Young man needing ideas for a business

Iceburg1

Hey everyone

I'm 21 and have been in and out of employment for awhile and I'm thinking that maybe I should try starting a small business. I don't really have any skills as the only jobs I've had have been security.. But I'm determined to make it work as I need to do something!

So you guys share some of you're wisdom and give me some advice.. Maybe business ideas and how to go about it.

Any help will be much appreciated

SailorSam

You'll find making a success much easier if you enjoy what you're doing. Do you have any hobbies or skills you can expand on.
Start by going through all the old threads on here about small businesses or earning extra money and see if anything takes your fancy.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=145

Iceburg1

Well I love animals and volunteer at a dog rescue.

SailorSam

Maybe if you've got a lot of older people who can't manage anymore you could start a dog walking service for them.

bryanb

Guard dogs?

Iceburg1

Well I don't have a lot of capital for guard dogs or space for a kennel to house them.. But do any of you know about business loans? And I tried that in the past e.g dog walking adverts but no success but ill try that again!

lincroft1710

What you should be saying is "I like the idea of being/doing ...." rather than "I want to start my own business, what can I do, what loans are available".

Think hard, really hard, what would you enjoy doing?

paddyrg

Grooming? Training? I can understand wanting to work with dogs, if only they didn't have human owners!

nickj_2

how about training as a dog groom, hair cuts etc,do a good job at a reasonable price+ once you have your regulr clients you will have repeat customers

if not , how about gardening, again , once you have your round of regulars then you're laughing

LushesFaith

Iceburg1 wrote: »

Well I don't have a lot of capital for guard dogs or space for a kennel to house them.. But do any of you know about business loans? And I tried that in the past e.g dog walking adverts but no success but ill try that again!

decide what you want to do - put together a business plan. It may be worth brainstorming a few ideas and even have a business plan for more than one business and then go with the one you choose. You can get a start up loan from a startup loans company via gov. but they are secured against you and not your business x

im-lost

Iceburg1 wrote: »

Well I don't have a lot of capital for guard dogs or space for a kennel to house them.. But do any of you know about business loans? And I tried that in the past e.g dog walking adverts but no success but ill try that again!

if you're out of work ask the jobcentre about startuploans and new enterprise allowance, its essentially JSA paid for 26? weeks whilst you setup a business, you can also get small loans to enable you to start up, mentoring etc etc, but you will need an idea first