Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with store

How do you buy furniture for a retail store?

CommonSense — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 11:39:13 -0800

I need to find places to buy cool/offbeat furniture, but with the durability and dimensions/styles needed for a retail store. I've recently taken ownership of a retail store, and among the many things I'd like to do to rebrand and "re-image" it is replace the boring, standard-issue furniture used in the customer-facing portion of the store. I'd like to replace the display tables, get shelving so that I'm more effectively using the wall space, etc.

But in particular, I'm interested in furniture made from reused/repurposed materials and/or used furnishings that come from other retail stores that have either closed or replaced their furnishings. There HAVE to be places where you can find this stuff, but Google is failing me. I realize that to an extent, I can also get stuff from "consumer" furniture stores, but that isn't always going to address the needs of a retail space very well.

I'd be kind of interested in taking some cues from the Apple store (big, long tables, with shelving along the sides), but without duplicating them outright. (Plus, I'm sure I couldn't dream of affording the kind of furniture they use.) I don't want the place to look as cold and sterile as Apple stores do; dark-colored natural woods/metal/stone made from repurposed old construction/building/carpentry materials, for example, would be one direction I'd be interested in going.

Location is Richmond, VA, although I live in Baltimore, so I can also shop around in the Baltimore/DC area. The product line is computers and accessories, so it would be mostly tables and shelving that I'd need --nothing explicitly "retail-only" like clothing racks, etc.

Where are the baking supply stores in Vancouver

Xianny — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 15:23:07 -0800

What are some good cooking/baking/candy supply stores in Vancouver? More specifications under the cut. I'm looking for a few specific things:

- tablespoon ice cream scoop
- foil candy cups
- lollipop sticks
- candy thermometer
- good quality couverture chocolate and baking chocolate
- various candied fruits: orange peel, ginger, etc

I realise you can find most of these things in some department store or supermarket, but I usually have to visit 5 different stores before I find what I'm looking for. Lack of personal transport and time leads me to seek one (or more) go-to supply store. This magic store should be functional and affordable - no overpriced dinosaur cocktail stirrers - and located in downtown/east Van, N. Burnaby or S. Burnaby (Metrotown area). Thanks very much!

How much is that [blank] in the window?

ericc — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 23:32:24 -0800

In this photo of the Microsoft store in Mission Viejo, there are two islands of product immediately as you enter the store. On the left is various versions of Windows 7. What is the product on the island on the right? Bonus for anyone who can identify what product might be on the other three sides of the display.

Where to buy tea online, + pu-erh

k. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:24:37 -0800

Tea Filter: what's your favorite online tea store? Bonus question: tell me about pu-erh. Stores I already know about, but haven't necessarily ordered from:
Adagio Teas
Tea Gschwendner (teamerchants.com in the USA)
TeazOnline.com
Upton Tea
Maeda-en (Japanese green tea only)

Which of these is the best, for quality or price? Is there a different one that you prefer?

Bonus: I'm interested in trying pu-erh tea. What does it taste like, in comparison to more familiar kinds of black/green/oolong/white tea? What kind do you suggest I try first?

How do I get US-address-only items delivered to Australia?

katala — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 04:22:10 -0800

Can anyone please recommend a reputable mail-forwarding service for someone living in Australia who wants to buy from US-only stores? Hi MeFites, I need to buy some items (headbands of all things!) which I can only find on US store websites and they will only ship to a US address (no international shipping provided).

Can anyone please recommend a good mail-forwarding service who I can have my items shipped to, and then they will ship them to me in Australia?

Many thanks in advance for any help you can give!

Katala

Like drugstore.com, but for general merchandise

lunchbox — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 17:27:17 -0800

Looking for an online store where I can buy general merchandise that I'd find in the non-drugstore sections of a CVS or Walgreens: batteries, rubber bands, office supplies, clothes hangers, laundry supplies, and so on. I buy most of my health & personal care stuff (like shampoo, toothpaste, razor blades, dental floss) at drugstore.com, but I still find myself having to go to CVS/Walgreen's/Office Depot to buy items like those listed above. Most of these items are available on Amazon, but usually they are shipped from different retailers, so I have to pay shipping for each individual item. Can anyone recommend a good online general merchandise retailer?

