What should I check before buying a costume shop?

A costume shop usually runs two businesses under one roof. One is a seasonal retail rush around the autumn holiday. The other is rental and custom work for theatre groups, schools, productions and parties, which carries on all year. Ask the seller to show how revenue splits between them.

The seasonal peak and its leftovers

Retail costumes bought for one season can become unsold stock the next. Ask what remains on the shelves at the end of the season, how the seller handles it, and what is carried over. Ask whether stock is included, and your accountant can tell you how inventory is recorded. Ask also how the shop manages staffing and cash through the quiet months after the rush.

The rental wardrobe

Check the condition of the rental costumes. Ask whether pieces are catalogued by period, size and condition, and whether the catalogue is kept on paper, in a spreadsheet or in the owner’s memory. A collection nobody has recorded is hard to value and hard to rent. Check the cleaning and repair routine, and who performs it.

Institutional customers and the owner

Theatre companies, schools and film productions often rent from a person they know. Ask which accounts are repeat customers, what they borrowed last year, and whether any have written arrangements. If the owner is also the costume designer or fitter, plan for what happens when they leave. The related page on what to check before buying an alterations or tailor shop looks at a similar dependence on skilled hands.