Are you planning to open a business soon?
Attract a large crowd and invite your local community with a grand opening! A grand opening is a skillful way to celebrate your hard work and gain a community presence.
There are several avenues you can take to plan a successful grand opening—whether you’re a restaurant, retail store, or otherwise.
However, if you’re not an avid event planner by trade, it can be overwhelming.
Luckily for you, we’ve compiled a list of unique grand opening ideas for small businesses. Start planning your grand opening today!
Table of Contents
Advertising Your Grand Opening
It wouldn’t be a grand opening without a crowd! Invite the local community to your grand opening with these advertising ideas.
1. Distribute Flyers
While digital marketing techniques are efficient, don’t underestimate the power of offline advertisements. In fact, printing can help your business reputation and can have a significant impact on the turnout of your grand opening.
Enlist the help of a graphic designer to create breathtaking flyers, jazz up excitement, and advertise your grand opening.
State the name of your business, the location, as well as the date and time of the grand opening. Add a few sentences or bullet points explaining what will happen at your grand opening. If applicable, list some of the products or services you offer.
Create a visually-appealing flyer with graphic elements. For example, a salon could have an image of a woman with flowing hair. A restaurant could have a picture of a featured item on the menu. A retail store may have images of popular clothing styles that are featured in the shop.
The right flyer will spread the word of your grand opening and attract tons of visitors! But be sure to pass out flyers well in advance of your grand opening.
2. Count Down on Social Media
Social media is a powerful marketing agent. Consider posting a digital rendering of your flyer and make a count down of the days until your grand opening.
Social media marketing is meant to spread awareness and get people excited about your business. So, post regularly and keep your audience informed.
The following list is a few social media ideas to entice followers:
- Site tour: Are you renovating the property? This can be a great visual countdown to the opening.
- Product sneak peeks: Do you have a new and exciting product coming to the market? Give your audience a sneak peek of what’s in store for the future.
- Staff introductions: Create a rapport with your audience and introduce them to the new staff.
3. Give Local Businesses Custom Products
Reaching out and partnering with local businesses is a great way to build business relationships in your community.
Provide local businesses with branded custom products to spread awareness of your new business.
For example, perhaps you could supply a local restaurant or coffee shop to-go cups with your logo and grand opening date printed on them. You could also print your logo on coasters and give them to a local bar for guests to use.
Return the favor and offer special discounts or deals for employees at the establishments that distribute your custom products.
4. Get Involved With the Community
Making connections in your community will allow you to build a reliable customer base before the opening.
Perhaps a community event is taking place where you can participate. Set up a booth to talk face-to-face with community members. Or, pass out branded merchandise—like car magnets or stickers—and products.
Additionally, you may even consider partnering with a charity to promote community involvement.
Grand Opening Decoration Ideas
Celebrate the grand opening with branded decorations and promotional items.
5. Let Your Brand Be Your Focus
If you decide to make a festive display of streamers, balloons, and other decorations, be sure to keep everything on-brand. Stick to colors that are in your logo and decorations that represent your products or services.
For example, are you opening a rustic coffee shop? Why not decorate with flowers, fairy lights, and a chalkboard sign at the entrance?
If you are opening a classy salon, perhaps you could find decorations that are makeup-themed, such as balloons in the shape of lips or streamers with your brand colors.
6. Set Up a Table With Promotional Products
Who doesn’t love free stuff?
Set up a table featuring free products that advertise your business. Useful branded items are a timeless option to promote your business.
Many businesses will opt for giveaway items like magnets, keychains, pens, pins, tote bags, reusable water bottles, and stickers.
Customers are more likely to use these items and gain the attention of curious passersby.
7. Design a Grand Entrance
Indicate that you have an event at your location with a grand entryway to attract passersby.
For example, many companies order a large balloon arrangement that wraps around the entrance door. Other grand openings may have a large banner or sign to advertise the event.
But why not get even more creative with it? Perhaps your retail store has a red carpet leading guests through the entrance. Or have greeters stationed outside, inviting people in and handing out coupons or samples?
Even if people haven’t seen your local advertisements, social media posts, or email updates, anyone who is in the area is sure to notice your grand opening with a festive entrance!
8. Print Posters and Banners
It’s a good idea to print a large banner to place at the entrance of your store or restaurant, so people know what is going on. Additionally, posters are a great way to showcase the items you sell, the services you offer, and the discounts you have available.
The more inviting your store or restaurant is, the more likely people are to stop by.
Grand Opening Ideas for Restaurants
Whet potential customer’s appetite with the following grand opening ideas for restaurants.
9. Host a Soft Opening
Soft openings attract new customers while allowing you to get valuable feedback on your food and services.
Your soft opening can be a festive event where you invite the families of your employees, local businesses in your area, or keep it open to the community. How you choose to have your soft opening is entirely up to you.
