About Us:

 

Welcome to Under The Sea Boutique's Blog!

Read along to find out more about our store and we're all about!

 

We'll start with our positioning strategy:

     What: We promis to provide our customers with the newest styles of clothing made with the best materials in order to ensure your happiness whether you're on the beaches in California or a night out in Miami, FL.

     Who: Our customer is any warm weather loving, sun-soaking beauty.

     Reason: We strive to give women fashionable, beachy looks that will give them the confidence they are looking for.

     Against Whom: Our biggest competition would be other resort wear boutiques and online stores like The Cabana Shop and Inbetween Tangerine.

     Pricing: As far as pricing, it really depends on the brands we carry. We have a line called Quay with super cute sunglasses all around $50. On the other hand, we carry lines like Sky that have pieces that could be up to $300. We mark up the wholesale price by 2 or 2.3, depending on the line.

     Service: We provide our customers with the best customer service possible. We went to make sure shoppers have the ultimate experience in our store and after they leave with their purchase.

 

OUR OFFICIAL WEBSITE: www.undertheseaboutique.com

*To purchase this domain, it costs us $750

*To renew the domain, it costs $14.99/year

*Other costs for our site: $7.99/year to protect personal info. on the site, $3.99/month for professional email to my domain

 

Trademark:

The official cost to purchase our trademark was $375. Luckily, our name was available so we could trademark it!

 

Our customer/clientele:

     Based on demogrpahics, we have decided to have stores in LA, San Diego, and Miami. Of course, these are resort destinations. Total retail sales in San Diego in 2007 equalled 16,525,751. The median age is 33.4 and median income is $64,456. Of course, LA is one of the top four sities to start a business so it only makes sense to open a store there. Miami's median age is 38 and median income is $31,070. The popular age and income in these cities is perfect for our type of store and prices.

 

Cost of business licenses:

San Diego- $34/year

Miami- $45/year

 

Obviously, this business is a partnership because I own this store along with two of my sisters!

 

Cost of Advertising: I do my advertising through Facebook. With Facebook, you can decide how much you want to spend on your promoted ad and it will bill you accordingly! I have chosen to spend $300 on my ads because social media promotion has more return on investment for this target demographic.

 

Our store is a retail and online store. We do put most of our products online for sale!

 

We love to help our Earth!

We use reusable custom made shopping bags with our logo on it.

We also recycle old metal and plastic hangers that we no longer use or that are broken.

 

Business Insurance:

Business insurance costs $600 a month for a business value of $250,000. This should include risk.

 

Here's a list of all of the costs for the stores' needs:

(this will be doubled because there is two locations)

Laptop: $280

Card Machine: $149

POS System: $1,217

Shopping Bags: Plastic=$260. Reusable=$325

Order Pads: $22

Plastic Hangers: $30

Metal Hangers: $64

4-way slant arm racks (3): $192

4-way straight arm racks (2): $128

Round Tables (3): $507

Desk: $170

Desk Chair: $199

Front Desk: $1530

Stools for front desk: $220

Hanging Mannequins(6): $210

Total Cost of Needs: $5,557 (per store)

 

Rental Costs:

San Diego- $6,644/month, 1,661 sq ft

Miami- $9,565/month, 1,913 sq ft

 

6-Month Sales Plan:

February          $63,000

March               $97,650

April                  $125,550

May                   $139,500

June                   $139,500

July                    $139,500

Total 6 Months' Sales: $704,700

 

Staffing/Employee Plan:

Hours of Operation: 10AM-7PM

Number of Employees: 4(not including owners)

                2 full-time employees

                2 part-time employees

Employee Hours:

      Employee A: 67 hours/week

      Employee B: 45 hours/week

      Employee C: 24 hours/week

      Employee D: 24 hours/week

 

Payroll for 6 Months:

      Employee A:($15/hr) $4,020/month, $24,120/6-months

      Employee B:($12/hr) $2,160/month, $12,960/6-months

      Employee C & D:($10/hr) $960/month, $5,760/6 months

      Owners (my two sisters and I): $14,000 each

 

Works Cited:

http://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/fees-and-payment/uspto-fee-schedule#TM%20Process%20Fee

http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=searchss&state=4801:ml1zza.1.1

https://www.godaddy.com/domains/searchresults.aspx?checkAvail=1&domainToCheck=under+the+sea

https://www.godaddy.com/domains/domain-configuration.aspx?ci=84427

http://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/INC110213/0666000,00#headnote-js-c

http://www.city-data.com/city/Miami-Florida.html

http://www.city-data.com/city/San-Diego-California.html#b

http://www.miamidade.gov/taxcollector/local-business-tax.asp

http://www.cityapplications.com/business-licenses/CA-California/biz-SanDiego.html

http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/infographic-how-your-age-affects-what-you-share-social-media-166878

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_pg_4?rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Ahanging+mannequin+female&page=4&keywords=hanging+mannequin+female&ie=UTF8&qid=1447285523&spIA=B00KFJTR1Y

http://www.greenphillyblog.com/recycle/where-can-i-recycle-used-hangers/

http://www.uline.com/BL_5528/Reusable-Shopping-Bags?keywords=Reusable+Shopping+Bags

https://www.weddingpaperdivas.com/product/15851/personalized_wedding_napkins_pure_romance.html

http://www.partycity.com/search.do?query=clear+plastic+champagne+glasses

http://www.signs.com/banners/

https://www.gigmasters.com/search/beach-band-san-diego-ca?event=Grand-Opening

https://www.barcodesinc.com/shopkeep/part-retail.htm

http://www.loopnet.com/Listing/19389674/2001-Biscayne-Blvd-Miami-FL/