Hi Friends!!
Not sure if I should apologize again for waiting so long to write another post. I’m utterly terrible at this, but I think you all have accepted me for my failures, thank you.
On to this topic. As you know the local market we run is literally in a food desert. The closest business is about 15 miles away. Now you might think that makes us pretty well set when it comes to business but it doesn’t because we are the only thing in town and we are very small. What we offer straddles convenience store, tourist spot, and a little outdoor shop. This is an effort to maximize our customer reach. Its tricky because we are small and the season does play a part. That being said we really didn’t think any of the stores in the neighboring town would care about our existence.
I was wrong and it was very naive of me. I can’t say much about how the market was run before we took ownership but I can say we are very different. Its highly noticeable, from our social media presence to the look of the market from outside and the feel inside. So the more revenue we bring in means less for those other stores in the area. I don’t think we are creating additional traffic or tourism. That means on average the same amount of money is being spent on retail in the area and now we are taking more of the share. Someone is feeling the pinch. We’ve had a store owner come visit the market. Looked around, did their recon. But we haven’t done the same, should we?
Here is where it gets juicey. So Mike had the idea of selling local handmade outdoor furniture. It serves several functions. Provides seating to the locals that come hangout at the market on Sunday’s, creates curb appeal, and attracts visitors. So it was new for the area and our supplier has never been there before. After a couple of weeks, maybe a few months we find out another store in the area found our supplier and is now also selling the furniture. Oh yeah, we were salty……mostly Mike because it was his idea. But then after awhile the truth behind this copycat sunk in. We have only been open 6 months and a well establish store felt the need jack our style. How does that quote go, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
And so we took it as such. After we let our heads get big for a few, basked in the glory of it all. Then a spark began to glow……….sweet relish of competition. Its time to sharpen our claws, hope they are ready muahahahahahahaha
2 Comments
Val Bowman · February 18, 2019 at 1:41 am
2-17-19
In my opinion, there is no need to check out the other “local stores”. The thing is, the people whom you want to attract are the seasonal tourists. The locals already dig the vibe but are not your marketing goal… The tourist , although seasonal, is your ticket. The Yeti has put Ranchita on the map but the attitude is “OK, that was cool” let’s move on toward Borrego. Perhaps something more sensational will make more people stop. So the question is, what in the world would make people stop? I don’t know, something crazy like a two headed snake or a talking dog or ? Some kind of dorky sideshow. I know this sounds far fetched but you need an attraction of some sort. Hell, social media will make it “take off” if it’s funky enough. Just sayin… I admire you folks for taking on such an endeavor and would like to see you succeed.
Val Bowman
koshun · February 23, 2019 at 11:20 pm
Thank you Val, appreciate that.
You are absolutely right. Mike and I have discussed this. But like most things, it requires substantial investment. We thought of an outdoor art exhibit. Ranchita and surrounding towns seen to have lots of crafty artists. The other is food…..Borrego Springs doesn’t seem to have any mind shattering food offerings. It’ll be some time before I get my organic fish and beverages. But I think art might be the key. I had a chat with Joe about possibly creating some sci-fi mythical throne to fit with the Yeti theme. Something tourist would love to take pictures in. We are constantly churning it in our mind. Thank you for reading and commenting 😀