mike07

Just wondering if anyone on DVDTalk owns their own video rental store. As a long time lurker of DVDTALK, I've seen the impressive pictures of your collections - some of you I can tell would have enough inventory to open your own store, anyone actually done so?

I have almost 2000 titles, in 3 different formats (DVD, VHS, LD) and will soon venture into Blu-ray, I live in a town of probably less than 50,000 people and the local mom&pop store closed down about 6 years ago. The nearest video chain (Blockbuster/Hollywood Video) is 35 miles away. Nowadays, you can find new releases for under $15 at a local Walmart.

Would it be a good idea to use my current investment (movies) to start a store? Or would copyright laws be affected? How much would a good starting cost be?

I'll consider all suggestions, comments, and feedback I can get on this subject. Thanks in advance.

Tarantino

Just because you have a lot of DVD's doesn't mean you should open a rental store.

You're obviously not ready for that.

= J

DirkUSA

Mike, where in upstate NY do you live?

Dirk

fujishig

Someone seems to ask this question every year or so. Are there any Redbox kiosks in your area? Maybe a lot of Netflix subscribers? Even though it seems like an under served market, you'd think someone with good business sense would do something in the last six years if there was enough demand (or that the previous mom and pop would still be around). And the previous 6 years, there wasn't a huge economic crisis.

Also, I think most video stores make a lot of their money on new releases. You'll have to buy multiples of them early, and be able to sell them once they're no longer new. I don't think it'll fly if you get one copy of this week's releases, and it's not available for rental because you haven't watched it yet. You'll have to buy stuff you're not interested in. You'll have to guard against theft, fraud, etc. You'll need an inventory system.

I have no great love for Blockbuster, but I wouldn't want to take the kinds of abuse and excuses the employees get on a regular basis. "I returned that movie last week!" "The movie wasn't scratched when I returned it." "I have no idea how a bootleg DVD-R got in the case."

mike07

Thanks for all the feedback. There isn't any redbox kiosks around and I'm looking to offer something quicker than Netflix, more convenient for the small town folk. Like I said, I'd get 3 copies (more copies if it was a popular theatrical film) of each new release every Tuesday, then sell off all but one copy after 3-4 weeks. I'm sure between the movie sales/rentals and food&beverages sales.. I should at least break even. Higher gas prices will just make business better for me, because no one would want to travel outside of town for something to watch. I'll be buying the movies anyway, and family/friends are constantly borrowing them, so why not earn a dollar or two by renting them out?

The only thing I'm cautious about right now is the abuse/security of random people/new members actually returning the movies.

fujishig

I'm curious... how much would you charge per rental?

You have to factor in the cost of setup, including renting the store, shelving, etc, and probably employees unless this is going to be your full time job (and even then that's a lot of hours).

Say like 3 bucks a pop for a movie... even with a 15 dollar new release, that's five rentals just to make up the cost of the movie.

tasha99

You do realize that you can get Netflix instantly over Tivo. As availability increases, downloading/streaming will do away with the renting of physical discs. That's my prediction at least.

mike07

$3 catalog titles, $4 new releases per night - the mom&pop store that used to be here, used to charge $5 a night for new releases. I was good friends with them, the only reason they shut down was because they waited too long to get into DVD - they were trying to rent VHS up to closing and continued buying VHS until they went bankrupt. I'm going to have different sections for different formats , but concentrating mostly on DVD.
And I'm planning to do a lot of the carpentry myself, the only bills will be the materials, rent on the store, and the expansion of the inventory. It's actually going to be family operated. Nothing is set in stone just yet, I still have a lot to figure out.

big whoppa

Why did the local mom & pop close down? You should find out. Many there just wasn't a market even in your small town to support it. I know of a few mom & pop video stores that went out of business.

Tygan

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TGM

www.netflix.com

mike07

They went out of business because they didn't want to go through the hassle of rebuying hundreds of VHS and they decided to wait until 2002 before upgrading their inventory. After awhile, no one wanted to rent VHS anymore - which is understandable right? They claim business was good but not worth the hassles of new stock every time there's a new format.

I already mentioned, the difference between b&m store and renting online depends on how quick you want to see the movie. Not everyone would want to watch a movie on their computer screen, and not everyone would have the technical knowledge to hook up their PC to a TV so streaming via netflix or other sources isn't exactly the way to go for some.

Thanks again for all the feedback.