What's in a name?

popcassady — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 13:11:52 -0800

Sole traders in the UK + iPhone developer program. How did you register using your business name rather than your own? I've tried to register with the program using option 2:

This program is for a developer or development team who will be creating free and commercial applications for iPhone and iPod touch.

Enroll as a company if you intend to distribute applications under your company name.

The problem is, Apple will only recognise my business if I have a certificate of incorporation. That is, if I run a limited liability company. I've explained to them that I am a sole trader, trading under a business name and that a certificate of incorporation is not applicable to me. I've sent many emails but I keep getting the same, standard, replies. Repeatedly, they tell me that if I have no certificate of incorporation I should sign up under option 1:

This program is for an individual developer who will be creating free and commercial applications for iPhone and iPod touch.

Enroll as an individual if you intend to distribute applications under your name.

This option does not allow me to use my business name whereas option 2 does. I am a developer who intends to distribute applications under my company name. Option 2 applies to me. Option 1 does not. I have a business name and I wish to use it.

There must be many sole traders using their business names in the app store. If you're out there, how did you do it?

How can I download a free US-only iPhone app from the UK

skylar — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 09:32:54 -0800

I'm in the UK and want to download a free app that is only available through the US iTunes/App Store. I have memberships of both the UK and US iTunes stores, but unfortunately the credit card on my US account has expired. When it comes to the point at which I download the app (on either the computer or the phone) it asks for an updated credit card. If I could convince someone to "lend" me their iTunes login details for a short while, even if there was no money on their card, would this work? Anyone tried this or willing to help?

Best computer shop in Berlin with aggressive prices?

thewalrus — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 08:08:18 -0800

In Berlin, what's the best computer shop with good prices and a wide selection of products? The prices seem to suck here. I need to buy a couple of 1.0 or 1.5TB USB2.0+IEEE1394B external HDDs and some 16GB SDHC cards in the next few days. Near Aleskanderplatz if possible. I've found Saturn (www.saturn.de) but the prices seem stupid, 30 euros for a 8GB SDHC card, which is $15 (10.50 euros) from Newegg... Hard drives that would sell for $110 in North America are the equivalent of USD$170 after the USD:EUR exchange. Is there a proper computer shop somewhere near Aleksanderplatz that has reasonable prices?

Perhaps I have been spoiled by years of ordering online in the USA from Newegg and Zipzoomfly, but the prices of computer stuff at retail in Germany seem rather high (even before the VAT). I'll be taking the tax refund at the airport on the HDDs when I leave.

Wordpress/MT + free online store?

yegga — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 12:18:53 -0800

Wordpress/MT + free online store? What free online stores would you recommend that run off Wordpress or Movable Type (or a similar Blog/CMS)?

I'd like to setup a simple online store that is dead-easy to update and that needs little maintenance. What do you recommend?

If not the route of Wordpress/MT, what do you suggest? Please do not suggest Etsy/DaWanda etc as the store will be hosted on a domain I own.

I've seen:

wp-e-commerce
simpleCartJS
Thematic

I need:
International Payments (PayPal, Bank transactions, Google Checkout, et al)
Free-only, please

No! I wanted a sharp card, not a card sharp

shothotbot — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 20:23:34 -0800

I am looking for a super-cool card store in NYC. Mrs. HotBot has not wised up lo these ten years and she loves cool and cards. Where can I get her a cool card in NYC? I need to get it the same day - no special orders. And I am not thinking Papyrus - I am thinking albino monks with a small tea salon/cool card emporium on some street I have never heard of.

Banding together for broccoli

parmanparman — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 09:23:14 -0800

Are there books or resources for starting a co-operative grocery store in the United States?

Personal experience with payment processors that offer very simple transaction processing?

odinsdream — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 06:22:25 -0800

Personal experience with payment processors that offer very simple on-site credit card entry and the ability to sell digital goods (i.e., license codes, subscriptions, etc.). I'd like customers to enter the bare minimum of payment information. I'd like to accept credit-card payments on my website. I can already do this with Paypal or Google Checkout, but they are more complex than I'd prefer for this particular venture. Features I'd like include:

Bare minimum of data entry. I've purchased from sites that require only the credit card number and an expiration date. Examples include paying for a new account on Shopify, or paying for a checked bag on Delta and US Airways. I don't need to collect names, shipping information, or anything else for this product. It's a very inexpensive virtual good, which is why I'd like to make the customer payment experience as painless and hassle-free as possible.

