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If you’re reading this, congrats. You’ve planned and prepared your store opening for months, and now you’re ready to share your brand with the world. It’s launch time. But don’t fling open your doors to the public just yet.
A store opening can bring unforeseen complications—maybe your workers need some hands-on training or your point-of-sale software has a steep learning curve. Wouldn’t it be nice to work out all the kinks before having a grand opening? That’s where a soft opening comes in.
What is a soft opening?
A soft opening is a trial run that gives you and your team a chance to practice and fine-tune retail operations before the store is open to the public. What if the cash registers are glitchy? What if you run out of inventory? What if too many people show up and the floor staff you hired are overwhelmed? A soft opening relieves some of the pressure of launching your store and allows you to observe and collect feedback from customers about what can be improved.
With fewer customers than a grand opening, your staff can handle a soft opening more comfortably, reducing stress and ensuring a smoother overall experience. A soft opening is also a great way to test your marketing strategy. You can gauge the effectiveness of your promotions, social media efforts, and word-of-mouth buzz before the grand opening.
Typically an invite-only event, a soft opening is for a small cohort of close supporters, family, and friends. These trusted people come to shop and mingle at your store, so you can get a feel for what an ordinary day of business might feel like. By inviting a select group, you can better manage expectations and control the flow of customers. This allows you to test the limits of your space and/or services without the pressure of a full house.
Soft openings can also create a sense of exclusivity, making your guests feel like they’re part of something special: This can build excitement and loyalty among early supporters. It’s mostly for a brick-and-mortar store, but an e-commerce-only brand can also hold a soft opening by launching its website with a limited selection of products.
Timing here is important: If you hold your soft opening too early, before you’re actually ready to open, enthusiasm can die down, and it may confuse folks if you don’t open for business shortly afterward. A soft opening is held a week or two, or even a few days, before your grand opening.
What’s the difference between a soft opening and a grand opening?
When a retail store has a grand opening, it marks the official debut of the store to the general public. The store is open to everyone, not just a select group of friends, family, or special invitees. Unlike a soft opening, which is often a quieter, more low-key event, a grand opening is a highly publicized occasion designed to generate buzz and attract as many customers as possible.
You would announce your grand opening through multiple channels, such as social media, flyers, local advertisements, and even press releases, to draw in a large crowd. To add to the festive atmosphere, you might hang a few decorations, hire local musicians to play, and schedule some giveaways throughout the event. Special discounts or promotions—like offering a gift to the first 100 customers—are common ways to increase foot traffic. A grand opening also has a symbolic significance: It represents the official start of business operations and sets the tone for your store’s identity within the community.
In contrast, soft openings serve as a trial run before the grand opening. They’re typically aimed at refining operations, training your staff, and pinpointing any logistical issues. You might open your store to a smaller, controlled audience, such as friends, family, or local influencers. Feedback from these attendees is also crucial to ensure a smoother experience during your grand opening.
Both events are important milestones for your new business, marking the transition from all that hard work you’ve done preparing to finally welcoming customers.
How do you plan for the big day?
Soft openings may be more dialed back than a grand opening, but that doesn’t mean they don’t take serious effort and planning. Keep these steps in mind for a great event:
1. Set clear goals
What do you want to accomplish with your soft opening? Zeroing in on this will help you strategize a more productive soft opening. If your primary goal is training staff, then maybe you’ll pay closer attention to your employees to see how comfortable they are in their jobs. If your goal is to build hype around your brand, then maybe you spring for the hors d’oeuvres and bubbly to entice those social media influencers on your invite list to show up.
2. Draft a budget
When you know what your goals are, come up with a budget of what you’d feel comfortable spending. The costs can vary depending on your location or the type of brand reputation you want to build. Your budget can go toward refreshments and entertainment or can be factored into discounts or coupons for attendees to encourage return visits once you’re fully open. Consider giving out a physical coupon that shows off your store’s aesthetic. You could even include a coupon inside an on-brand goody bag that you offer guests on their way in or out.
3. Create a guest list
Consider the type of event you’re planning. Depending on your goals, you may invite different people. For instance, if you want to increase buzz, you might invite lifestyle bloggers in your niche. If you mainly want to test operations and train staff, you might invite just friends and family. Inviting the owners and staff of local businesses is a great way to include the community and bolster support.
You’ll get to know your neighbors, which can help make your transition into a neighborhood smoother. You might even learn some tips about running a new business from your fellow store owners. Consider how many people will fill the space and make sure your staff can adequately handle the number of attendees.
Soft openings are often by invitation only, giving you the chance to test your operations in a controlled environment. That said, anyone invited—whether it’s local influencers, loyal customers, or just your circle of friends and family—can attend. It’s not usually open to the general public, but some businesses may choose to extend invites more broadly, especially if they want to generate early buzz. Just make sure you balance the guest list with your capacity and goals for the event.
4. Collect feedback
A soft opening is the best opportunity you’ll have to figure out what customers and employees think before you open to the public. If the lighting in the store is too dim or the merchandising layout is bewildering, you’ll want to know now rather than find out later. You can collect feedback through casual conversation with guests or formalize it with an email survey after the event. To encourage your attendees to fill out the survey, it’s always helpful to sweeten the pot—consider offering a discount code for people who submit feedback.
5. Decide on improvements
Simply collecting feedback isn’t enough. You should review what people are saying and decide what improvements you can implement before your full opening. If you can’t do all the changes at once, then prioritize the feedback to decide what you’ll address and when.
Final thoughts
By soft-opening your store, you can set your business up for success and spot potential pitfalls. Store openings can feel overwhelming, but a soft opening allows you to ease into running your new retail store.
Are you a new retailer? Read more about Open with Faire and learn how to apply for up to $20,000, with 60-day payment terms, to stock your new shop.
