# Advice for opening my own exotic pet shop.



## Boyden1985 (Nov 13, 2006)

Hiya folks,

I was wondering if anyone could give me advice on opening my own pet shop? Including the general licensing requirements throughout the country. 

I have one massive problem with the wholesalers supplying their pricing infomation and was also wondering if anyone had a general rule of thumb for the markup on dry goods.

Thanks guys.

: victory:


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## Beardies (Sep 30, 2006)

i dont have a clue one day will have my own pet shop so would be good to see what the outcome of this thread will be.

But good luck with your venture and hope we all get discounts :lol2:


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## Boyden1985 (Nov 13, 2006)

:lol2:

Hey if I pull this off your damn right  ecaue it will be a dream come true


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## Rainwater (Apr 18, 2007)

erm yeah u need a special license as ur a pet shop...something to do with the environmental health ppl i think...as they actually hand out the license.


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## Beardies (Sep 30, 2006)

where abouts are you based??? if not local open in KENT :lol2:

i want a pet shop not reptiles apparently its a different ball game all together if you wanna see exotics i would have hamsters fish that kinda stuff not puppies or kittens tho : victory:


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## Rainwater (Apr 18, 2007)

Call up ur council n they will let u know who to call


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## tazzyasb (May 4, 2005)

you can search on google to find out about licenses and so on there was a fairly extensive thread on here a while back if you do a search it will answer loads of your questions


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## Boyden1985 (Nov 13, 2006)

Yeah i'm waiting for a response from the council. I know that dependant on the region the licensing rquirements are different and that you are limited to the number of livestock and subject to vetinary inspection. I'm espescially keen to find out a good rule of thumb (percentage) to find the avereage markup that sops put onto their dry goods in reptile/exotic pet shops so that i can get on with the financial sie of my business plan.

: victory:


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## Fangio (Jun 2, 2007)

As far as I'm aware, when you get your dry goods price list from the wholesalers they come with a R.R.P also (though it's up to you if you decide to sell slightly cheaper or whatever).

Good luck with the venture and I hope it all works out for you. Contact the local council regarding licensing and they'll give information and sort that.

Only other advice I can give is make sure you have enough of the starter animals that tend to sell well (beardies leopard gecko's corns etc. etc.) but also keep some more advanced animals in stock also to keep a wide range of customers and not just beginners (for the animal buying). A nice big showpiece draws people in also like a croc or large snake. Make sure your animals are as immaculate as possible and your advice spot-on. Never try and blag a customer if you don't know the answer to a question as it'll backfire on you.

Also create the best rep shop EVER and locate it in Essex!:smile: That is all:grin1:


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## SnakeBreeder (Mar 11, 2007)

The pet traders licence comes from the local council, Environmental Heath officer and the Licensing officer.
Prices differ up and down the country.
You tell them what you want and they normally approve it as long as you have the space to keep all that you have on the licence.
When I managed a pet shop we doubled the price on dry goods and then added VAT.
When we started we only added 50% , then added VAT, to attract more custom.
Livestock was doubled or in some cases trebled ( Before you shout at me I did not set the prices )
Different suppliers will quote you different amounts for goods and services. You have to shop around to see who will give YOU the best deal. As you become established you will be offered better deals.
You really need to see a business advisor before spending any money.
You need a business plan, showing where you hope to be in 2 or 3 years and how you plan to achieve it.
Hope this help
Stephen.


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## punky_jen (Feb 22, 2007)

where are you going to open this shop? I bet your excited!


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## SiUK (Feb 15, 2007)

yeh I wanna know where you will be based in Yeovil hopefully :lol2:


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## cryosi (Dec 4, 2006)

good luck its hard work...


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## Athravan (Dec 28, 2006)

Most council websites have all the t&c for the pet shop license that you can download - and the forms. This is usually a fairly simple procedure, but it really depends what county you are in how much it will cost, and how long it will take. This will have to be renewed yearly.

Make sure you get permission from the landlord if you are renting a business property, your tenancy agreement should specify retail - pets - exotics.. and depending on the landlord, some people don't like to rent to pet shops, thinking it will be smelly, noisy, cause a disturbance to neighbours etc... so you might want to present it nicely and just be aware that not everyone likes reptiles either and some landlords when I was looking were just like... eww.. no way!

