Please Help setting up a business!!

jmd355

Hi,

Funny you should be thinking of setting up an ironing business - I want to set up on my own doing Domestic Cleaning, but also wanted some advice about how to do it, price charging etc. I know I would have to get public liabilty insurance but can anyone think of anything else I would need to do please?

jmd355

Hi,

Funny you should be thinking of setting up an ironing business - I want to set up on my own doing Domestic Cleaning, but also wanted some advice about how to do it, price charging etc. I know I would have to get public liabilty insurance but can anyone think of anything else I would need to do please?

Mark7799

I would agree with Business Link as your starting point (assuming you are based in England) http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/

Take some time out before you start to do some planning as to how you will operate.

Ensure your car insurance covers you for using the car for business purposes (social domestic and pleasure cover is not enough)
Is there anything in your home insurance cover about operating a business from home?
Public laibility insurance may be worth considering
You don't HAVE to register with the Revenue until 3 months after you start the business.
Ensure you have a spare iron always ready in case of breakdown/malfunction!

Good luck:T

vodka-queen

HI Mark!

have got a 3 hour seminar with business link on tuesday morning:j am looking forward to that, Husband getting in touch with car insurance tomorrow as he is the driver (im currently learning), Spoke to Inland revenue, they told me I had 3 months so if its a go slow then i wont persue it. also got app at bank next week to go through business banking with their business banking manager :T
everything is done on paper its just getting the customers now lol, as i type i am printing off 500 leaflets! am paying my kids a £ each to help me deliver them!! bargain!
all thats left to do is wait for the phone to ring!

Savvy_Sue

vodkaqueen, the only thing I'd say about binbags is that YOU need another bag to carry things around in: I know you'll put the shirts back on hangers, but anything you fold up after ironing you might want to pack flat. Also if people are delivering (or you're picking up) heavy binbags, they're a bit prone to splitting! You don't want people's clean clothes falling on the ground or you WILL have to start washing as well as ironing!

What I use for laundry are those big bags you can get from IKEA - 25p! Or, for a little more, probably from your local pound shop, you can get those sort of woven plastic bags with a zip, they're a similar size (actually I think they come in at least two sizes) but if it's wet they'll give a bit more protection. DS1 uses them to get his 'stuff' to and from Uni in our car, and also when he was in halls for carting his laundry to and from the launderette.

vodka-queen

i have bought some plastic tubs from wilkos £1 each to return clothing in, gonna let customers keep them if they are regular customers if not i will bring them back with me.
hubs and i are going to ikea on monday so will look out for those bags :-)

Thanks x

lellie

The ikea bags are a good idea - or the checked plastic laundry ones - they're oblong too - so a better shape for getting clothes in.

How long does it take you to do a half bag - bearing in mind you could probably get 20+ shirts in that space? You should probably be looking to earn £15 an hour or so for something like ironing?

The ikea bags might be better for pricing up too - as bin bags vary in size!

vodka-queen

Im charging £15 per black bin bag and £3 per carrier bag, hubs said that was cheap, also offering 15% off first order, am doing free collection and delivery too, its been 2 days since leaflets went up in shop windows and not heard a thing - well apart from a friend phoning to wind me up :rotfl:
all i need is 4 bin bags a week to be able to match what i earn now and be able to work from home and give my job up, 4 customers - surely there must be 4! somewhere.....anywhere!!:D

lellie

I'm sure you will get them but it will take a while for word to get around - do you have kids - ask at the school gate if anyone is interested? Or hand around leaflets at your hubby's work? (assuming he works) There must be someone that is too busy wanting ironing done.

£15 does sound pretty cheap.. Good luck with it - it will take time, but I'm sure it will take off.

vodka-queen

yes have 3 children, in the youngest ones part at school there is a notice board so am putting one up there tomorow, hubs works as a bus driver - how handy is that! he is going to slide some leaflets in the metro papers you get on buses and mention it to the people getting on the free tesco/asda shoppers, also put a leaflet up in his canteen at work.