One question I am frequently asked, as well as having seen been frequently posted on many forums and other websites, is "how can I start my own reptile business". Oftentimes, this relates to opening up retail space and selling herps and the food, supplies, and other "dry goods" required to keep and/or propagate them, but can also be applicable in most cases to most other ventures involving reptiles such as becoming a full time herpetoculturist, public educator, rescue organization, or practically any other business with reptiles as its focal point.
As with starting up any business, you are first going to need to ask many questions and conduct a tremendous amount of planning and research before you should even think about opening your doors or publishing your website live. This is especially the case in today's economy. That is where putting together a formal business plan can and will help you tremendously. A business college professor of mine once told me, most businesses that go under do so because they either did not have a business plan or had one but overlooked critical points in their operations.
One of the first things you need to determine is which legal form of business you want to be. The most common forms of companies are LLCs (or Limited Liability Corporations), partnerships, sole proprietorships, S Corporations, and non profits. Examine the benefits and drawbacks of each, as well as the nature of your company, to determine which type is most suitable for your preferences.
Typically, most small retail stores and full time herpetoculture centered businesses are either LLCs, partnerships, or sole proprietorships. If you are considering operating a reptile rescue or perhaps in some cases a public display and education based operation, holding a non profit status.
You are also going to need to think A LOT about financing expenses and ask many questions pertaining to it and your business. Do you plan on hiring any staff or employees? If so, you more than likely will need to determine payroll for them. How are you going to fund all of your initial start up costs and expenses? This includes any and all loans you decide to take out, rental space you may wish to utilize, as well as all of your start up assets or supplies (including all of your caging, fixtures, feeders, other appliances, and of course the animals themselves). Consider all of these costs not only for the first year, but also for the next two years, or even five years.
Marketing is critical. You are also going to need to conduct, and gain a good solid understanding of your potential markets or customers whom (and their demographics) you plan to sell and advertise to (which is yet another cost to consider depending on how/where you advertise). That will largely determine which animals and/or products and supplies you should plan to sell and how you market or sell them. Will you appeal to a broader market either by focusing on smaller, and more easily kept animals or a wide variety of animals, or are you planning on focusing on a more specific, "niche" market by offering only a select few species? Do you plan on propagating and producing the animals you sell yourself, or acquiring them through other breeders or wholesalers?
In most business ventures, a particular need, or market "niche" or void for your business to fill must be identified for you to have the chance of succeeding. This can generally be done by identifying problems and/or inconveniences your target market may be experiencing that can be solved by your business. For example, is there a lack of reliable sources for feeders in your local area?
These are all of course just some of the major things you need to consider when starting up a reptile related business or company. I have had the ability myself to over the past several years to design a couple of my own business plans centered around herpetoculture and retail sales. One software program I have used and reccommend to others interesting in starting their own business is the BusinessPlanPro software. This software is quite convenient since it is a program that walks you through all of what I have mentioned above plus more step by step in developing and ultimately creating your business plan. Below is a link to the software program for anyone interested in purchasing and utilizing it for their start up business.
