as a spin-off from the store FAIL post how about this thought game. you have all the bucks you need to buy in bulk what you think are the best twenty items.your store is small and inside a mall where you will get lots of traffic.the only rule is no guns so anyone of any age is welcome to buy without a adults only,permit hassle problems.the items are displayed in the open sort of like Ikea and by the time your customer as made the loop down the aisle and back they have the best BOB,survival kit,so on they could buy.Brookstone for our gang here.
it's 1:30 AM and i want to get to bed but i'll be back in the AM with my list.remember just one of each item,one ax,one fire steel,one knife,one ration pack....if you want to avoid brand names just say "internal frame pack".."carbon steel knife with 10 inch blade".

Fun ... Assume for mine that all are quality items (Ie, no coglan's and very little Gerber)
1) fixed knife - benchmade or mora
2) folding multi tool - leatherman or SOG
3) Internal frame large pack (ie, > 3000 cubic inches) I like Kelty, but there are plenty of good options
4) Day pack - ditto above
5) Food (either MRI, mountain house, survival bars, etc)
6) FAK - something in the AMK 1-3 day range
7) Sleeping bag - synthetic, local specific (ie, 20 degree bag for me)
8) Sleeping pad
9) rope
10) GPS
11) SPOT or PRB
12) maps? Maybe a printer to make custom maps from software
13) light of some sort. Probably a multi level LED headlamp
14) Canteen, Nalgene-type. I hate water bladders
15) Rain gear - Marmot, Outdoor Research, North face or similar
16) Compass - Silva is my preferred brand

I'll have to think hard for the rest ...

MDinana - You need to add to your store some kind of fire-making and cooking supplies. Firesteels. Packaged tinders. Alcohol burners. Tarps. Maybe inexpensive tents. Paracord. Whistles. Signal mirrors. Emergency bivvy bag (like the AMK HeatSheets ones). Water purification tablets, filters, etc. A handful of decent survival books.

I would certainly patronize a well done store like this. Much of the stuff you would want available at one location. Not massively overpriced.

I don't think a local mall store would do well in the long term though. Not enough customer traffic after the initial wave of folks concerned about being prepared.

I have been to stores described in the OP. They are called Bass Pro, Cabela's, Gander Mountain, REI, etc...

Its not too hard to find stuff like tents and sleeping bags. The gear I'd be interested is the smaller hard to find gear, like those plastic Fresnel lenses, good snare wire, whistles, good ferro rods, wilderness-related first aid gear, tiny lightweight shelters, and other fairly survival-specific gear (like some of the more unusual knife-related devices). Even Mora knives aren't that common to find in local stores. I find some of the countycomm.com stuff interesting - but not all of it.

Keep in mind that I'm not much of a "kit" maker. I tend to think more in terms of having the right reliable gear, and packaging it such that essential gear can't get "lost" and so I can/do carry those essentials while wandering around near camp.

I should also admit that I've found myself past the peak of gear-buying. I'd tried out most of what I'm interested in, have slowed down the buying, and started enjoying what I have.

I do wish people would stop dissing Coghlan's. I've used various of their products over the years (and I am talking 30+ years here!), and I for one will take their waterproof matches and matchsafes over pretty much any other brand on the market.
The wax firelighters are also excellent and their own version of the DOAN is petty good as well. Certain idiots who throw things off roofs at minus whatever degrees Fahrenheit not withstanding that is.

The way to distinguish from a Cabelas, Bass Pro or REI is have ready made kits or packs already set up, instead of putting a basket together.

Especially with med kits. A small fanny pack, large group fanny pack, a roll up/roll out large family med kit for home or car, or a bulkier backpack or external pack attaching kit.

The big box outdoor stores rarely sell MayDay bars, so while buckets of Wise 72 hour kits or a case of food for X days, sell 1200, 2400, 3600 MayDay bars over the Mtn House meals for two and powerbars.

The only way to be unique is to cater directly to a prepper mentality which is differ than hunting, camping, fishing, outdoors.

Although a lot of it is junk, some of Coghlan's stuff is not bad. I am specifically looking for some of these tent stakes they make (but at a local store if possible):

http://www.amazon.com/Coghlans-1000-4-Co...rds=tent+stakes

Inexpensive, and reports are they're pretty decent. I like the added length of the Coghlan's stakes compared to some of the other similar offerings.

You are pretty much reinventing the wheel here. Most of the described items can be obtained from REI. While it is nostalgic to think of a mall store, your sales will be much better if you have a significant internet presence.