Market influencers, those people who are seen as experts, can be your best business buddies. Do these influential people recommend your consignment or resale shop?

If not, why not?

Maybe they simply don’t know you…or maybe they think, mistakenly, that their client cannot be helped by your business.

This is a good time of year to spend some time getting to know other business people, community activists, social mavens whose personal and professional circles include folks who might appreciate knowing what your consignment, resale, or thrift shop can add to their lives. Consider it “social networking”…face-to-face rather than electronically.

Who in your market area would have an interest in talking your store up? Figure it out, get to know them, and define not only how they can be helpful to you, but how you can be helpful to them. Tit for tat, you know.

If you’re a womenswear shop, some of the influencers are:

Women who provide services to other women: hairdressers, personal trainers, seamstresses, image consultants, human-resource trainers

Businesspeople who rely on their clients changing their home decor/ closets: decorators, real-estate people, closet-organizing services

Life-style reporters, columnists, and bloggers. Ditto the society-page columnists.

New-merchandise boutique owners/ staff, both chain-store and locally-owned. After all, their clients need to clean out so they can buy more!

Consignment, resale, thrift shopkeepers, especially those whose target market overlaps but doesn’t duplicate yours.

Kids/family shop?

Those who are in regular touch with children and their parents: Teachers, coaches, play supervisors, music/gym/dance instructors, day-care operators

School personnel at all levels, all schools

Social services people are grateful for reputable and thrifty businesses they can suggest to clients, family, and friends

Consignment, resale, thrift shopkeepers, especially those whose target market overlaps but doesn’t duplicate yours.

Furniture and home decor?

Businesspeople who rely on their clients changing their home decor/ closets: decorators, real-estate people, closet-organizing services

Fixer-uppers: reupholstery firms. The classy little shops which makes custom lamp shades. Picture framers, decorative painters, and remodelers.

The society fund-raisers who do show houses. The teachers at your community college whose specialty is furniture-refinishing or caning or organizing the home.

Antique dealers, flea-market vendors, estate-sale holders, auctioneers and the like: they may deal in much, but not all, the same things you do.

Consignment, resale, thrift shopkeepers, especially those whose target market overlaps but doesn’t duplicate yours.

Charitable thrift?

Any retail business that needs to clear/ donate back stock regularly. From bookstores with tattered-cover books to the bridal boutique with three unclaimed dresses, you’ll want to have them think of you first.

Landlords of both commercial and residential properties

Antique dealers, flea-market vendors, estate-sale holders, auctioneers and the like: things unsuitable for their businesses can be super-salable for yours

Consignment, resale, thrift shopkeepers, especially those whose target market overlaps but doesn’t duplicate yours.

You’ll notice a repeat on these lists:

Consignment, resale, thrift shopkeepers, especially those whose target market overlaps but doesn’t duplicate yours. Yes, the first best business buddies you should cultivate should be each and every “parallel” business in town. Get to know, exchange favors with, work with these people…even if it seems you are always the one extending your hand in friendship. Invite them over to your place. Ask if you can come visit theirs. Figure out how both of you, together, can help your consumer community prosper.

Once you’ve opened yourself up to a similar business person, it’s that much easier to approach and work with professionals in other fields, for the benefit of each business and your town. Inviting a dozen interior designers and home stagers and decor-on-a-dime professionals to your furniture consignment shop for an after-hours, behind-the-scenes event will be more comfortable after you’ve had some success and formed some personal contact and businesses alliances with other second-handers.

Who would YOU add to these lists?