All the wholesalers will send you out their catalogues if you give them an email and say you're intending to start up and need stock information... I got pricelists for about 6 different wholesalers some 3-4 months before I opened my shop with just a quick email, no questions asked. Took me at least 3 months of planning what to order anyway before we ordered, and then another 2 months from the initial order before we opened so wholesalers are used to giving out pricelists when you dont even have a shop yet.

The catalogues will come with an RRP next to the price.. this varies from 10-20% (books usually) up to 50-60% on some items. Don't forget that you will have to pay VAT on the prices listed though. There is no VAT on livestock or livefood... what you charge will depend on where you are, what sort of competition there is, what your overheads are. A small shop usually has to charge a little more because they're selling less... but on the other hand, a small shop also doesn't have the taxes that a large established business does, so you can cut some corners there. Usually pet shops will double the price of livefood and livestock, and add about 25-40% on for frozen.

If you are breeding your own stuff then you just have to set a fair market price based on what other people sell at or what you think is fair


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## Hardwicki (Jun 18, 2007)

hey i'd suggest goin n chattin to owners of actual exotic stores...theres one near me and they really know their stuff and are mega friendly too.

: victory:


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## HABU (Mar 21, 2007)

50% margin on dry goods.


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## Tops (Apr 26, 2007)

Come open one in Bucks

You will almost have a monopoly


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## Boyden1985 (Nov 13, 2006)

:lol2:

As per usual you guys give me all the support and encouragement I need :no1:

I really appreciate all the help and I have just recently been told that my partners mum would like to financially back me!!!!!! FANTASTIC NEWS. I would like t open up in Newquay, Cornwall. They are about to open a Reptile zoo 20 miles out of town and that will really spark the interest of so many people and intend to feed from that for awhile.

: victory:


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## Boyden1985 (Nov 13, 2006)

I must admit I am suprised that there arent people who already own exotic petshops out there giveing me more advice.

: victory:


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## madaboutreptiles (Jun 5, 2007)

I have been looking into the same thing, You will need to contact your local environmental heath people as they issue the license. In my area they will not issue the license unless you hold a reconised qualification which in my area is a C&G in pet shop management.

As for wholesalers I am working on that now....will let you know


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## Athravan (Dec 28, 2006)

Boyden1985 said:


> I must admit I am suprised that there arent people who already own exotic petshops out there giveing me more advice.
> 
> : victory:


:lol2: I have to be honest... there are some really genuine pet shop owners out there who gave me loads of help/advice, support, gave me suppliers and a few hints and tips, came to my shop and gave me advice... but those were few and far between compared to the shop owners who were convinced they knew more than me, i wasn't necessary, i'm competition and there purely to make them make less money.. I have encountered both great honesty and helpfulness from some, and outright hostility and aggression from other reptile shops.


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## HABU (Mar 21, 2007)

study small business administration. the things that you may not know about will come back to bite you. also, and this may sound weird, visualize, visualize. run everything through your head. do floor plans and other things. also subscribe to some of the trade magazines like pet age and pet news. they have lots of good info and sources. everybody and his brother will send you cataloges and samples. study accounting or find an accountant to help you keep it real. hope this helps. i've been there. oh, one more thing, it's not just about the animals, it's administration and logistics.


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## Boyden1985 (Nov 13, 2006)

Thats awful!!!!!!!!!

I would havethought that they would be pleased that our hobby is becoming so popular!!!! I mean don't get me wrong I would be a bit worried if I had a new shop opening up right next door to mine but when they are never going to affect your local tradethen I fid it hard that other shop owners can't be more supportive


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## HABU (Mar 21, 2007)

other shops should help so long as you're not in their territory. any apprenticeship you can get will only be a plus.


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## Athravan (Dec 28, 2006)

Well, there are a lot of bad reptile shops out there, a lot of people just in it for the money.. and those are the ones who won't be supportive.

There are also then those who are in it for the reptiles, for the hobby, etc. and those will be the nicest people you'll ever meet 

To be honest I don't think many of them have that much time to read the threads here though. I spend way too much time here


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