A "cold" shop may also be bought in mature areas.

They say the key to investing in real estate is: lots, lots or lots. But my experience of buying a store tells me that mature location is not the only factor that determines the value of a store. Even in the prosperous areas of the core area, there are some "dead corners", shops become "injured shops".

In 2008, a real estate agent told me that a set of about 20 square meters of shops on the first floor of a road in Jing 'an District would be sold at a price 5% lower than the average transaction price of shops in the same period. At that time, I also carefully investigated the surrounding market, this set of shops on both sides of the road, on the right are several restaurants, opposite an office building, nearby there is a snack street, logically speaking, the flow of people should not be small. After much consideration, I bought the shop.

After handing over the house, my wife opened a fashion shop in the shop. We thought that with the help of the surrounding bustling business atmosphere, our clothing store could quickly become famous, but three months after opening, the store was still deserted. Occasionally, friends will come to the store to "boost momentum", but the feeling is that "there are more people selling things than buying things", which has little effect on business promotion.

"If you can't manage it yourself, you might as well rent out the shop. My wife's advice is right in my head. So, the clothing store that has been open for half a year announced its closure. We advertised for rent, tenants came to our door, and after 20 days of renovation, the store was transformed into an upscale chain cafe.

The coffee shop had been in operation for nearly a year, and when the lease was about to expire, the tenant informed me that he was not going to renew it. The reason is simple: business is hard. "It's really strange, the location here is prosperous, the flow of people is large, and the collection of high-end white-collar workers, it is reasonable to say that the cafe business is very good, how can it not be done well?" On the second floor of my shop, there is also a brand chain cafe, business is good. I wonder if I have to contact an agent to find a tenant. Soon after, my shop was leased to a bank. A year later, the new tenant also offered to terminate the contract.

Why is the shop in a perfect location, but nothing can be done? Worried, I consulted an experienced friend of an investment shop. After he went to the scene to observe, he told me that my shop was small and deep, and it was long. There are two major deficiencies in the layout of such shops: one is that the facade, glass windows and signboards are narrow, and the visual impact is weak; the other is that due to the slender opening, the internal layout is difficult, the front desk position is not well set, and the limitations of table and chair placement are large, it is difficult to create a style and luxury atmosphere, so it is not suitable to operate a high-end cafe.

This investment experience made me realize that investment shop location must be careful, can not blindly predict the prospects of the store. Even if it is a very popular central business district, it is not necessarily prosperous, because the apartment is also an important factor in determining the cost performance of shops. In addition, it is suggested that before investing, we must do sufficient market research, such as what kinds of formats have been operated before the sale, how long each business has been operated, etc., which to a large extent explains the popularity of the shop and what kind of format it is suitable for.

China Coffee Trading Network: www.gafei.com