My Other Self

If you don't know how Netflix works, you shouldn't be opening up a video store.

story

What 50,000-person city doesn't have a video store? I used to live in Cheyenne, WY which has a population of 50,000 and aside from the regular chains there were plenty of independent video stores. I was able to rent all the time without problems.

Blu Man

If I were you, I wouldn't do it. You don't seem prepared enough. It's better to be safe then sorry. There's a huge difference between having a video store and a private collection. BIG.

mike07

Thanks all for the advice. The location I was interested in renting for the store is now in the process of being rented out to some elderly couple who want to open a convenience-type store.

Another point that was brought up here is the hassle of getting people to return the movies, I loaned out a total of 20 DVDs to a few "close" friends about 3 weeks ago and have yet to see a return of any of them. This is the first time I've had this problem, and I have loaned them out frequently in the past.

ScissorPuppy

If you really think your area is in need of a rental outlet, I would suggest getting into a
DVD Kiosk franchise. You could find 3 or 4 high traffic locations where people could get the new releases faster than netflix provides.

RonG617

Getting people to return things is the biggest headache. I used to own a store in which I would rent out video games. People wouldn't return them, then you start to call and harass them. When they still don't return them, you charge the credit card on file. Then they dispute the charge and it is almost impossible to prove that they didn't return the item and you get hit with the chargeback fee. Then sometimes people return things that look like they ran sandpaper across the disc, or they would not return the packaging and instructions. It was a nightmare.

MRTech

I know this response is a little late..

I recently opened a video rental store in a small town using my personal collection of about 800 titles. The other two places that rent discs are the local grocery store and the gas station. They both charge $4 per night for rentals, where I charge $4 per week for catalog titles and $4 per two nights for new releases. (6 weeks or less). Our town has 1000 people in it, so I am able to trust that 99% of people will bring back their discs on time (or close to) and reasonable unharmed. So far, I have had very few people bring back their rental more than a day late. I only ever bring in one copy of each format for new releases. I get my titles from a distributor, so I have new releases about a week before they come out. This allows me to offer pre-orders and have the title first thing in the morning on day of release. Since the closest wal-mart is about a 45 minute drive away, people will pay a little more to save a trip.

Anyways, I'm rambling. The point I was getting at is that I have had no problems with copyrighting. There is no different version of a DVD that you need when renting. There are only a few things.

1. You cannot rent a disc that says "This disc is not for individual sale or rental." Discs that are bundled with hardware, for example.

2. You cannot rent a disc before the release date. It doesn't matter if it's to your best friend in the whole world, don't do it. Release dates are in place for a reason.

Besides that, make sure you have a back-up plan. I've gone an entire week with only renting 2 or 3 titles. Luckily, I also do computer repair, so it fills the gaps. I also designed my own inventory / point of sales system, so I've saved a lot of costs. I am also the only employee.

In a town of 50,000 people, you will have a lot of other concerns to deal with, but easily overcome if you plan ahead.

Good luck with your store, if you decide to go ahead with it.

fujishig

That's awesome, MRTech, that you were able to turn your hobby into a business that seems to be doing well enough. I'm a little surprised that you can get your titles from the distributor if you only buy one of each title, though.

orangecrush

This is the best business advice in this thread. With a Kiosk, you don't have to worry about people returning movies as they automatically buy them if they don't return them. The only problem you may run into is servicing the machine. I would assume that the franchise agreement speaks to that issue though.

hindolio

are the dvd kiosk businesses mostly franchised out? i would think that they are all owned by one company no?

CinemaDust

Why don't you start writing letters to your governor/local politicians about why it's important to get a video store in town. Stuff like that works sometimes, you know.
I honestly don't think it's a good idea at all. But if you have a dream man...I'm not going to stop you. I think the best way to "start" a rental store would be to buy an existing one and buy all their inventory as well. I actually thought that's how they all work. But yeah. I wish "VIDEO" stores were still around. I miss coming into rental stores and seeing walls filled with vhs.

dancingdave12

I'd very VERY sure that the personal copies you buy cannot be rented out for profit. Rental stores pay about 5 times the price we buy DVDs for, the reason being is that their license allows for rental.

hindolio

imho, that is excellent advice. although the economy is stupid right now, you never know! you may get access to a low-interest loan, a grant, tax credits, etc. why would the local govt want to help a schmoe like you? why, pron of course! oh yeah, maybe local tax revenue too.

good luck