Why Buy an Established Liquor Store Instead of
Starting One of Your Own?
By Richard Parker: President of The Resource Center for Buying a Liquor Store™ and author of How To Buy A Good Liquor Store At A Great Price© .
Should you start a new liquor store or buy one that is already in operation?
That’s a complex question, but let me start out with a very simple observation. You’re never sure how viable any new business really is. Of course, you have a pretty good idea that the area where you’re starting a liquor store has enough customers to support your enterprise. At least, you have a pretty good idea. You’ve studied the area, looked at possible locations, and done the other legwork.
But the fact remains, you have very little idea how well the liquor store is really going to do. Will it get onto people’s “radar” and become a store where they like to shop? Are you going to stock the kind of products that customers in the area prefer, or are you going to have to figure out their preferences through a process of trial and error?
Even with the best advice and the most diligent study, starting a new liquor store entails a lot of guessing. On paper the plans usually sound great but the results tell a different story. Perhaps that is why 96% of all start-ups fail in the first five years.
Ease of Investigation
With an existing liquor store, you will have access to actual historical information that will 
allow you to thoroughly investigate its past activities, the financials, the market, the customers, the employees, the competition, its operations, its current status, and its future potential.
Regardless of a company's past performance, an existing business will, at the very least, have a history from which you will be able to make certain decisions. Even if the store was not very profitable in the past, your strengths may lend themselves perfectly to turning it into a viable venture. Furthermore, you have the ability to verify what the store company did in the past that resulted in the current status of the operation.
Clearly, this information-gathering stage will be substantially more accurate and easier to obtain when dealing with an existing business since you have the actual history.
In a start-up, everything is a guess.
And in case I have not convinced you that buying an existing store is the best idea, let me add these arguments:
An existing business has a built-in infrastructure. You will inherit active customers, suppliers, employees, equipment and systems. This will allow you to focus on building the business as opposed to a start-up, where you're starting with nothing.
Sales will be generated the day you take over. In fact when the sale is structured well, you can get the keys to your business on Monday and take home a paycheck on Friday!
Buying an existing business is often less expensive than launching a start-up. Even in those cases where it may require a premium, at least you know what you are getting. Plus, with the right information you can negotiate incredible deal terms that you could not achieve with a new business. And remember, over 90 percent of my clients negotiate seller financing.
Everything is negotiable. Everything from the purchase price to financing is open to negotiation. However, there is a lot you need to know in order to buy a good, solid store that can become great with you at the helm. When you have access to the right information and advice you’re going to make the right decisions.
Once you buy a good existing business you will hit the ground running and have a foundation in place from which you can really grow the store into a thriving enterprise.
To learn more success secrets of top-performing liquor stores, be sure to order our guide, How to Buy a Good Liquor Store at a Great Price.
This article represents a fraction of what you’ll learn in How To Buy A Good Liquor Store At A Great Price© - the most widely used reference resource and strategy guide for anyone thinking about buying a liquor store. Read a detailed listing of what you'll learn.