Entry of data on my site, or at least visually similar enough to appear to be my site. Examples include Panic Software, Shopify, Delta, and US Airways.*

Able to process digital goods that are unique to each customer. Panic Software is a good example here. Immediately after you pay you get the product unlock code, which is unique to that transaction. I want this to be completely automatic. Out of the box Google Checkout doesn't seem to work for this. With their API it looks like it could work, but they don't meet my other requirements.

Do you have personal experience with payment processors that meet most or all of these requirements?

* Note on PCI compliance: This requirement is really a visual thing. The actual HTML form doesn't need to come from my server. I'm not interested in actually storing the credit card data - I'd still like it to go directly to the payment processor without passing through me. I just want the customer to have a seamless experience of not appearing to leave my site.

Welcome to "_____," would you like a bagel with that?

firei — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 16:00:00 -0800

If you were opening a cafe that primarily served bagels (and their variations), pastries, coffee (and coffee related drinks), and tea, what would you call it? The wittier the better! (Non-witty are also welcome to apply.) I previously asked a question about opening a bagel store, primarily asking for tips, advice, and ideas. I received a few name recs.

However, I've since decided that I'd like the business to be part coffee shop, part-bagel store - so all of my names that directly pertained to bagels (and I had pages and pages of name riffing on pop culture, where the word bagel was inserted into popular quotes and movie titles) have become moot.

I know the hive mind is clever, and I want my coffee-shop/bagel-shop/thing to be clever, too!

(If it helps: we'll be located in Carmel, NY, in a plaza off of route 6. I don't know why it would. But then, I'm not very witty.)

High-end baby boutiques in the DC Metro area? Selling handmade?

GardenGal — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 11:09:07 -0800

Where are the fancy stores that might help me sell my handmade baby clothes? I've recently opened up an Etsy store of baby carriers and handmade baby clothes in poppy, modern prints. I think I'd like to take these same clothes and carriers around to local stores to see if they'd like to stock them - they're cute enough that I think they would sell.

Trouble is, I'm not the kind of person that shops at high-end children's boutiques, so I don't know of any around here. Can anyone point me to some expensive kids' stores in the DC Metro area, where people might shop specifically for handmade items (ie are not looking for the cheapest they can get)?

Also if anyone has experience taking stuff around to stores like this, I'd really appreciate any tips.

Are shops allowed to add a fee for paying by credit card instead of cash?

wastelands — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:39:19 -0800

Does it go against Visa / MasterCard / etc. policy for a retail store, such as a restaurant or coffee shop, to add a charge to your order if you use credit rather than paying by cash? While it's incredibly common, I have heard that it goes against policy, and the store could actually risk punitive action from the credit card company if they were found out. True?

dolla dolla bill y'all

kidsleepy — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 07:38:20 -0800

What's actually worth it to buy from a dollar store? While on the successful hunt for some pool noodles from my local dollar store, I noticed there is a LOT of stuff to be found in there. Some of it is obviously cheap and sub-par, but I found some surprisingly nice glassware and some decent wrapping paper. My question is: what do you regularly buy from a dollar store? Are the cleaning products just as good as name brand? How about the toothpaste? Any products you've learned to avoid (I don't think I'd buy the underwear.)?

i can has online restaurant supply stores?

Tu13es — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 07:32:59 -0800

Are there any decent online restaurant supply stores? I'm looking to buy a bunch of kitchen supplies for my kitchen, including glasses, plates, silverware, etc. and have heard restaurant supply stores are great places to get good quality, yet cheap, items. However, there don't seem to be many places local to me, according to Google Maps, at least.

Are there any online restaurant supply stores worth checking out?

Where to buy travel adapters in NYC

cookie googleman — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 07:56:18 -0800

Where to find a three-pronged British style electrical adapter plug in New York City? Hello,

I'm leaving for Tanzania tomorrow and am looking for a travel store that sells adapters in New York City. It's too late to order online. Thank you in advance!

