Market stall

[jonnypar]

My friend is thinking of leaving his job to open a market stall, but is unsure what would be the best items to sell?

[boxtops]

He would be better advised to do it the other way round - keep his job and do a lot of market research first, to find out what items other market stall's AREN'T selling, and what the demand for those items is likely to be. You need to pay stall fees, insurance, some pay for yourself - so your friend needs to guarantee a reasonable profit each day before even thinking about giving up an employed job for something potentially risky. IMO.

[bednobs]

also, it will depend on where he lives - no point opening a clothes stall in the fish market for example

[Buenchico]

Looking at what sells well on our local markets, the rule seems to be to find something which the supermarkets don't sell. That's not particularly easy these days!

For example, at one time anyone wanting a cheap pair of men's socks would head straight to their local market but, with Asda now selling half a dozen pairs for three quid, people go to their local supermarket instead. The same applies to most items of clothing, as well as most foods, household goods, electrical goods, mobile phones and loads of other stuff as well.

Where market traders seem to be surviving (and, in some cases, thriving) is through selling 'luxury' foods, which aren't available in supermarkets. For example, Ipswich market has a successful stall selling specialist bread at three or four pounds per loaf, and 'posh' cakes at £1.50 for a cupcake. That stall might belong to a bakery but, equally, it could belong to an independent trader who has simply reached agreement(s) with one or more 'luxury' bakers to supply his stock at prices which make good financial sense to both parties.

At the other end of the food range, traders selling 'short-dated' grocery items (and other 'bargain' foods) also seem to do quite well.

Even if your friend has no interest in selling foods I suggest that, whatever he considers selling, he needs to ask himself the question "Can people buy this stuff cheaper in Asda or Tesco?" If the answer is "Yes" he should look for something else to sell.

Chris