Cash Flow is the killer of most businesses, not just convenience stores so if you can source goods on a sale or return basis, it both protects your vital cash flow and enables you to stock your shop more effectively.

Sale or return simply means the supplier provides you with stock and you only pay for what you sell. The risk is carried by the supplier, not you.

In our case we have secured sale or return arrangements for:

• Fresh Sandwiches Daily
• Deli Items including hams, salamis, cheeses etc
• Greeting Cards
• Storage Boxes

My advice is to source as many sale or return suppliers as you can, but be careful to check their invoice each week as some try to sneak through extras.

This post is an extract from the e-book ‘So, you want to run a convenience store?’ by Peter Lamb. It is available for free download here.