Look Over the Competition

Prior to opening a general store within your community, it's worthwhile to find out how you will fit in the competitive landscape. Use the link below to generate a list of competitors in your city. Just enter your city, state and zip code to get a list of general stores in your community.

• Search for General Stores Near You

How tough is the competition in the market you are considering? If the competition is too tough, you may need to think about starting the business in a different area or even start a completely different business instead.

Studying the Market

If you want to open a general store the next step is to learn as much as you can from somebody who is already in the business. It's very unlikely that the local competition will talk to you. What's in it for them?

On the other hand, an individual who has a general store in a location that is not competitive to you may be willing to share their entrepreneurial wisdom with you, given that you don't compete with them in their area. Indeed, many experienced entrepreneurs enjoy offering advice to startup entrepreneurs. If you are persistent, you can find a business mentor who is willing to help you out.

Where does one find somebody who runs a general store that lives outside of your area?

Easy. Find them using our link below and start calling until you are successful.

• Search for General Store Owners

Franchising May Be a Better Way to Go

If you don't have much business experience, you may want to look into becoming a franchisee.

As part of your process in starting a general store, a smart move is to check out whether there are good franchise opportunities available that might help you on your entrepreneurial journey.

The link below gives you access to our franchise directory so you can see if there's a franchise opportunity for you. You might even find something that points you in a completely different direction.

• Franchise Lists