What to Plan Before You Start an Art Supply Store Today

Starting an art supply store can be a good fit if you enjoy retail, creative products, and face-to-face customer service.

It’s also a serious storefront business. You’ll choose products, manage inventory, receive orders, tag items, stock displays, handle checkout, process returns, and keep enough cash available for slow periods.

An art supply store usually sells materials such as paint, brushes, canvas, paper, sketchbooks, markers, drawing tools, easels, printmaking supplies, craft materials, framing supplies, and children’s art supplies. Your exact product mix matters because it affects your startup costs, supplier choices, storage needs, display layout, pricing, and profit potential.

Before you follow the startup steps, ask yourself a few honest questions. Do you want to spend your days helping artists, students, teachers, parents, and hobbyists choose the right materials? Can you handle long store hours, uneven sales, and inventory decisions that tie up cash before products sell?

This business may suit you if you enjoy creative materials and can stay organized with stock, suppliers, pricing, and customer questions. It may not suit you if you dislike retail hours, product details, physical stocking tasks, or the pressure of paying rent even when traffic is slow.

Also think about your household situation. Can you cover personal living expenses while the store gains traction? Do you have support from family or others who may be affected by your schedule and financial risk? A store can fail, even with a strong idea, if you open too soon or choose the wrong location.

Speak with owners of art supply stores or specialty retail shops you won’t compete against. Prepare questions before those conversations. Their stories won’t match your future exactly, but their experience can help you see the daily reality before you commit. This is where advice from real business owners can be especially useful.

You should also look closely at local demand. You need enough nearby buyers to support rent, inventory, staff coverage, and replenishment. Nearby art schools, colleges, K–12 schools, studios, galleries, community centers, makerspaces, and active creative groups can all affect the go-or-pause decision.

At the same time, look at competition. Your store may compete with independent art stores, craft chains, office supply stores, school bookstores, big-box retailers, museum shops, online sellers, and pickup options. The issue isn’t just whether competitors exist. The issue is whether your location, product mix, and customer experience can support the store’s fixed costs.

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Red Flags Before You Start

Some warning signs should make you pause before you sign a lease, acquire funding, or place a large opening order.

This business may not be ready to start if:

Local creative demand appears weak, with few artists, students, teachers, studios, galleries, or community art programs nearby.
The rent requires more sales than the area seems able to support.
You can’t explain how many sales you need to cover rent, payroll, inventory replenishment, utilities, insurance, payment fees, and owner income.
Your product plan is too broad, and you want to stock every medium before proving demand.
You don’t understand category margins, freight, markdowns, shrink, damaged goods, or payment processing fees.
Suppliers won’t approve accounts, order minimums are too high, or lead times are unreliable.
The lease has risky terms, unclear allowed use, high build-out needs, or strict signage limits.
Zoning, occupancy, or workshop approval is unclear.
You plan to sell children’s art supplies or craft kits but haven’t checked product labeling and supplier documentation.
You dislike counting inventory, managing stock, receiving shipments, checking labels, or making reorder decisions.
You don’t have enough working capital to handle slow opening months.

A red flag doesn’t always mean you should walk away. It may mean you should change the model, reduce the product mix, choose a different location, buy an existing store, or delay until the numbers make sense.

Step 1: Test Your Fit

An art supply store isn’t only a creative business. It’s a retail business with rent, inventory, customer service, supplier orders, checkout systems, and daily presentation standards.

You may love art materials and still dislike the daily tasks of owning a store. That’s why fit comes first.

Ask yourself these questions:

Do you enjoy helping beginners and experienced artists choose materials?
Can you stay patient when customers compare brands, colors, papers, brushes, and prices?
Are you comfortable standing, stocking shelves, receiving cartons, and keeping displays neat?
Can you handle slow days without panic-buying inventory or cutting prices too quickly?
Do you have enough risk tolerance for rent and inventory costs before sales are steady?

This is also a lifestyle decision. A storefront needs coverage during posted hours. If you can’t be there, someone trained must be. Before you move ahead, make sure the schedule suits your life, not just your idea.

Step 2: Talk With Non-Competing Store Owners

Before you commit to an art supply store, speak with owners outside your planned trade area. Choose people you won’t compete against.

Prepare your questions. A casual chat is useful, but a planned conversation is better.

