In the chilly February morning air, parents and cub scouts marched along Main Street in Monroe on their way to a flag ceremony. The ceremony was marking the 100^th year of scouting. We had all parked by the old condensery smokestack and were covering the few blocks between there and the massive flag pole near the center of town. We were a jolly little bunch.

We walked by one shop after another. Not as many storefronts were empty as used to be, which was great. In a gym on the corner, people were working out – that business had started a few years ago and was drawing in the clients. A few doors down, the Emporium, an “antiques and buttons” store was closed and empty – it had only been open a year, if that. Antiques and buttons? Yes, there are quite a few antiques stores in Monroe and Snohomish, and yet many have closed, like Black Cat and now Emporium.

I am often amazed at some antique stores’ hours. They are open from 11 to 3 on a few days of the week, or something else unusual like that. More like country town museum hours than business hours. My wife and I have looked through many of these shops, but I’ve never actually seen anyone buy anything. You can imagine my curiosity is peaked now. Are all the sales on eBay?

Understanding the value proposition, understanding the target market, understanding the cash flow – these things all intrigue me, it’s one of the reasons I love working with small businesses – and so I have a mission for this week – to visit an antique store or three and talk with the owner – to understand how their business actually stays in business.

Perhaps I can find an antique store specializing in motorcycling?

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Comments Off Posted by Allen