Boutiques & Shops
Some products pay the rent. Others just take up shelf space. We help you see which is which.
Not All Sales Are Equal
A $50 sale on a candle you bought for $18 is not the same as a $50 sale on a sweater you bought for $35. The register doesn’t know the difference. Your bank account does. By the end of the month, you’ve moved a lot of product and you’re not sure why there’s no cash left.
Most shop owners know their overall margin is supposed to be around 50%. But that number hides everything. Some categories run at 60%. Some run at 30%. Some vendors give you room to breathe. Others squeeze you from the start. If you’re not tracking margins by category, you’re flying blind.
Who This Is For
Who This Is For
Gift shops, clothing boutiques, home goods stores, jewelry shops, specialty retail. Any shop carrying inventory from multiple vendors across multiple categories.
The Problem
The Problem
Revenue looks healthy. Margin looks okay on paper. But some products are carrying the business while others drag it down. You can’t fix what you can’t see.
Which Vendors Are Worth the Shelf Space
You carry ten vendors. Some sell fast at good margins. Some sell slow but customers ask for them by name. Some don’t sell much at all and you keep reordering because you always have. That last category is costing you money and taking up space that could go to something better.
Vendor performance isn’t just about sales volume. It’s about what you keep after the cost. A vendor that moves $500 a month at 55% margin is worth more than one moving $800 at 35%. But you won’t know that unless you’re tracking it.
Vendor Margins
Vendor Margins
Sales and gross profit by vendor. See who’s making you money and who’s just filling shelves.
Buying Decisions
Buying Decisions
When it’s time to reorder, you’ll know which vendors deserve more shelf space and which ones to phase out.
Categories That Carry the Store
Jewelry might be 15% of your floor space but 30% of your margin. Apparel might be half the store but barely break even after markdowns. Home goods might feel like an afterthought but quietly pay the rent every month. Most shop owners have a hunch about this. Few have the numbers.
When you know which categories actually perform, you can make real decisions. Expand what works. Shrink what doesn’t. Stop agonizing over whether to keep that corner display and start making choices based on data.
Category Performance
Category Performance
Revenue and margin by product category. Not just what’s selling, but what’s making money.
Floor Space Math
Floor Space Math
Is that category earning its square footage? When you know the margin, you can decide if the space is worth it.
Numbers That Help You Buy Smarter
Buying season comes around and you’re making decisions based on what sold last year and what the rep is pushing this year. Some of those bets pay off. Some sit on the shelf until you mark them down and lose money. The difference between a good year and a bad one is often just a few buying decisions.
We give you margin data by vendor, by category, by season. When you sit down to write orders, you’ll know exactly which bets paid off last time and which ones didn’t. That’s how you stop guessing and start buying smarter.
Historical Data
Historical Data
What sold, at what margin, in which season. Real numbers from your own store to inform this year’s buying.
Markdown Tracking
Markdown Tracking
What ended up discounted and how much margin you lost. So you know which categories to overbuy and which to keep tight.
Greater Richmond's Small Business Bookkeeper
The Next Step:
A Short Conversation
Fifteen minutes to tell us what you're dealing with. We'll let you know how we can help and give you a clear price quote.
