Finding your Niche

I think finding a niche is an extremely important quest in life. What is it that you are good at...better than most others...love to do etc. I was thinking of this the other day while we were on our weekend walk for the usual tea and muffin. There is the store that opened up about a year ago on West Broadway...I don't even think it had a name...it looked like shit from the moment it opened its doors. It was to be an Organic meat market.....wow, did they ever miss the mark. It more resembled a freakishly drab meat locker that you would store dead bodies in.

I was so excited when they had first announced a meat market would be opening up just 2 blocks away...but disappointment quickly ensued once inside. There was one long freezer along one side of the store, and along the other side there was one long refrigerator case that looked like the dairy section of Safeway. Everything was packaged with plastic wrap, just like Safeway as well...in fact, I think they probably went and bought everything from there, slapped an organic sticker on it and re-sold it for more!!!

After a few months, I am guessing product was not moving...no shit...especially when Safeway is actually next door and actually looks more appealing...and we have Market Meats and Jackson's on West 4th....two GORGEOUS places for beautiful meats. So this little rinky dink of a store decided to make it more appealing by stocking some shelves with cereal....now that's exactly where I want to buy my fricken corn flakes...the meat store...makes TOTAL sense.

A few months pass again, and the variety of cereals has now expanded...and they bring in chocolate and nuts, a few more weeks and low and behold now I can also buy toilet paper there!!! It was actually hilarious...each time Ivan and I walked by we would giggle at what they brought in next....this was a perfect example of not finding your niche....it was a very confused store.

As you might imagine, the store went under over the holidays, because we came back from vacation to find the same shelves, now filled with cheap junky jewelry, scarves and hair accessories....I am pretty sure its the same owners...perhaps this is their true calling...their true niche....only time will tell, next week they could bring in fish!

If you are a business owner, and you are wavering in your direction...please be sure to take the time to develop and master your niche...stick with it...and instead of changing directions every month or two...work at making one idea even stronger. Read, learn from others...find a mentor, but for god sakes do not try to sell meat if you are a fisherman....good luck and enjoy!