I am a supporter and believer in the free market and capitalism, so the cr

I am a supporter and believer in the free market and capitalism, so the crux of this post may not be exactly what you might expect from the title.

We opened Market On Main in April of this year for three reasons. The first being we wanted to try another form of retail business outside of the automotive business. I Bryce love the behind the scenes aspect of business. I enjoy inventory control, cost analysis, and things of that nature. I also currently operate another not so small business and have a Master of Business Education degree. Im not bragging. Im just showing that Im qualified to run a small business. Alongside that, Lisa is extremely gifted in spotting trends and has a great eye for interior decorating and putting unique gifts together for people, so we decided to go this route.

The second reason we opened it is we have watched Main Street struggle economically. We have had our opinions and suspicions on why, but until you have skin in the game they are just that, suspicions and opinions. With that, we decided to put some skin in the game while doing something we enjoy and see what its like to run a small business on Main Street Malvern.

The third reason is there was a void left in our town for what we offer. There is nowhere to go buy a unique gift for someone, or items for your home that are different from what you can get at our local discount box stores.

The first thing that I want to pull the curtain back on is the financial side so that anyone who has never ownedoperated a business can see what it takes to just keep the doors open. It will probably surprise you. Following is the breakdown of our businesss monthly expenses

Entergy 150
Water 50
Internet 130
Security 30
Quickbooks 30
POS Software 50
Website 50
Insurance 80
Payroll 1716
Payroll taxes 193
Unemployment Taxes 70
On top of these we have the approximate 3 fee for every credit card transaction

If we werent blessed to own our building we would also have approximately a 650 per month expense.
So the average business operator running an establishment similar to ours would need to profit approximately 3,300 just to break even. That is not including any maintenance or upgrading on the property. This also does not include the initial investment of building out the building, inventory, computers, point of sale system, displays, etc. In our case this was approximately 60,000, not including the purchase price of the building and us doing the buildout ourselves.

In our instance, without a mortgage on the building or having to pay rent, we have to profit about 2,700 a month just to break even! That is 32,400 a year. Thats not even paying ourselves back for our initial investment or for the real estate. That makes us 0 as the business owners plus we are still out the purchase price of the property and initial investment. Now, to be fair we could do away with the payroll expense and work at the store ourselves full time, but that is just not possible at this time, and you would hope that the business owner would make more than an hourly employee would.

This is not easy and is certainly not something someone can do who does not already have the capital to invest and absorb the initial losses.

With that being said, Im in no way trying to shame people into shopping local. I am sharing this so people understand the struggle and reality of what it takes to operate a locally owned small business. If you want to continue to purchase items from box stores and online retailers that you can purchase from locally owned small businesses you have the right. I support you having that right. BUT.dont complain when your Main Street is collapsing and you see businesses come and go. Dont question why local people will not invest in the community. I feel like I must repeat myself here. I am absolutely not trying to shame anyone into shopping local. This is not a pity party for small business owners, especially those trying to revitalize Main Street small town USA. It is just information for everyone who does not have any skin in the game, but has plenty of opinions, just as we did.

I will post more information and insights in the near future if this is well received.

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