Ask about practical startup issues such as:

Which products sold faster than expected.
Which products tied up cash too long.
Which suppliers were reliable at launch.
How freight, damaged goods, and backorders affected inventory.
How much time receiving and tagging products took.
Which displays helped customers shop more easily.
What lease terms caused stress.
What they wish they had verified before opening.

Each owner’s path will be different. Still, those conversations can save you from building your plan around assumptions.

Step 3: Choose Your Art Supply Store Concept

Your concept shapes almost every startup decision that follows. A general art supply store, a fine art supply shop, and a student-focused store don’t need the same inventory, layout, suppliers, or pricing approach.

Common product directions include:

Fine art supplies, such as paint, canvas, brushes, mediums, and specialty paper.
Student art supplies for college, high school, and class supply lists.
Drawing and illustration tools, such as markers, pencils, pens, charcoal, and pastels.
Craft materials, textile supplies, or mixed creative supplies.
Printmaking, ceramics, sculpture, or framing supplies.
Children’s art supplies and creative kits.

Be careful with the urge to stock everything. A broad assortment can make the store look complete, but it can also drain cash. Does your local market support that much variety?

If you plan to offer classes or workshops, treat that as a major setup decision. Classes may affect layout, occupancy, insurance, supervision, restroom needs, storage, and local approval questions.

Step 4: Compare Starting, Buying, or Franchising

You don’t have to start from scratch. For an art supply store, you may also consider buying an existing store or exploring a broader craft or hobby retail franchise.

Most new owners consider one or more of these paths:

Start from scratch if you want the most control over concept, location, inventory, branding, and supplier choices.
Buy an existing store if you want location history, fixtures, supplier accounts, records, and an established customer base to review.
Explore a franchise if you want more guidance, but can accept less control over brand, products, systems, and fees.

The right choice depends on your budget, timeline, support needs, risk tolerance, available stores for sale, and how much control you want. A helpful next step is to compare whether you’d rather start from scratch or buy a business.

If you buy an existing store, review the lease, inventory quality, sales history, supplier terms, liabilities, equipment condition, and whether old stock still has value. Don’t assume an existing store is healthy just because the shelves are full.

Step 5: Validate Local Demand and Competition

Your success with an art supply store depends heavily on the local market. You need enough nearby buyers to support rent, inventory, staff coverage, utilities, and owner income.

Look for signs of demand before you choose a location. Nearby art schools, colleges, K–12 schools, galleries, studios, community centers, makerspaces, craft groups, and private instructors may all matter.

Study the local market by checking:

Where artists, teachers, students, parents, and hobbyists already buy supplies.
Which product categories local buyers seem to need often.
Whether class supply lists create seasonal demand.
How close competitors are to your possible location.
Whether customers can reach the store easily by car, transit, or walking.
Whether parking and nearby traffic patterns support quick visits.

Demand validation isn’t the same as advertising. It’s a start-or-stop check. You’re trying to learn whether the market can support the store before you commit. A deeper look at local supply and demand can help you think through that decision.

Step 6: Test Profit Potential Before You Sign a Lease

Profit potential is a feasibility question, not a promise. You should test it before you sign a lease, place a large inventory order, borrow, or hire staff.

You may carry many small and mid-sized items, with some higher-ticket items such as easels, sets, specialty paper, tools, and large canvases. You may need many small sales to cover fixed costs.

Estimate your break-even logic with your own numbers:

Rent and lease charges.
Payroll and staff coverage.
Inventory replenishment.
Utilities and internet.
Insurance.
Payment processing fees.
Software and point-of-sale systems.
Loan payments if you borrow.
Owner income.

Then look at your product categories. Paint, paper, brushes, student kits, children’s materials, specialty tools, and clearance items may not all carry the same margin. Freight, shrink, markdowns, returns, and damaged goods can lower the profit left from each sale.

Before you continue, ask yourself this: can the store survive slow months without forcing you into rushed discounts or emergency borrowing?

Business Plan

Your business plan should turn these startup decisions into a practical opening plan. It shouldn’t be a generic document that sits in a folder.

For an art supply store, the plan should show how your store concept, location, product mix, suppliers, startup costs, legal checks, pricing decisions, funding, and opening-readiness steps fit together.

Include these startup-focused points:

Your store concept and main product categories.
The customer groups you expect to serve.
Your local demand and competition findings.
Your location criteria, including traffic, parking, visibility, and delivery access.
Your supplier plan and opening inventory approach.
Your sales tax, business registration, and local approval checks.
Your startup cost categories and funding sources.
Your pricing method and margin assumptions.
Your break-even logic using your own local numbers.
Your staffing and training plan if you need employees.
Your opening-readiness checklist.

