How to Start an Antique Store in India? [A Complete Guide]

History is an ever enigmatic space for people who can connect with it. People have a deep passion for collecting historical artifacts. For such people, an authentic antique shop is one of the fascinating places apart from museums and monuments. An antique shop presents a collection of carefully curated artifacts from a bygone era to a discerning clientele. The business has got an old-world charm to it, and also provides a platform for Indian handicrafts men. Most antique dealers specialise in a specific segment such as vintage jewellery, lamps, unique beds or bed-side table, etc.

How to Start an Antique Store?

Choosing a Perfect Product Line

The range of an antique shop includes art pieces, home décor accessories like mirrors, candle stands, doorknobs, etc., furniture, and a host of items that might catch an art collector’s eye. These can be a show-stealer in any living room. Apart from individual customers, you can also get bulk orders for home décor or an office project.

You can also specialise in garden furniture like antique fountains, patio furniture, pots, etc. Oriental woven carpets are a hot-seller in this segment that often find a very coveted place in the home decor of a diplomat or a museum floor. You can even make a copy of a popular ancient art design for your customers.

Whether you retail your antique artifacts through a high street store or that of a mall, or you set up a temporary counter at a flea market or craft fair, your core business entails procuring new artifacts and then resell at a profit. Make sure you hit upon the best sources of procuring the items at the best price point.

According to dealers, an antique piece should be at least 100 years old. As an antique shop owner, you have to pay attention to customers, creative marketing techniques, and product knowledge. It will help you to develop a successful antique business. The growing popularity of the vintage and decorative market has induced a lot of entrepreneurs to invest in an antique shop. In this article, we will describe how to start a business, like an antique store.

Step 1: Document your business structure

You should select the most appropriate business format with the help of a consultant familiar with retail businesses. Business types include corporations, limited liability companies, sole proprietorships, partnerships, etc. For starting your antique business, you should ask your accountant, which category to follow. You have to register the business and make it legally compliant.

You should obtain written zoning approval from the owner of the retail space before you sign a lease. Obtain a business license and applicable permits. Meet with a commercial insurance agent regarding business insurance.

Step 2: How to open a shop?

a) Generate an Idea and a Plan
One of the first things in how to start a business is to have a clear plan to chart out the specifics of the business. You have to figure out the answers to the following questions:

• Who is your target customer?
• What will your business sell?
• How will you price your products?
• Who are your competitors in the locality?
• How will you hire a team?

It is critical to decide what you want to sell, and who are your target customers because your retail store has to satisfy the needs of your customers. Conducting in-depth market research on antiques and the demographics of your potential clientele is a significant part of creating a business plan. It involves researching consumer data and SEO, running surveys, etc.

b) What are the costs involved?

If you want to trade relatively inexpensive items and want to be an antique dealer on a part-time basis, opening an antique shop can be a low-cost business. To start this, you have to invest in an inventory. You can operate it as a weekend endeavour.

If you want to open a large store, you have to spend a lot of money in buying or leasing the property, installing display areas, and purchasing expensive items. To meet the ongoing expenses of the antique store, you must have a good line of credit. You also have to spend some money on the maintenance of the display space.

Step 3:  Location

You should locate a spacious and visible space for your antique shop. The storefront should have a big glass window so that passer-byes can easily see the antiques and collectibles. Space for customer parking and easy street access are significant points to consider. When customers are out shopping, they tend to look around for related products. Hence, it makes sense to be around businesses such as bedding stores, gourmet kitchen supply shops, drapery, and furniture stores. It is because you will share the same demography of clientele with them.

After the interior decoration of the shop is ready, you should hire a sign-maker to create the signage.

Step 4: Finding the Right Items

There are a large variety of sources to find the right stuff for your store. You can source stocks from live auctions, flea markets, garage sales, and local estate sales. Many collectibles may pass through the hands of multiple antique dealers along the product chain before you can get hold of them for your retail shop. One thing to note is that you have to stock unique items, and you might even have to buy them from individuals.

To make your hunt for antiques easy, you can monitor online events calendars provided by some publications on antiques. You might have to travel quite a bit to get your hands on a rare item. You should market merchandise with a recognised value and has dedicated collectors.

You can also place “Antiques wanted” in your local newspaper’s classified section.

Your antique shop may specialise in some particular segment of the market such as the antique jewellery or furniture alley, but you may also stock a wider variety.

Step 5: Research your competitors

Visit other antiques and collectibles businesses to learn about their merchandise mix. Note their product mix, like whether they are dealing in products of which century. If you want to sell vintage décor, you should stock your store with items like carpets, home furnishings, period furniture, showpieces, and wall hangings.

No business ideas today are entirely original; so, you should know your competition. You should know what options your customers have and then decide on the offering. After understanding the competitive market scenario, you have to develop your edge over others. Will it be in variety? Service? Quality? Or, perhaps, price? Know your competitive advantage, and communicate that to your customers through marketing and presentation.

Step 6: Develop your antique knowledge

As an antique shop owner, you must be an expert in specific types of antiques and collectibles. You should browse current valuation guides and follow international auctions to learn about average merchandise selling prices. You can also visit other dealers to ask for their expert opinions. If, for example, coins are one of your areas of expertise, you can indulge in your passion and also successfully build an antique shop dealing in old coins.

Step 7: Who is the target customer?

Your most valued buyer is the designer or individual who appreciates your items for their quality and uniqueness. You help them own a piece of history which they cannot find in any modern retail store.

To run a successful antique business, you must adapt to changing situations. In times of pandemic, many people are shopping online; so, you should be able to serve customers with home deliveries and phone orders. We hope that the steps to open a shop for antiques, which we described above, will be helpful to you.

Opening an antique shop is a challenging task that requires time, money, and dedication. But if running your own business is your passion, the effort will be worth it!

Also read:

1) OkShop- India's Online Digital Dukan!
2) What type of permissions are required before starting any business?
3) GST: How to Apply for GSTN?
4) Your A to Z guide to filing for GST Returns

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