Acquire city and state business leases. You should also familiarize yourself with tax strategies, as well as the benefits of incorporating your business.
Lease an area for the book store. Areas near college campuses and downtown urban centers are ideal for book stores. But you should also find a favorable lease agreement, since profits will probably be modest.
Design the store's organization. You should figure out where fiction, non-fiction and other genres will be organized across the limited space of the room. Purchase book shelves, tables and chairs to furnish the store. Decide how much lounging space your store will have.
Hire book store staff. Your staff should be knowledgeable of books and be able to offer good recommendations to customers.
Negotiate a contract with book distributors. They will supply your store with new and back titles. A few major book distributors are Book Hub and Consortium Distributors. Acquire used books if you choose to have a used section.
Organize the books on the shelves within the store. Set up a computer inventory system to keep track of the number of available titles.
Consider operating a café in the book store. It's highly recommended that you work with someone who is experienced in food services. Increasingly, some customers will expect to be able to purchase a cup of coffee and a light treat.