A new business! What business will you be in?

So what made you choose the ostrich farm?

So you’ve decided you want to make the move! Now you have to decide exactly what kind of business you are going to start.

Realistically, some types of business are more likely to succeed in a difficult financial climate than others.

If you want to start up a business it is good thing to approach the market place with an open mind! You need to combine your passion with the sort of business that is likely to thrive.

You could think, for example, about some of the following:

Things that people always need, for example, food and basic things for the home!
In an economic downturn, people are looking for cheap versions of luxury goods
The market aimed at people aged over 50 may still be growing, as they may have equity in their property and savings
You could consider buying a business that is already established; say when the present owner retires! But be careful here and make sure it really is financially soundly based!
Franchises – an established franchise stands a good chance of surviving when economic conditions are tough as they have experience and time-honed, streamlined systems and processes. But again be careful and check out the financials before you commit.

Then there is the kind of service that Dave is considering. More and more people have computers and may work at home. They need support and providing home-based computer training may be one way to meet their needs. But home workers will have lots of other needs that you could think about meeting!

Once you have a business idea, you need to find out if there really is a market.

Small scale surveys and getting small groups of people together to discuss your idea could be low cost ways to gather information. But bear in mind that your friends will be biased in your favour.

Ensure that the customer is central to your business idea. Consider whether they would really buy your product or service, particularly in the context of the current market.

Use your local library and the internet to find out what people are saying about the sector you want to join.

It is worth looking at the business pages of newspapers for information about the issues involved in an economic downturn and their effect on businesses. Understanding these issues will help you develop strategies for coping with them.

Difficult market conditions are often caused by very specific issues, such as an unavailability of loan finance. Diagnosing these issues and seeing to what extent they affect you, will allow you to rethink the nature and scale of, as well as the market for, your business.

Once you have tweaked your business idea for current market conditions, it needs to be implemented through a full business plan and a decision on the legal structure of your business. And those will be the subjects of the next post you find here.

But remember at the end of the day, this is going to be your business and something that you are going to live with day by day (and some nights).

Remember to choose something you really care about – without passion, and the energy that comes from it, no new business is likely to survive.

I am Wendy Mason and I work as a Coach, Consultant and Writer.

As a coach, I work with all kinds of people going through many different kinds of personal and career change, particularly those;

looking for work
looking for promotion or newly promoted
moving between Public and Private Sectors
facing redundancy
moving into retirement

I am very good at helping you sort out what you want, overcome obstacles and handle change. Email me at wendymason@wisewolfconsulting.com for more information