I hear a lot of folks (not just here) talk about how those out of work should start a small business. So - Let's have at it.
If you were going to start a small business, what would it be and why?
Example 1: One fellow I knew was in maintenance for years at a metal stamping company. A couple years after becoming the maintenance supervisor he quit and started his own business. He bought a couple of used presses and set them up in a building on his property. He then went out and got 'over flow' from companies which took on contracts they did not have the capacity for, which have equipment problems, or some other capacity issue. It is interesting that most of his work is undocumented outsourcing where he can get dies back to the customer quickly in case a customer would want to visit and see their dies... As we all know, this practice, though very common, is frowned upon (this is not a reflection on him, but rather his customers).
Example 2: One fellow, about 8 years ago, decided to blacktop driveways. He had a hard time holding jobs because, like me (ahem...) he found it difficult to work in what my restaurant friend calls an 'insane' envirionment. He has no staff - He hires people for each job (temps). Last year he netted over US$95,000 (gross was over US$200,000). Most of his work these days is from government - Local road work, but he also has a number of 'big name' accounts such as the local Walmart's parking area. My opinion as to why he succeeded is he is a 'good personality' company. In this case, it's his personality. But I believe if he was put in a position as a CEO in a big company and given the power, that company would become a 'good personality' company.
Example 3: This web site. I'll throw this in because it has become an income source for me, even though that was not the original intention, nor do I have a 'business model' for it. I'd say it's moderately successful, but then again there are web site owners out there makes thousands of $ every week if not every day (last year this site grossed about US$27K). As to why it has 'succeeded' (as in been around a long time), and I'm guessing that to some degree it is 'succeeding' (opinion territory), I can't say. Even sitting here right now typing, it amazes me that the site is what it is and that so many people spend so much time to help out others with their problems. But - I'm thinking about the blacktop business....
So - Small business ideas. What business? Why would it succeed? Startup costs? Any details which you would like to give.
If you were going to start a small business, what would it be and why?
Example 1: One fellow I knew was in maintenance for years at a metal stamping company. A couple years after becoming the maintenance supervisor he quit and started his own business. He bought a couple of used presses and set them up in a building on his property. He then went out and got 'over flow' from companies which took on contracts they did not have the capacity for, which have equipment problems, or some other capacity issue. It is interesting that most of his work is undocumented outsourcing where he can get dies back to the customer quickly in case a customer would want to visit and see their dies... As we all know, this practice, though very common, is frowned upon (this is not a reflection on him, but rather his customers).
Example 2: One fellow, about 8 years ago, decided to blacktop driveways. He had a hard time holding jobs because, like me (ahem...) he found it difficult to work in what my restaurant friend calls an 'insane' envirionment. He has no staff - He hires people for each job (temps). Last year he netted over US$95,000 (gross was over US$200,000). Most of his work these days is from government - Local road work, but he also has a number of 'big name' accounts such as the local Walmart's parking area. My opinion as to why he succeeded is he is a 'good personality' company. In this case, it's his personality. But I believe if he was put in a position as a CEO in a big company and given the power, that company would become a 'good personality' company.
Example 3: This web site. I'll throw this in because it has become an income source for me, even though that was not the original intention, nor do I have a 'business model' for it. I'd say it's moderately successful, but then again there are web site owners out there makes thousands of $ every week if not every day (last year this site grossed about US$27K). As to why it has 'succeeded' (as in been around a long time), and I'm guessing that to some degree it is 'succeeding' (opinion territory), I can't say. Even sitting here right now typing, it amazes me that the site is what it is and that so many people spend so much time to help out others with their problems. But - I'm thinking about the blacktop business....
So - Small business ideas. What business? Why would it succeed? Startup costs? Any details which you would like to give.
This site is marvellous in contrast to my husband's similar attempt for Linux users. There wasn't community support for the questions placed in the forum; he ended up researching and answering most of the questions himself, which became too much of a drain.
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