Students and teachers spend a lot of time in school — great school store ideas can help them get the products they need (and want) easily and conveniently. But what do you stock in a school store? How do you make your school store a success? Keep reading for answers!
This guide walks you through 15 great ideas to help make your school store a place where students, teachers, parents and even local community members want to shop. Find out how offering targeted, relevant and even some fun products in your school store can help you make it a place people will return to again and again.
A school store is a business that sells items to parents, students and staff members. These stores help schools and school organizations raise money for events and other operations. The inventory usually includes items like clothing, shoes, backpacks, umbrellas and other miscellaneous items.
This section will explore school store ideas for high school and elementary school environments.
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Decision-Making Checklist: Is Your School Ready for a Store? |
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|---|---|---|
| Checklist Item | ✓ Yes | ✗ No / Not Yet |
| Student leadership or business club available to manage the store | ⬜ | ⬜ |
| Staff member available to supervise or advise | ⬜ | ⬜ |
| Budget available for startup inventory and/or POS tools | ⬜ | ⬜ |
| Secure location or cabinet for product storage | ⬜ | ⬜ |
| Time set aside for students to run or help with the store | ⬜ | ⬜ |
| Ability to track inventory and sales (software or spreadsheet) | ⬜ | ⬜ |
| Support from PTO/PTA or fundraising committee | ⬜ | ⬜ |
| If you checked at least 5 boxes — You're in a great position to run a successful school store! | ||
| Fewer than 5? Start with a seasonal pop-up or online-only version to test the waters. | ||
School stores are a great way to raise funds for a school or organization. They can also offer students, parents, and staff members access to convenient items and a wide variety of products that students will enjoy.
These stores can also raise funds for the school or sell tickets to fundraising events that help support the school. With the right planning and execution, opening a school store can be an incredibly successful venture.
A well-stocked school store includes items such as:
These direct sales items can produce profit margins between 40% and 70%. Products with low wholesale prices and high markups yield the highest ROIs.
You should also consider which items will appeal to certain grade levels. For example, elementary school store ideas include small toys and activity books. School store ideas for high school include tech accessories and branded apparel.
Running a successful school store requires some trial and error. Over time, you'll learn which products sell best. You'll also figure out which items are the most profitable.
School stores offer a great way for students to show their school spirit. They can also express themselves through personalized products. These customization services are perfect school merchandise ideas that build spirit.
Customization services can help you create unique items for each student's style and taste. You can offer:
These are unique and customized products that customers won't find anywhere else.
Schools can use digital marketing to reach a wider audience. Digital advertising, social media and online promotions can engage current students and alumni. School stores can use these tools to create an effective marketing plan, which will help them increase sales and strengthen their brand.
To succeed in the modern era, school stores must take advantage of digital advertising, social media, promotions and other creative school store ideas. School stores can use social media to reach out and promote their products.
School stores are an important part of the school experience for students, families and staff. They provide access to items that students and faculty need for school life. School stores should develop loyalty programs that reward customers and help them save money.
Loyalty programs can fit different types of customers. For example:
By creating loyalty programs for each type of customer, school stores can build great relationships that ensure their patrons will return. This will lead to increased sales and more satisfied customers. According to Zinrelo, members of loyalty programs generate 12% to 18% more revenue than nonmembers.
Partnering with local businesses, citizen groups and nonprofit organizations is a great school store idea that can build a stronger community. It also helps support the local economy. Partnerships are a great way to raise money for your school store!
Community outreach is an important way for schools to form partnerships with local businesses. School stores can engage in activities that benefit the local community, such as nonprofit fundraising and special promotions. They can partner with local businesses on these activities, forming relationships that create a lasting impact.
Outreach can also provide valuable support to those in need. It helps to foster a sense of unity between students, faculty and members of the local community.
The power of local businesses and nonprofits helps schools create lasting relationships that will benefit everyone involved. This strategy works across elementary and high school settings to increase awareness and participation.
One answer to the question, “What should a school store have?” might be unique and on-trend products. School stores can be the perfect place for students and staff to find trendy products that they can use every day. With the right selection of products, you can easily create a store that appeals to students and staff alike.
To stock trendy products, you need to keep up with trends! Research to determine what items students and staff find appealing. Many schools have their own micro-trends among students. Some hot items may surprise you!
It may take some trial and error to find the top trending items, but the payoff of a sold-out school store is worth it!
You can give students and staff a boutique shopping experience by selling trendy items in the school store. Offering fun and memorable items can help boost morale and spread the word about your store around campus. It also provides another diverse source of money for the school.
Here are some things to sell at a school store:
You can even use these products as promotional materials for the school itself. They can help spread awareness about activities, events and organizations.
Schools are always looking for new ways to increase student interest in STEM. STEM items are great school store ideas to get students interested. By offering STEM-related items such as math games, robotics kits and coding activities, students can learn about the latest technology while having fun.
These items can also help increase engagement in math and other STEM subjects by providing exciting and interactive ways to learn, boosting students' academic abilities.
In addition to providing STEM items for sale, schools should consider offering discounts on select items or rewards for completing tasks related to STEM subjects. This will reward learning and interest in STEM subjects.
With the right selection of items available for sale in the school store, students are more likely to engage with STEM topics and develop a lifelong interest in science and technology.
Fundraising is an essential part of any school's budget. An online school fundraiser, for example, can help cover the costs associated with running the school, including purchasing new supplies and equipment and paying for extra-curricular activities.
To ensure the success of your fundraising efforts, it's important to come up with creative themes that will bring in money. When it comes to fundraising through your school store, there are many themes you can use to make it fun and engaging. Themed fundraising is a fun twist on traditional school store ideas and enhances student involvement.
