Personalised Childrens Books Businesses

mrsdumplin

Hi,

My baby is 13 weeks old and I REALLY dont want to go back to work, but unfortuneatly do need the income by job brings in.

I have been looking into changes of career etc, but unless I work from home I'm not going to gain out of it what I'm after which is spending time with my daughter.

I dont think I'm going to find anything which will allow me to give up my career completly but If i can supplement my income by working at home I might be able to reduce to part time.

I have seen an opportunity which quite appeals to me, which is making and selling childrens personalised books...

Start up costs are around £500,

I just wondered if anyone had any experence doing this type of thing, or has anyother suggestions?

Thanks

suseb_99

Hi, This sounds like it could be a really good idea especially for christmas and birthdays etc..
I am in a similar situation, my daughter is now 15mths and I work part time but really need to find some extra income...

just a few questions:
Is it a franchise ?
What exactly does the 500 cover ?
Will they be supporting you ??

Suse

Caroline73_2

How much do you sell the books for? and what would your profit margin be? Where would you sell them?

I sell childrens books and was approached by a publisher to do this. Prices ranged from £10-£30! the books I sell range from £1.99 to £20 and I sell in bulk to schools, as well as to individuals. I get repeat customers, but I couldn't see that happening with personalised books.

mrsdumplin

Hi,

It's a franchise of sorts, basicly you pay for the software which is £99 unless you order a starter pack of 20 of each books @ £2.50 each.

I allowed for a new printer in my start up cost.

They dont really support you, if you have queries they will answer but your pretty much on your own.

I think I could sell them for about £9 each maybe plus P&P, I think I could make about £5 per book...I'm going to try and get a sample see what I'll actually be selling.

I'd have to do a lot of marketing as like you said I might not get a lot of repeat business. My friend is a Phoenix trader so I thought about doing both birthday cards and birthday presents....

Thanks
Lisa

edgex

so you would be printing parts of the books at home, on a standard home printer
& you then think you could sell them for £9

if they are the sort of items that could actually fit into a standard printer, they wont be worth £9

mrsdumplin

I'm waiting for the sample book to come through, the pages are already printed I just print in the childs name, they are hardback books.

well. cross your fingers for me...it could be the worst or most productive £350 I've ever spent!

Caroline73_2

How are the books bound if you are printing them?

So you are looking at £12 a book if you include P&P. I would be surprised if you can sell them for this to be honest. Your £5 'profit ' will also need to include marketing costs, tax and NI.

Where are you intending to sell them?

mrsdumplin

Hi,

I bind them, the guy said its not hard...like I said I'm waiting for the sample so I can see for myself...#

I'm starting small, coffee mornings, local town monthly mag, posters in playgroup, nursery...I'm going to Phoenix so will have them out at coffee mornings...A friend is setting me up a website...so I can sell both from. thats all I've though of so far...I'm new to this.

When the sample comes thorugh I'm going to ask people what they will be prepared to pay for it....before I commit.

Thanks

flea72

ok, if you are binding them yourself, they are only going to be comb bindings, or stapled. also the most basic printer you could use would be a laser printer, at £200+ (for a crappy one), with toner at least £50 per colour (so £200 for a 4 colour set) - set-up costs are already mounting, before you even factor in the cost of purchasing the books and software

also amazon and ebay are already awash with these types of items, and they are the first place most people hit online if interested in these products

Do Pheonix allow you to market other products alongside their own? as some dont allow this as part of their selling terms. so you couldnt have a trade stand, offering both items at a coffee morning

i wouldnt ask people what they would be prepared to pay for an item - even good friends/family will over exaggerate their willingness. i would look for other similar completed sales on ebay, as a truer guide, and note how many listed but didnt sell

F