This section should help you decide whether the store is realistic before you spend heavily. If the plan shows weak demand, thin margins, or too much rent risk, take that seriously.

You can use a broader business plan resource for structure, but your final plan should stay specific to the art supply store you want to open.

Step 8: Price Out Startup Costs Before You Commit

Don’t treat startup costs as one simple number. A storefront art supply store has several moving parts, and each one can change your funding needs.

You need to price out, quote, verify, or compare each major cost before signing a lease or placing a large opening order.

Startup costs may include:

Business formation and professional help.
Lease deposits and rent.
Tenant improvements or build-out.
Shelving, display tables, racks, pegboard, slatwall, paper racks, and flat files.
Checkout counter, point-of-sale equipment, barcode scanner, receipt printer, and label printer.
Inventory software and accounting software.
Opening inventory.
Stockroom setup and receiving supplies.
Security equipment.
Signage and required notices.
Permits, licenses, inspections, and local approvals.
Insurance.
Initial payroll and training.
Utilities, internet, and cleaning supplies.
Working capital for slow months.

Store size, lease terms, product depth, supplier minimums, fixture choices, and workshop space can all raise or lower the amount you need. Be honest about what you can afford before you fall in love with a location.

Step 9: Secure Funding Before Major Commitments

Funding should come before major lease, build-out, fixture, inventory, and staffing commitments. A storefront can create bills before the first customer pays.

Your funding plan may include owner savings, a bank loan, an SBA-guaranteed loan through a participating lender, equipment financing, supplier terms, a line of credit, or seller financing if you buy an existing store.

Before borrowing or committing, check:

How much cash you can invest without harming personal living expenses.
Whether a lender requires a personal guarantee.
Whether supplier terms help or strain cash flow.
How much working capital you need for slow opening months.
Whether the break-even sales volume looks realistic for the location.

Funding isn’t just about getting approved. It’s about giving the store enough room to open carefully and survive uncertainty.

Step 10: Choose Your Structure, Name, and Registration Path

Choose your business structure before you register because the structure affects taxes, paperwork, liability, and banking.

Common choices include sole proprietorship, limited liability company, partnership, and corporation. The right choice depends on your situation, risk, tax planning, and whether you’ll have partners or employees.

If your store uses a name other than your legal name, you may need to register a Doing Business As name or assumed name. Rules vary by state and local government.

For a storefront art supply store, this step also affects lease documents, supplier accounts, bank setup, tax registration, and payment processing. You can review how to register a business, but verify the exact process with your state and local offices.

Step 11: Set Up Tax IDs and Sales Tax

After you choose your business structure and complete any required formation steps, apply for an Employer Identification Number if your business requires one.

You also need to verify state tax registration, sales tax permits, resale certificates, and employer tax accounts if you hire staff.

Art supplies are physical goods. In many U.S. jurisdictions, selling taxable goods means you must register, collect sales tax, report it, and remit it. The details vary by state and locality.

Before opening, verify:

Whether your state requires a sales tax permit.
Whether local sales tax also applies.
Whether you need a resale certificate for inventory purchases.
How your point-of-sale system should calculate tax.
Whether any permit or license must be displayed in the store.

Don’t wait until opening week to handle this. Sales tax errors can create problems fast.

Step 12: Check Product Compliance Before Buying Inventory

Art supplies can include paints, solvents, sprays, inks, adhesives, children’s products, craft kits, and other materials that may need proper labeling or supplier compliance documentation.

Your safest startup approach is to buy from reliable suppliers that provide properly labeled products and clear documentation. Be careful with closeouts, imported products, private-label items, repackaged materials, and children’s kits.

Pay close attention if you plan to sell:

Hazardous art materials.
Solvents, mediums, adhesives, or sprays.
Children’s art supplies.
Children’s craft kits.
Products with small parts.
Imported items.
Private-label, bundled, or repackaged products.

If you sell products designed or intended primarily for children 12 or younger, ask suppliers for the right safety and compliance information. If you import, repackage, bundle, or private-label products, your responsibility may increase.

This is not an area to guess. Verify product-safety questions before buying inventory.

Step 13: Choose the Location After Demand and Cost Checks

The location can make or break a storefront art supply store. Rent, visibility, foot traffic, parking, nearby schools, delivery access, and neighboring businesses all matter.

