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The licenses required depend on the location of the thrift store and its purpose. If it's run for and by a charity, rather than for profit, the licensing and registration may differ. The store will most likely need to have a reseller license, sometimes called a sales privilege license, to collect state sales tax.

Thrift stores can offer all sorts of products from clothing to baby furniture to gardening products, or the store may specialize in one type of product, say, gently used clothing. Scout the competition to decide if you should generalize or focus on one type of product and, if so, which one.

Related Reading: Rules of Running a Thrift Store

An inventory of used merchandise is necessary for a thrift store. Obtain the merchandise through donations; going to yard, tag and garage sales; or shopping online auction sites. Buy only those products that you know can get a markup of at least 50 percent or more. The typical retail markup is 50 percent. In the retail industry this is called "keystone." For example: If you purchase a product at $1.00, then the retail price will be $2.00. The markup is $1.00 and is calculated as a percentage of the retail price, or 50 percent, according to Entrepreneur.com. Another way to think of keystone is to double the cost.

You could have a church thrift shop on church property to avoid paying rent. However, that may not generate the best traffic. Choose a spot that gets lots of drive-by traffic. If possible, situate the thrift store near other bargain stores or manufacturing outlets and seconds stores. When choosing the site, keep in mind how much inventory you'll be offering. A crowded store is difficult for customers to navigate and find what they want. A large store with the merchandise spread out looks like it doesn't have much to offer.

Even though you're operating a thrift store you still need a marketing plan to let potential customers know you're there and what kinds of products you have. Use newspaper advertising, establish a website and develop a promotional program.

Cash and checks may seem to be the most convenient ways for you to collect the money from sales. Credit or debit card transactions involve fees and applying for and being accepted for a merchant account with a company that processes the transactions. Unfortunately, if you don't accept credit cards and debit cards you will lose sales.