10 Ways to Open an Organic Food Store

1. Find a location for your store.

This is perhaps the most crucial and lengthy step in the process, and finding a good location for your store may take months. The location of your store plays a huge factor in its success. Strong characteristics for a store location include a high level of local community support, commercial development, population size and other positive demographics.

2. Secure a location for your store.

This requires that you sign a lease. Negotiate necessary concessions with the landlord as much as possible. Depending on your agreement, you may have the landlord subsidize interior design costs, such as painting, infrastructure and maintenance. Apply for building permits to ensure the store meets all building codes. You may want to make use of an interior designer to help with the aesthetics of the store. A pleasant in-store experience increases the chances of return customers.

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3. Apply for any in-state required licenses and permits.

Any business that handles the preparation and sale of food requires a permit from the health department.

4. File for an employer identification number, or EIN, via the IRS website.

The process only takes a few minutes. You will need to select one of the main operating structures for your business, such as corporation, limited liability company, partnership or sole proprietorship. Each business structure has its pros and cons from a tax perspective. Talk to an accountant regarding the tax consequences particular to your circumstances.

5. Open a bank account under the name of your business.

You’ll need your EIN, business and personal contact details.

Use the business ATM card to make future purchases to establish credit for your business.

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6. Decide what organic foods you want to carry in your store.

Establish a network of organic food distributors. This requires researching distributors. Learn their pricing, credit and delivery terms. In addition, make sure the supplier meets the U. S. Department of Agriculture standards for the production and handling of foods labeled as organic. Because you are a new customer, suppliers may not extend trade credit to you. This means you need sufficient capital to make necessary purchases to stock your shelves until your store can establish credit with its suppliers.

7. Set prices for your merchandise.

Setting your prices too low may bring in volume, but may not be enough to cover your fixed and variable costs. Setting your prices too high may turn off price-sensitive customers. You may have to tinker with your prices until you find the optimal pricing points for your merchandise.

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