Don’t choose a space only because it looks nice. Choose it because the numbers, customer access, and allowed use make sense.

Review location factors such as:

Visibility from the street.
Nearby traffic patterns.
Parking and transit access.
Distance from schools, studios, galleries, and creative communities.
Delivery access for cartons, canvases, easels, paper, and fixtures.
Storage space for bulky and fragile products.
Signage options.
Lease length, rent increases, and assignment terms.
Build-out needs.

Ask yourself whether customers will find the store convenient. Artists and students may need supplies quickly. A poor location can turn even a strong product mix into a struggle.

Step 14: Verify Zoning, Occupancy, Permits, and Signage

Before you sign or fully commit to a space, verify local rules. These rules vary by U.S. jurisdiction.

For an art supply store, the main question is whether retail use is allowed at the address. If you plan to offer classes, workshops, demonstrations, or children’s sessions, ask whether that changes the approved use or occupancy.

Check with local offices about:

Retail zoning approval.
Certificate of occupancy.
Tenant improvement or build-out permits.
Electrical or plumbing permits if changes are needed.
Fire inspection requirements.
Exterior sign permits.
Window sign rules.
Accessibility requirements for customer areas.

Don’t assume the landlord’s statement is enough. Confirm allowed use with the local planning, zoning, building, or business licensing office.

Step 15: Design the Store Layout and Storage Plan

Your store needs a layout that helps customers browse while keeping inventory organized and safe.

Think about the whole path from receiving to checkout. Products arrive, get counted, tagged, stored, displayed, sold, returned, and reordered. Your layout should support that process.

Plan space for:

Paint, brushes, markers, pencils, and small tools.
Paper racks, flat files, canvas bins, and easel displays.
Checkout, returns, and customer questions.
Receiving cartons and checking shipments.
Backroom storage and overflow stock.
Locked storage for small, higher-value items.
Clear aisles and accessible customer paths.
Workshop or class space if approved and included.

Good merchandising isn’t only about appearance. It helps customers find what they need, reduces confusion, supports add-on purchases, and makes stock control easier.

Step 16: Set Up Suppliers and Purchasing Systems

Your suppliers affect product quality, availability, cash flow, and customer trust. Set them up before you finalize your opening inventory plan.

Art supply retailers may buy from manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, independent sales reps, importers, and specialty suppliers.

Ask suppliers about:

Opening-order requirements.
Reorder minimums.
Freight terms.
Lead times.
Backorder rules.
Damage claims.
Return policies.
Product safety documentation.
Wholesale account approval.

This is where fit comes up again. If you don’t enjoy product detail, vendor follow-up, and careful purchasing, the store may become stressful quickly.

Step 17: Build the Opening Inventory Plan

Your opening inventory should match your concept and local demand. It shouldn’t be a wish list of every product you personally like.

Core categories might include paint, brushes, paper, canvases, drawing tools, markers, sketchbooks, easels, and student supplies. Specialty categories should be added only when they fit the market and your supplier plan.

Plan inventory around:

Core products local customers need often.
Professional-grade and student-grade options where demand supports both.
Supplier lead times and reorder minimums.
Storage needs for bulky items.
Fragile or damage-prone products.
High-shrink small items.
Seasonal school and class demand.
Products that may need safety labels or supplier documentation.

Inventory control begins before opening. Set SKU numbers, barcode labels, reorder points, receiving procedures, and count methods.

Overstock can drain cash. Stockouts can frustrate customers. Your job is to open with enough selection without burying the business in slow-moving items.

Step 18: Set Pricing Rules Before Receiving Inventory

Pricing should happen before products hit the shelves. If you wait until boxes arrive, you may rush decisions and weaken your margin.

For an art supply store, pricing must account for product cost, freight, payment fees, shrink, markdowns, rent, payroll, local competition, and category margin differences.

Think through pricing choices for:

Student supplies.
Professional materials.
Large canvases and easels.
Paper and sketchbooks.
Markers, pens, pencils, and small tools.
Special orders.
Clearance or damaged goods.
Workshops or classes if offered.

Don’t price only by matching online sellers. You still need enough margin to cover rent, payroll, inventory risk, and owner income. A resource on pricing products and services can help you think through the basics, but your final pricing must use your own numbers.

Step 19: Set Up Banking, Checkout, Payments, and Records

Before opening, your financial and checkout systems must be ready. A busy first day isn’t the right time to discover that sales tax, returns, or card payments aren’t working.