Decorate your restaurant for this event to impress. Consider printing table tents or other printed materials for your restaurant, showcasing what your restaurant will look like when you open.
Pass out a feedback survey as guests complete their meals or leave the event to gain feedback. This feedback will allow you to evaluate the performance of your staff and the quality of your meals.
In turn, you can adjust your services to improve the customer’s experiences.
10. Offer Free Food or Products
Restaurant grand openings are the perfect opportunity to offer something free to your guests. For instance, a drink, hors d’oeuvres, or a refillable cup can attract foot traffic to your grand opening.
As with everything, let your restaurant brand be your focus. For instance, if you offer any free items for people to take home, print your restaurant name on them.
11. Hire Entertainment
There is nothing more refreshing than live music. In fact, according to a 2016 study, 32 million people go to at least one music festival per year.
If you have space in your restaurant, invite a local band to drum up excitement, and set the festive mood.
Grand Opening Ideas for Retail Store
Start with a bang and make a profit opening day with these grand opening ideas for retail stores.
12. Offer Opening-Day Discounts
Many successful retail store grand openings have significant discounts on items.
While you want to make money with your new store, having a 50% off discount can attract many new customers for your grand opening and leave a great impression.
13. Set Out Snacks and Beverages
Complimentary cookies, doughnuts, coffee, or lemonade will encourage customers to stay longer.
Place a display of some of your sale items near the food and beverage table. This way, they have something to look at while they eat their snack and sip on their drink.
The more you offer your guests, the more likely they may be to purchase something.
14. Make it Festive
As mentioned, decorating your grand opening is a must. However, your retail store can go above and beyond with some creative festivities.
For instance, you could have employees model outfits for customers or even put on a mini runway show to showcase your best clothes.
15. Host a Giveaway
Giving gifts at your retail store is a great way to attract tons of buyers at your grand opening.
How?
Host giveaways or offer a gift with every purchase over a certain amount.
For example, you could offer tote bags, T-shirts, a gift card to your store, or another item.
Customers will be encouraged to purchase items from your store to get their gift or stay long enough for the giveaways to be announced.
Salon Grand Opening Ideas
Primp and prep for the greatest salon grand opening to be remembered.
16. Host a Party
The best salon grand opening idea is to have a classy party where community members and local businesses can check out your salon, learn about the services you offer, and maybe even try some of your products. Additionally, staff and community members can interact.
17. Take Partygoers on Tours
Show off your experienced staff’s skills with an informal demo and tour.
Be sure the tour isn’t too long. You don’t want visitors getting bored or leaving halfway through. Instead, keep tours to ten minutes or less and have fun things waiting for them after their tour.
Even more, at the end of each tour, offer coupons to individuals and allow patrons to make future bookings.
With a friendly smile and a hands-on experience, customers will keep you in mind the next time they need a hair cut, a mani-pedi or other services.
18. Giveaway Gift Bags
If it’s in your budget, offer a small gift that communicates your brand to customers, represents the style of your salon, and appeals to your target clientele.
For instance, give away special hair ties, nail polish, or a sample of a product you sell.
19. Get Neighboring Businesses Involved
Invite neighboring businesses to come to your event, and offer extra discounts and incentives for visiting.
For instance, perhaps the employees from local businesses get their first hair cut or manicure free or at a discounted price.
In return, these businesses may allow you to advertise your salon at their establishment.
20. Demonstrate Your Services in a How-To Class
A how-to class not only gets people involved with your services, but it also shows visitors how experienced and knowledgable you are, which helps to build your reputation as a salon.
For example, you could teach hairstyling techniques, such as braiding, curling, or straightening.
Consider having the how-to demonstration at your party. This way, whether visitors are on tour, enjoying the festivities, or watching your demonstration, they will be kept entertained.
Where is the Best Place to Print Your Grand Opening Products?
Now that you know of all the best grand opening ideas for small businesses, it’s time to plan your grand opening. To get started, you’ll want to design and print your flyers, banners, posters, and promotional products.
The Print Authority is a top-quality printing company that doesn’t just help people print products, but they can also help with concept development and creation for your branding and logo. Their exceptional graphic design services are customized to your business so you can design, create, and print practically any product you can imagine.
Additionally, you can choose between offset and digital printing services. With digital printing, however, you can choose to print on demand, which allows you to order prints on an as-needed basis. With on-demand printing, you can prevent potential backorders, destruction fees from last-minute changes to your order, and can even save you money.
The Print Authority also uses green printing practices, which help the environment and save you money. As a small, local business, many customers are attracted to “green” businesses that promote healthy living, community involvement, recycling, and being natural. When you use green printing practices with The Print Authority, you are taking the first step toward green practices that may attract more customers in your area!
For more information about how The Print Authority can help your grand opening ideas come to fruition, contact them, or request a custom quote!
