This morning I received an email from a reader (of SRR ) who wanted to know when he should open his two carts for the holiday season (November 1st versus September or October 1st). He's planning on selling toys in one cart and is still debating what to sell on the second cart. I recommended opening by November 1st at the latest (or earlier if your budget will allow) and here's why:

It takes time to hire a great sales team
The #1 reason why I think he should open prior to November is that it takes a while to hire a team of great sales people. When you open early it gives you time to make good hiring decisions and then fine tune them as you determine your power sellers from those who aren't.

Establish your presence in the mall
By opening prior to the holiday season customers will see you in the mall, start purchasing now, and keep you in mind for holiday shopping.

Fine tune your visual merchandising
By opening in advance of the holiday rush you can tweak your visuals to make the most impact and to capture the attention of busy holiday shoppers.

Start building your inventory
One of the top five mistakes that retailers make is not stocking enough inventory during the holiday season. By opening early you can start to build inventory and get a feel for which products will be your best sellers.

Operate like a well-oiled machine
You'll have time to create the best sales pitch and figure out operational issues, such as the best bank to make deposits at and the best schedule for employees (who works what shifts and how long).

While many cart and kiosk retailers can turn a profit during the months of September and October, some choose to operate at a break-even or even slight loss because they find that they can have a much more profitable holiday season when they open early.