Open a business bank account after your registration and tax ID setup are ready. Then connect your payment processor, point-of-sale system, inventory records, and daily reporting process.

Your setup should handle:

Card payments.
Cash transactions if accepted.
Sales tax calculation.
Receipts.
Refunds and returns.
Discounts and damaged goods.
Inventory lookup.
Purchase records.
Daily closeout reports.
Vendor files.

Separate business transactions from personal ones from the start. It makes records cleaner and reduces confusion when tax time, lender review, or supplier questions come up.

Step 20: Arrange Insurance and Risk Planning

Insurance needs depend on your location, lease, staff, products, and activities. Verify legally required coverage locally, especially if you hire employees.

Your landlord may also require certain insurance in the lease. Lease-required coverage is a contract issue, not always a legal rule, but it can still affect whether you can open.

Discuss common risk-planning coverage with an insurance professional:

General liability.
Commercial property.
Business interruption.
Product liability.
Cyber coverage.
Workers’ compensation if you hire staff.
Employment practices coverage if you have employees.
Commercial auto if you add delivery.

Product risk matters in this business because you may sell art materials, children’s items, tools, solvents, adhesives, or other products that customers use at home, school, or in studios.

Step 21: Hire and Train Staff if Needed

You may start alone, but a storefront often needs coverage during open hours. If you hire, train staff before launch.

Employees should understand checkout, returns, product placement, basic art-material questions, safety labels, receiving, shrink controls, and daily closeout tasks.

Training should cover:

How to greet and help customers without pressuring them.
How to handle class supply lists and beginner questions.
How to scan, price, and bag products correctly.
How to process returns according to store policy.
How to check product labels without covering warnings.
How to protect small, higher-value items from theft.
How to receive shipments and report damage.
How to close the register and report issues.

If you hire employees, verify federal and state employment setup. That may include employee eligibility records, payroll tax records, withholding, wage rules, unemployment insurance, and workers’ compensation rules where they apply.

Step 22: Prepare Opening Documents, Signs, Labels, and Policies

Opening readiness includes more than inventory and fixtures. Customers, staff, suppliers, and local agencies all need clear information.

Prepare the documents and signs your store needs before opening day.

Items may include:

Business license display if locally required.
Sales tax permit display if locally required.
Return policy.
Receipts with business name and tax information.
Vendor contact list.
Purchase order forms.
Receiving checklist.
Inventory count sheets.
Incident report form.
Emergency contact list.
Employee basics if staff are hired.
Required public notices if applicable.

Also check product labels. Don’t cover warnings with price tags, barcode labels, or display stickers. That small detail can matter.

Step 23: Run a Pre-Opening Test

Before you open the doors, test the store as if real customers are already inside.

Walk through the full customer experience. A shopper enters, looks for brushes, asks about paper, buys supplies, receives a receipt, returns an item, and leaves. Can your systems handle each step?

Test these areas before opening:

Receiving and barcode scanning.
Inventory lookup.
Sales tax settings.
Card payments.
Cash drawer if used.
Discounts and returns.
Gift cards if offered.
Receipts.
Daily closeout.
Security alarms and cameras.
Lighting.
Accessible paths.
Emergency exits.
Supplier reorder process.

This test can feel tedious, but it protects your opening. If the checkout system fails, inventory records are wrong, or the sales tax setup is incomplete, delay and fix it.

Step 24: Open Only After Readiness Issues Are Fixed

A stocked art supply store isn’t automatically ready to open. The store must be legal, safe, organized, and able to sell accurately.

Before launch, confirm required approvals, payment systems, sales tax setup, supplier contacts, inventory records, staff training, product labeling checks, and emergency access.

Do not open until you can:

Process a sale correctly.
Calculate tax correctly.
Handle a return.
Find inventory in the system.
Receive and record supplier shipments.
Reorder core products.
Protect high-shrink items.
Answer basic customer questions.
Keep required signs, permits, or notices in place if they apply.
Keep emergency exits and customer paths clear.

If opening tomorrow would expose customers, staff, or your records to avoidable problems, you’re not ready yet.

Opening-Day Red Flags

These warning signs don’t always mean the business idea is wrong. They mean the store may not be ready to open.

