Specialty Stores

The specialty store industry is composed of generally small stores that focus their retail selection on a certain range of merchandise. Examples of specialty stores may include camera equipment stores, book stores, stationery stores, and/or pharmacies, amongst other categories. Due to the specialized nature of their product, specialty store frequently have a great deal of merchandise in stock somewhere on their premises.

As the specialty store industry is primarily concerned with one type of product, their retail selection is often unique. Depending upon the type of object and its availability, pricing of specialty stock may at times be rather high. Though some specialty stores in this industry may be a part of a larger retail chain (such as pharmacies located in large grocery stores), many specialty stores are single-location operations.

Specialty stores are increasingly facing more competition in their market as other retail outlets are offering specialty store merchandise in a larger, and often more inexpensive, setting. As larger stores possess more buying power than the typically smaller specialty store, they are able to obtain special stock easily and retail it at a lower price. Major competitors for specialty stores include supermarkets, department stores, warehouse club stores, as well as online-based retail services (especially as internet retailers are often deemed more convenient and less time consuming than physical retail locations). However, despite widespread competition in pricing and convenience, specialty store are still able to offer consumers what large venues cannot: a vast array of specific merchandise, and specialized knowledge about the product.