’t have to worry about spending too much per style. Not only will your budget be allocated well to different styles of shoes, you’ll also be investing in a variety of shoes for your store.

Discounts per 6 pairs

The good thing about buying per 6 pair pack is that you get to have a good discount when you buy. For example, if you’re buying 6 pairs of high-heeled pumps, you’re already availing wholesale women’s shoes, which will entitle you to a good discount. The more you buy, the bigger your discount can be. If you’re trying to save, buying in wholesale will help you to cut down on expenses.

Start off your shop with a good 6 pair pack of shoes. You’ll enjoy the discount and benefit from the variety you can give your shop.

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How to Prepare Your Shoe Store for the Opening of the School Year

Now that it’s August, the last month of vacation for most students, this means that people will soon be thinking of buying their supplies for the start of school. For businesses, this means they should be prepared to provide for their customers. Stocking up on wholesale women’s shoes will help you provide for the upcoming gaggle of people who will all be looking for shoes for school.

good for school?

But before you can make your purchase, you should know some very important factors first. These factors may definitely affect the success of your sales.

Find out if there are nearby schools in your area

As a shoe store, you should always be aware of the companies, organizations and schools around you. Most likely, people who work or go to these places are those who will also drop by your store. To prepare for the opening of the school year, you need to know if the schools in your area have uniforms or required shoes for the students. If they do, you need to be prepared to sell these specific shoes. Usually, private schools will require black shoes. Some may be stricter (considering the height of heels, the type of shoes, etc). If you want to sell well during this critical period of a shoe store, you should know the different requirements. This way, you can invest on shoes within the specific requirements.

Check out the various school trends of celebrities and fashion magazines

On the other hand, public schools don’t really have specific uniform requirements. Instead, the students rely on the latest fashion trends. In order to make sure your shoes sell well for the opening of school, check out the latest trends in fashion. You can also watch famous movies and TV shows to see what celebrities are currently wearing. Ceriwholesale offers a wide selection of wholesale shoes featuring new styles and designs fresh from fashionable Hollywood celebrities and models.

Take into consideration the weather and location of your store

Despite the huge factor that celebrity trends may provide to the sales of shoes, never underestimate the effects of the current weather and location. Places with cooler weathers are more likely to have different fashion trends than those with hotter summers. Boots will be more popular for cold places during the start of the season, while open shoes are likely to be more popular if your area is still enjoying the summer heat.

Remember, in order to make sure that your shoe shop sells well, you have to consider what your clients and customers want. The more you’re updated about the latest fashion, the bigger the possibility for you to increase your sales.

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How to Get More People to Come to Your Shoe Store

Shoes have a specific season when they sell the most. For instance, when its summer, shoes that sell the most are those perfect for the beach. Slippers, sandals and anything that can withstand sand will become best-sellers. When it’s rainy and cloudy, there’s a big possibility that fur boots will not make a lot of sales at all. So, when these times come, you have to think of various ways to sell your shoes.

When you’re in business, you have to be creative and smart in order to increase sales, despite the tough times and the constant changes in season and trends. If you can think up enough marketing campaigns and ideas to get through tough times, your business will easily survive and grow.

To help you get started, here are some ways to get more people to buy from your shop:

Offer discounts and sales

People just love discounts and sales. Every time they see that huge percentage mark down at the door of your shop, they’ll immediately flock on over to check out your item. Now, just because it’s not in season doesn’t mean people won’t buy it. If the price is right for them, despite the season, they will buy it. Also offer big discounts for those who will buy wholesale womans shoes. Resellers like to take advantage of discounts so they can offer the product at a higher price in their own store.

Keep up with the latest trends

No matter what season it is in your location, if the hottest celebrity wears it, the market will definitely love it. Put up posters of the latest trends in your store. Get a poster of the hottest celebrity or model wearing a similar pair of shoes and place it right behind the rack. When customers see it, they’ll find the shoes more attractive because they can see their idol wearing it. If you’re desperate to sell some old designs, look through famous movies too. The cast may be wearing a similar pair of shoes and your next customer may just be looking for the exact same pair.

Offer daily promos, freebies and contests

If you can’t offer discounts and sales yet, offer a daily promo or freebie for the 50th customer of the day, or something similar. This way, people will keep coming back each day just to see if they might be the lucky customer to take home a free pair. Get people to spread the word too so everyone in your community and neighborhood will know about the promo and freebie. The more people who know about the promos and contests, the more who will participate.

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