Delay opening if:

Required local approvals, licenses, permits, inspections, or certificate of occupancy checks are incomplete.
The point-of-sale system can’t process sales, returns, discounts, and receipts correctly.
Sales tax settings are untested.
Inventory isn’t counted, labeled, entered, or organized.
Product safety labels are missing, unclear, covered, or unsupported by supplier documentation.
High-shrink items aren’t secured.
Emergency exits, customer paths, or accessibility routes are blocked.
Staff don’t know checkout, returns, receiving, or basic product handling.
Suppliers, reorder contacts, and damage-claim procedures aren’t organized.
The store can’t complete a full test sale and daily closeout.

Opening a little later is better than opening with preventable problems. Your first days should test customer demand, not basic readiness.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is an art supply store a good business for a first-time owner?

It can be, but only if you understand retail inventory, local demand, lease risk, sales tax setup, product safety basics, and daily customer service. Passion for art helps, but it doesn’t replace planning.

What should I verify before starting?

Verify demand, competition, supplier access, rent, break-even sales volume, sales tax registration, zoning, certificate of occupancy, signage rules, and product-labeling concerns.

Should I start from scratch or buy an existing art supply store?

Starting from scratch gives you more control. Buying may give you a location, fixtures, supplier history, and records, but you must review inventory quality, lease terms, liabilities, and sales history.

Is franchising realistic for this business?

It may be realistic in broader craft or hobby retail. Independent fine-art supply stores are often more locally curated, so franchise options may not match your desired concept.

What belongs in the business plan?

Include your concept, customer groups, location logic, supplier plan, opening inventory, pricing method, break-even logic, lease assumptions, compliance checks, insurance, staffing, payment setup, and opening-readiness steps.

Does an art supply store need a special federal license?

Not typically for ordinary retail sales of art supplies. Still, product labeling, hazardous art-material rules, children’s product rules, and supplier documentation can matter.

Do I need a sales tax permit?

Usually, yes, in states and localities where taxable retail sales are subject to sales tax. Verify with your state revenue department before opening.

Which products create the most compliance concern?

Pay close attention to hazardous art materials, solvents, children’s art supplies, children’s craft kits, small parts, imported products, private-label items, and repackaged materials.

Should I offer workshops at launch?

Only if your space, occupancy approval, insurance, staffing, safety procedures, materials, and local rules support it. Workshops can add value, but they also add setup complexity.

What equipment is essential before opening?

Core needs include fixtures, shelving, paper and canvas storage, checkout counter, point-of-sale system, barcode scanner, label printer, payment terminal, stockroom setup, receiving tools, safety supplies, and security controls.

How should I plan opening inventory?

Start with core categories that match local demand. Balance student-grade and professional-grade products only where demand supports both. Avoid overbuying slow categories before you understand local buying patterns.

How should I think about profit potential?

Calculate how many sales you need to cover rent, payroll, inventory replenishment, utilities, insurance, payment fees, shrink, software, and owner income. Use your own local costs and supplier numbers.

What are the biggest financial risks?

High rent, too much inventory, weak local demand, poor supplier terms, markdowns, shrink, freight, payment fees, damaged goods, and not enough working capital can all create strain.

What should be ready on opening day?

Required approvals, tax setup, payment processing, inventory records, supplier contacts, safety labels, return policy, staff training, emergency access, receipt setup, and daily closeout procedures should all be ready.

Advice From Art Supply Store Owners

One of the best ways to understand this business is to learn from people who have already opened, bought, managed, or adapted art supply stores.

The interviews below, can help readers see the real decisions behind product mix, local demand, customer service, inventory, community building, pricing pressure, and the daily effort needed to keep a creative retail business running.

Sources:

U.S. SBA: Choose Business Structure, Register Your Business, Federal and State Tax IDs, Licenses and Permits, Business Bank Account, Market Research, Startup Costs, Fund Your Business, Buy or Franchise
IRS: Get an EIN, Hiring Employees, Businesses with Employees, Worker Classification
U.S. Department of Labor: FLSA Reference Guide
CPSC: Art Materials Guidance, Children’s Products, Children’s Product Certificate, Art Materials FAQ
ADA.gov: Title III Public Businesses
U.S. Census Bureau: NAICS Descriptions
NAMTA: Creative Materials Industry
Blick Art Materials: Art Supply Categories
SCORE: Retail Location Choice
National Retail Federation: Retail Shrink Reality
Washington Department of Revenue: Retail Sales Tax
NYC Business: Certificate of Occupancy
PCI Security Standards Council: Merchant Payment Security
FTC: Small Business Cybersecurity

Art Supply Store Startup Decisions That Shape Success