Desire to start a running store and need some ground truth

What a typical idiot sales rep remark this is. You think your company actually gives a shit about YOU? lol....

ghost of MacTarnahan wrote:

I don't know the legal ramifications of selling brand names that you do not have contracts to carry in your store, but if I was a sales rep and I found you carrying my product in your store without my company's permission, you would NEVER sell a pair of my running shoes or running apparel EVER. You would probably get sued by every company you pulled that stunt on.

you are an idiot. Where do you think the local Korean mini mart gets their sodas? You think the coke guys comes around? wrong. That little store owner get coke cheaper from wall mart than they do from the coke guy, way cheaper. Next time you see an suv loaded to the gills with botttled water and soda look at the driver... he is asian. And do you think the coke guy cares? Ha! do you think he is reporting it to headquarters?

Same goes for shoes. If runner store guy actually wanted to buy every size of several models of shoes from Dicks I suspect Dicks would sell them and not care. The adidas rep who has that Dicks that sells a shootload of shoes aint sayin anything.

The problem with that is that the Korean market has a captive market. It's not like the neighborhood kids are going to order cases of Coke online. So the owner can afford to buy pop at Costco, mark it up, and sell it for a few pennies of profit, even if it's more expensive than what you'd pay at Safeway.

If you bought the Pegasus wholesale from Nike, it'd run you about $50 (maybe less if it's a future order or you do huge volume). If you buy it from Dicks for $80 (assuming it's on sale), you've cut your margin by $30 right off the bat. Unless you sell it for $130, but then who would buy it? You're selling to a population that can buy shoes anywhere and won't pay more than MSRP.

You won't even last a year and blow all of your savings. Stop trying to make a job of your hobby. It will never work.

We're not talking some back-alley mini mart getting there sodas from Costco or Guido. If you opened a running store and began selling adidas without a contract, the minute adidas and other local specialty running stores found out (and believe me they would-these reps have territories to protect and other running stores have a stake in what brands your store carries) those other running stores would threaten to cancel their adidas account and you would receive a cease and desist order/lawsuit so fast your head would spin. Soon the reps of the brands such as asics, Nike, etc. you wish to carry would find out and you are screwed. I know because I used to work for adidas and I've seen it happen. You are talking out of your ass, you clown. It's O.K. You are just ignorant.

If a running store owner bought shoes on-line and sold them he could not be stopped. Because you are a lemming, you think a cease and desist letter actually means something. It might scare a store owner but that's about it. Sorry to burst your bubble, I got some news for you about the tooth fairy too but I'll save it for another time.

haha yo,

selling shoes is serious business

LOL!

Sp!kes wrote:

If a running store owner bought shoes on-line and sold them he could not be stopped. Because you are a lemming, you think a cease and desist letter actually means something. It might scare a store owner but that's about it. Sorry to burst your bubble, I got some news for you about the tooth fairy too but I'll save it for another time.

When you have an area with big box sports retailers and small specialty running stores, generally they are serviced by two different reps. That running store rep is not going to make any commission if you are selling shoes, apparel and accessories not purchased from him. On another point, let's say you have a computer store and started selling Apple products that you purchased at a store down the road and were not an authorized dealer for those products. Do you think that Apple would have no problem with that? That you just displayed them however you wanted and priced the products at what you felt was a "fair"price? I don't think you'd get away with it. Why should it make any difference if we're talking shoes or computers? Life isn't as simple as you seem to believe.

ghost of MacTarnahan wrote:

When you have an area with big box sports retailers and small specialty running stores, generally they are serviced by two different reps. That running store rep is not going to make any commission if you are selling shoes, apparel and accessories not purchased from him. On another point, let's say you have a computer store and started selling Apple products that you purchased at a store down the road and were not an authorized dealer for those products. Do you think that Apple would have no problem with that? That you just displayed them however you wanted and priced the products at what you felt was a "fair"price? I don't think you'd get away with it. Why should it make any difference if we're talking shoes or computers? Life isn't as simple as you seem to believe.

Under what legal authority could Nike or Apple stop a store from reselling their products? I truly don't know, so this is a sincere question.

I can buy as much as I want from a big box and sell it for what I want. The shoe companies, reps and big box can get pissed, but they can't do anything. As others have implied, they have NO LEGAL grounds to stand one. You think they go after Marshall's or TJ MAX and the like? As far as apple is concerned, that is not the same since if I bought product from an apple store, and tried to resell there would be no profit for me cause apple doesnt currently discount.