Confessions of an Apple iPhone app store reviewer

xotis — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 15:20:38 -0800

Apple App Store Filter: A few weeks ago I stumbled upon an obscure blog that appeared to be written by an anonymous Apple App Store reviewer. I think it was linked to via Gizmodo or Engadget 2-3 weeks ago. Now I can't find it. It had a black background. The author was listing their expectations for the rumored new iPhone to be unveiled at the then upcoming WWDC keynote that was a few weeks ago.

They also were posting their snarky reasons for turning down apps in the Apple app store. One of the reasons was because an app author had used an image that looked like an iPhone in their app. They also spoke about how their job gave them a sense of anonymous power over others.

Searching on Gizmodo, Engadget, and Google all failed me... can you help?

Finding a Video Game from My Past

xdeliriumx — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 08:33:04 -0800

Find This Video Game Filter: Arcade machine, may not exist on a console, reminiscent of Pitfall with better graphics, approximately 12-15 years ago, played it at a local drugstore. More Details inside. Please help a video game guy! I am trying to locate a video game and I will outline everything I can possibly remember about it.

-It was an arcade cabinet
-The setting reminds me of Pitfall (looking back now) but it had much better graphics I would say maybe SNES or Genesis type graphics (thought I have never seen it on a console). Definitely NOT Pitfall or Pitfall 2. You were a guy going through a jungleish setting. I remember you could swing on vines and I remember you could go through a top path or a bottom path. I also remember there being bats.
-I THINK it was 12-15 years ago
-The exact machine I played was at a drug store in Williamsport, PA. (In Giant Plaza) The drugstore is not there anymore, I think it might have been a Rite Aid or maybe not a chain drugstore. (Here is the exact location - The Giant Plaza)

I realize that probably the only thing to work off of here is the description of the game and maybe the time period but this has been driving me crazy as an avid video game player. Please help me Hive!

P.S. If you think of anything else that could be assistance let me know and I will try to help.

Antiquing means so many different things

The Whelk — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 10:32:06 -0800

I need an antique (or sufficiently vintage-y-antiqu-y styled) trunk for my living room. Problem: every piece I've seen to has been too big, too worn, too ugly, or too expensive. Where would I find stores/markets/fairs/dealers in the NYC metro area that might carry such trunks? I got a zipcar, so I can tool around the tri-state area. Insanely detailed requirements follow. Ideally, I'm looking for something about 15 inches high, under 40 inches long and under 26 inches wide. No curved tops, as it has to function as a coffee table. Uneven top surfaces (planks, etc) are okay. I'd also like really cool metal handles and locks but it's not a deal breaker. It should be able to open without creaking and breaking.

Ethnic Jewelry in NYC?

tk — Thu, 21 May 2009 18:22:17 -0800

I'm looking for a store in New York City (Manhattan and Brooklyn, ideally) that sells ethnic and sterling silver jewelry. The store could have clothes, accessories, or art, but it should have a significant amount of jewelry for sale. Can anyone help me out? I'm of course googling on my own, but this is the kind of place you would know when you see it, and I can't walk all the streets of NYC. Thanks for any leads.

Where to sell used books, CDs, DVDs, and gaming stuff in Chicagoland?

korpios — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 09:59:49 -0800

What are the best places in the Chicago area to sell used books, CDs, DVDs, and tabletop gaming materials? My wife and I are moving into a new place in a month; since we're largely a digital-only household these days (Kindle, MacBook, iPhone), I'd like to take this opportunity to clean out the physical media that keeps following us around. We have a bunch of DVDs and CDs, as well as quite a few boxes of books (largely non-fiction and older tabletop gaming stuff, e.g., AD&D 2nd Ed.); I refuse to drag it all to yet another apartment.

I'd ideally like to be able to visit as few places as possible to offload the majority of what I have; I'm willing to drive (both within Chicago and the suburbs), but I don't want to end up having to visit 15 different places. I also don't want to list items individually on Craigslist since what I can expect to be paid per-item isn't worth the hassle of making many individual sales; by the same token, I really don't want to bother with eBay. My primary goal is getting rid of the stuff — not making the most amount of money possible. (Anything I don't end up selling will be given away and/or tossed.)

So, Chicago submodule of UsedStuffFilter ... suggestions? (The closest AskMeFi post I've found was this one for used CDs.)

When does the Gare Cornavin ticket desk close?

Sneutrino — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 08:02:43 -0800

When does the ticket desk at the Geneva, Switzerland train station Cornavin close on Fridays?