YOU’VE PICKED YOUR LOCATION. YOU’VE GOT A HANDLE on financing. Now it’s time to determine what merchandise you’ll put in your new pro shop.

This sounds a lot easier than it is because it’s very, very easy to go overboard and end up with goods that sit on the shelves and/or strain your finances to the breaking point.

The experts — operators with lengthy resumés, distributors and officials of the International Bowling Pro Shop & Instructors Association — all see a common thread among most first-time shop owners. Many are avid bowlers who use high-tech balls and expensive shoes. Naturally, they think along those lines in terms of stocking their own operations. The reality is that most of their business will be with the lower-average bowler whose needs are more basic, and whose purchase may be driven as much — if not more — by color, style and low price as performance.

So before writing the check or charging the credit card for thousands of dollars in inventory, it’s a good idea to have a good handle on the customer base.

The majority of new shops are located within bowling centers, rather than free-standing. That’s good, says Dave Zuck, owner of Zuckey Bowl (as well as its pro shop) in Manhattan, Kansas. He advises the would-be shop owner to spend a week in the center, observing bowlers. “See how many are high-average and use high-tech equipment, and how many are plastic ball bowlers,” he says. That will give the new operator a better handle on what should be stocked.

That thought is echoed by Terry Hayes, owner of Cutting Edge Pro Shop in Golden, Colorado. “You need to find out if the center stresses leagues or parties,” he says. If it has a lot of league bowlers, you’ll probably need a good selection of mid-price and premium equipment. If it’s parties that are the center’s big thing, your ball inventory will be heavy with polyester and entry-level reactives. Remember, too, that you can stock nearly three entry-level reactives for the price of one top premium. That’s three times the impact on the wall, for a lot of recreational bowlers.

So, just how many balls? Brunswick’s Robert Lawrence, who ran a shop in Austin, Texas, for several years, believes that between 50 and 60 on the wall is good, with one or two in reserve for each of those wall models. But other shop owners say a new store can get by with far fewer. Zuck says he had 34 balls on display on March 1, but “it looks like I have a lot of stuff.” And five years in the business has convinced him to put more than half his inventory in plastics or entry-level reactives.

Of course, the shop will need a good supplier so as to get special-order items to the customer quickly. The normal preference is to get that stock in no more than a couple of days, while the next day is preferable. But be careful in placing those special orders, suggests Michael Cassidy, owner of Bowler’s Edge at AMF Winston-Salem Lanes in North Carolina. “Try not to order just one item,” he advises. “If the customer won’t pick up the ball until next week’s league night, wait a day or two to combine orders,” so as to eliminate shipping costs or reduce the per-item cost.

As for other merchandise, it’s a good idea to have representative samples… but be ready to order. On Cassidy’s shoe wall, one can usually find six styles of shoes for men and six for women, but he keeps one or two other sizes of each in the back room. And he makes sure they are different sizes.

Five years in the business has convinced one pro shop owner to devote more than half of his inventory to plastic bowling balls and/or entry-level reactives.

Bags are much the same. Zuck advises to keep about a dozen or so on display, ranging from inexpensive singles up to roller doubles, but not much above that. One reason is the internet. Brick and mortar shops simply have trouble competing on price with E-tailers on the three- and four-ball combos, but “farther down the food chain, [our prices] get a lot closer,” he says. With a little sales effort, the customer can be convinced it’s worthwhile to let the shop do the ordering, and pay the $10 to $15 differential for a basic roller bag.

The final element of shop inventory is accessories. Even here, it’s a good idea to put some thought into buying. You’ll need both sizes of tape, and having two sizes of packages is also beneficial. Rosin, slide powder and skin patch are musts, as is the new protective tape. With dozens of styles available, homework is prudent. Talk to your distributor about what kinds are popular, and stock only a few at first, experts advise.

Then there are the wrist supports. “Don’t go overboard,” says Cassidy. Make sure you have several sizes of the basic vinyl or leather supports, “as well as a couple of the expensive ones,” he says.

All the shop owners stress that a good relationship with a distributor is invaluable, because the distributor is perfectly willing to be the shop’s warehouse, at least to a certain extent. But you can’t get away with special-ordering everything.

“You have to have inventory,” says Hayes. “People are impulse buyers, and don’t want to wait several days.” So go ahead and stock that shop with bright merchandise. But heed the experts: do your homework, and be careful.

Reprinted with permission from Bowlers Journal International.
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