Consider pairing your themes with certain discounts. For example, if the holidays are coming up, offer a discount on monogrammed gift items. Raising money for homecoming? Promote school-branded athletic jerseys!
Not all themes need to be related to the school calendar. For example, you can hold a silent online auction for donated items through your school store.
School stores are becoming increasingly popular in schools and universities. However, managing a school store can be a challenge. To make things easier, many schools are now introducing student accounts and school currency.
With student accounts, parents can load cash easily online. Students can then convert cash into school store currency or reward tickets that they can use to purchase items from the school store. This is also a great way to introduce contactless payments to your school.
Schools can also use this system to load student accounts with cafeteria money for their daily meals. Or they can offer discounts and special offers on certain items when students use school bucks instead of cash.
Another idea is to develop a Positive Behavior and Interventions (PBIS) store. This model works on a token reward system. Students are given tokens when they display positive behavior, which can be spent on school store items.
Student accounts and school currency offer a convenient way for students to manage payments at the school store without having to carry around large amounts of cash. This system is quickly becoming the preferred method for many schools around the world.
Snacks are the most popular things to sell at a school store, especially in high schools. Additionally, selling homemade treats and snacks in your school store can be a great way to fundraise. You get to offer delicious, homemade food for sale while raising money.
Here are some guidelines for stocking your school store with healthy treats:
Homemade treats and snacks are a perfect answer to the question, "What do you stock in a school store?" If you have active parents who want to volunteer, have sign-ups to regularly stock the store with baked goods and homemade candies. With the right preparation, selling homemade treats and snacks at your school can be a rewarding school store idea for everyone involved!
Homemade treats and snacks offer students something unique that they won't find anywhere else.
Textbooks and other course materials are essential for students to succeed in their studies. Offering textbooks through your school store ensures that your students can access the most up-to-date and relevant course materials.
Your school store can also offer digital media such as e-books and audiobooks so students can access required reading material from any device with an internet connection. You can create a media library where students can purchase or rent books for sale at discounted rates.
With an easy-to-use digital media store, students can quickly find what they need without searching multiple sources. This makes it easier for them to get the necessary resources to succeed in their studies.
Check with publishers and content providers. Some may offer discounts to schools on books and other printed materials in bulk. Selling books, course materials and media through your campus store is a great way to make some money and provide students with a valuable service.
This system also makes it easier for schools to manage their ticket sales. It provides them with real-time data on who is buying what and when. It also helps schools keep track of who has purchased which type of ticket so they can better plan for future events.
With this system, schools can make sure that everyone has access to the events they want to attend without any hassle or confusion.
Ensure ticket prices are competitive and the buying process is easy and efficient, so students have a positive experience purchasing event tickets from your school store.
You can also offer ticket sales online. These can be a great way to engage with families and alumni ahead of time, and make ticket purchasing easier for everyone.
While stores in any school can sell event tickets, this idea works best in a high school setting. High school students generally have their own money and can buy tickets to the events they want to attend, making it one of the best school store ideas for high school.
However, selling tickets is one of the effective school store ideas for elementary school. Although younger children aren't as independent, stores still offer a centralized location for purchasing event tickets.
With the growing awareness of environmental issues, schools are now offering recycled used items for sale in their school stores. This is a great way to reduce waste and help the environment while providing students with quality products at affordable prices.
Recycling cuts down on manufacturing emissions. The BBC estimates it can reduce carbon emissions by 700 million tonnes annually (about 1,542,800,000,000 pounds).
The school store can be stocked with all kinds of recycled products, from used books and calculators to used bikes and furniture. This system helps reduce waste and provides students access to quality products they may not otherwise be able to afford.
Here are some tips that guide recycled selling:
Recycling used items for sale in your school store is a great way to promote sustainability while helping students save money on essential items such as textbooks or calculators. With the right approach, this initiative can benefit your school and its community.
Basic school supplies include:
Don't forget that faculty need supplies too! Keep items such as tape, staples and pushpins on hand (and not available to students) to keep teachers coming back for more. Buy in bulk and offer them a good discount, as supplies are expensive for teachers!
For school stores to stay competitive, they must go beyond the usual items like notebooks and pencils. Selling stationery supplies is a great way to offer students a wider selection of items that they can use in their studies and customize to make them their own.
Examples include personalized notebooks and pencils with the student's name or logo printed on them. This will make the school store stand out from other stores and allow students to express their individuality through their stationery.
For example:
Set up your store for easy online scheduling, payments and print orders. Having a one-stop shop for everything is a great way to keep customers coming back for more easy-to-use options.
Offering convenience services in your school store ensures your students have access to everything they need to succeed academically.
Pick a school store system made for schools. It should let you sell items online, track inventory and collect payments securely.
Tip: Choose a trusted platform like RevTrak to simplify the process and boost school fundraising success.
Build your store with top-selling products. Good things to sell at a school store include:
These school merchandise ideas appeal to students, staff, and families alike.
Make checkout fast and easy. Allow parents to create accounts tied to their child so they can pre-load money or use rewards in systems like a PBIS store or token reward system.
Be sure your platform is secure and offers tracking for orders and receipts.
Promote your store through school email, social media and classroom flyers. Show off new branded apparel, feature fun items like fidget toys and highlight limited-time offers to create buzz.
Want to create a one-stop shop for your students and families?
Request a free demo with Vanco to see how easy it is to launch your online school store and grow your fundraising success.
Good school store items to sell include school supplies, branded merchandise, healthy snacks, tech accessories, event tickets, and trendy items.
Running a store for an elementary school involves stocking items that cater to younger children, like activity books and fun treats. You should also use a digital platform that tracks sales and inventory, supports secure payments, and enables you to create student and family accounts.
Schools can use various digital tools to manage school stores, including social media for marketing, and digital platforms that accept cashless payments, keep track of inventory, and ensure optimal security.