Small Business Idea- should we trial first?

jellybean09

My sister and I have come up with a business idea, its basically handcrafted personalised gifts, ornaments etc more so aimed towards baby gifts, christenings etc

There are other businesses out there doing very similar. We have our own twists on design etc and a huge range of ideas to trial.

We are only at the stage of just starting to trial some peices. Costing materials, time, whether its feasible and we will actually make money etc

We aim to sell to family and friends etc to begin with, mainly to build up stock photos, get a feel for the work etc before deciding if its something we can start to advertise as a business. Will more than likely go down the Ebay route first off and decide from there.

Is it a good idea to trial things the way we are first? im hesitant that if it does go well and we start earning money and get into the swing of things that when we do come to set up officially we may have done something wrong (tax etc) by earning and not declaring ourselves as a business.

I still havent managed to figure out the process of how to even set a business up and whether we would need financial help etc etc

Any advice greatly appreciated. Have begun looking at business links website to try and get a feel of what the next steps are, legalitys etc

pinkclouds

I'm not an accountant but I believe you are able to earn money from a hobby so long as you declare the income. (There is a space on your self assessment form for this, as far as I can recall.) I think this sounds like a reasonable way to trial your idea before setting up a business.

paulwf

The main thing is to keep good records of everything you buy and sell and register as self employed with HMRC - that will be the main things you'll need to start with.

If Business Link are still running their free courses book those as they are a good place to start, and call them up to get some free friendly advice.

You should write a business plan as soon as possible which is invaluable to make you stop and think and plan the steps you need to take to get up and running. It should be a fluid document i.e. perhaps just a bare framework now but revise and fill in more details as you go along.

On a general note there do seem to be a huge number of threads from people making handmade cards and selling them on Ebay. It must be a very saturated market and Ebay fees soon add up.

jellybean09

Thanks for the replies.

Will take the advice on board for definate.

I think the idea we have is becoming more popular, especially with the 'shabby chic' style being in. However I do think we have an individual twist that will prove to be popular even styles change etc these products can adapt quite easily.

Ebay will be a temporary thing just to get started up and get a feel for what is most popular etc. We aim to then approach smaller botique style shops, possibly design a website etc there are many options and ideas its just trying to get it lifted.

paddyrg

Also try etsy.com - buyers go looking for handcrafted stuff, not just the cheapest prices.

jellybean09

Great idea. I have actually used the site myself before and hadnt thought of it yet.

I think we will go down a budget range as well as a premium range, advertising wherever suits best and hopefully attracting a wider market.

paulwf

I forgot to say earlier OP - how much money do you want to make out of this? Say for instance you both wanted the equivalent of a full time minimum wage income out of it, so around £12K each and £24K altogether.

Work back from there...if you sell a card for £3 and £1 of that goes on materials and another £1 on expenses and overheads that leaves you with £1. That means you have to sell 24,000 cards a year to reach your target!

Basically if you want a reasonable income out of the business either aim for higher value items or work out a way you can crank out thousands of items in a semi automated process.

easyhost

jellybean09 wrote: »

My sister and I have come up with a business idea, its basically handcrafted personalised gifts, ornaments etc more so aimed towards baby gifts, christenings etc

There are other businesses out there doing very similar. We have our own twists on design etc and a huge range of ideas to trial.

We are only at the stage of just starting to trial some peices. Costing materials, time, whether its feasible and we will actually make money etc

We aim to sell to family and friends etc to begin with, mainly to build up stock photos, get a feel for the work etc before deciding if its something we can start to advertise as a business. Will more than likely go down the Ebay route first off and decide from there.

Is it a good idea to trial things the way we are first? im hesitant that if it does go well and we start earning money and get into the swing of things that when we do come to set up officially we may have done something wrong (tax etc) by earning and not declaring ourselves as a business.

I still havent managed to figure out the process of how to even set a business up and whether we would need financial help etc etc

Any advice greatly appreciated. Have begun looking at business links website to try and get a feel of what the next steps are, legalitys etc

summer is approaching and so is the season of summer craft fairs. get a few samples/ trial pieces together, look at tour local authority website for whats on or if you know of a few fairs, get a stall at some of them, most are held in marquees and you get a 6 foot table. this way you can gauge what the public think of your items and if this works then a good step is a website

WPN

You need to do your market research. A trial is perfect to ensure there is a need and also will help for any loans/investment you might consider needing to startup as a business.

easyhost

WPN wrote: »

You need to do your market research. A trial is perfect to ensure there is a need and also will help for any loans/investment you might consider needing to startup as a business.

true thats why i suggested local craft fairs as these are a great way to test the market and these will be a way to look at your competitors, do some networking and find whats the best way to sell and also the people that visit these fairs are those who are interested in crafts (your potential customers) and at the same times make a few quid.