Ok. From what I gather, its just like opening any other small business.

Question time wrote:

You think they go after Marshall's or TJ MAX and the like? As far as apple is concerned, that is not the same since if I bought product from an apple store, and tried to resell there would be no profit for me cause apple doesnt currently discount.

FWIW, TJ Maxx and Marshalls have permission to sell the merchandise and are actually sister chains of a much larger company. So, TJX Corp has major contracts with dozens and dozens of brands - as well as retailers. They don't go pick up stuff off an old dock in Queens.

What are you talking about? I can buy pretty much any product I want and resell it at any price I want - no body can do anything about it.

And why would a rep care? The product gets bought from the company at some point in the supply chain, so the company and the rep make money. In fact, they make more money than if they someone (impossibly) prevented the local shop from reselling these shoes bc the local shop is marketing, etc. so as to create an even greater demand for these shoes.

Stop making crap up.

this discussion is interesting but useless - an independent running store needs 100% markups or close to it to survive - a 20% markup on shoes from Dicks would put them out of business very quickly, unless the owner wishes to lose money.

Pointer Outer wrote:

Question time wrote:

You think they go after Marshall's or TJ MAX and the like? As far as apple is concerned, that is not the same since if I bought product from an apple store, and tried to resell there would be no profit for me cause apple doesnt currently discount.

FWIW, TJ Maxx and Marshalls have permission to sell the merchandise and are actually sister chains of a much larger company. So, TJX Corp has major contracts with dozens and dozens of brands - as well as retailers. They don't go pick up stuff off an old dock in Queens.

You're right. Bad example, but the point is that I can buy product where I want and sell for what I want (within the law) and the manufacturer has no legal recourse.

wicker r wrote:

this discussion is interesting but useless - an independent running store needs 100% markups or close to it to survive - a 20% markup on shoes from Dicks would put them out of business very quickly, unless the owner wishes to lose money.

What are you talking about? It's the best business plan ever! Buy last season's shoes (typically the reason for the markdown), then sell them at full price to a public that can also buy the discounted shoes at any time.

Even if you were able to do it, why on earth would you want to do it?

It has been a funny business since the 70's. Athlete's Foot, Athletic Attic, Running World, Fleet Feet, Factory Outlet Stores, etc. I would stick with franchising if you are still interested in doing it. You just won't do it as a mom and pop store, as you will never be able to get the name brands you or your customers want. NIKE won't give a crap about mom and pop. I used to work for them and they didn't care that their store losses went from $4mil to $8 mil in one year. Their thought--well at least they are wearing our product and it is advertising. How in the hell are you going to fight that. They don't prosecute shoplifters. I would look for multiple partners and form a LLC to go into it. This way you aren't the only one limiting your finances. I wish you all the luck in the world and much success. You only live this life once, follow your dream!!!

ghost of MacTarnahan wrote:

When you have an area with big box sports retailers and small specialty running stores, generally they are serviced by two different reps. That running store rep is not going to make any commission if you are selling shoes, apparel and accessories not purchased from him....

This is the only thing you have been right about in the whole thread and it is kind of the whole point:

Joe opens running store

Adidas rep won't supply him

Joe buys tons of shoes from eastbay and sells them from his store

Adidas rep doesnt get any credit or commission from the Adidas that Joe sells

Adidas rep stops being an a-hole and starts letting joe buy shoes directly.

Now Adidas rep gets commission

That is one good way to get opened by the vendors.

To MTV raps wrote:

ghost of MacTarnahan wrote:

When you have an area with big box sports retailers and small specialty running stores, generally they are serviced by two different reps. That running store rep is not going to make any commission if you are selling shoes, apparel and accessories not purchased from him....

This is the only thing you have been right about in the whole thread and it is kind of the whole point:

Joe opens running store

Adidas rep won't supply him

Joe buys tons of shoes from eastbay and sells them from his store

Adidas rep doesnt get any credit or commission from the Adidas that Joe sells

Adidas rep stops being an a-hole and starts letting joe buy shoes directly.

Now Adidas rep gets commission

That is one good way to get opened by the vendors.

It's up to adidas (adidas is all lower case-you probably didn't know that) running business unit to decide to open an account. It's not the reps call. If you think that because this store starts selling adidas that it buys from other sources, adidas is going to be pressured into opening an account with this store, you are mistaken. That's the LAST thing adidas is going to do.