A Festive Focus
Turn your passion for a specific holiday into a thriving seasonal business by getting your timing right.
Perhaps you want to sell Christmas knickknacks or Hanukkahgifts, or you specialize in Valentine's Day chocolates orHalloween wigs. No matter what particular seasonal specialtybusiness you want to start, you'll need a bit of guidance toreally have a happy holiday.
You've heard the adage that real estate is all aboutlocation--well, as trite as it may sound, seasonal businesses areall about timing. If you're planning to reap your windfallduring the Christmas season, like all other major retailers, youneed to get your proverbial sugarplums in a row at least six tonine months in advance, says Tom Dowdy, founder and CEO of National In-Store,a retailing consulting company and solutions provider in Sarasota,Florida. "Most major retailers have locked and loaded their[holiday season] buying programs before April or May of thatyear," he says. "So at that point, they've made theirselections, estimated their inventory needs and placed those orders[to be shipped] in August, maybe before then." Thinking aboutValentine's Day, Easter or any other major retailing holiday?The lead times are the same.
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