6. Dog walking and washing The days of pet care starting and ending with shoving a German shepherd into a caged kennel while its owners head to Port Douglas for a two-week break are long gone. There is growing demand for dogs to be pampered with everything from accessories to blow-dried hair. Time-poor owners also […]
The days of pet care starting and ending with shoving a German shepherd into a caged kennel while its owners head to Port Douglas for a two-week break are long gone.
There is growing demand for dogs to be pampered with everything from accessories to blow-dried hair. Time-poor owners also need their canine companions walked for them.
Carl and Manuela Maislinger started their Funky Dogz dog grooming business from home.
“A mobile unit would be good for business but it didn’t suit our family situation,” says Carl.
“The initial set-up costs were about $7,000 and running costs including water and electricity will be a few thousand dollars per year.”
A basic website and word of mouth-based advertising provides Funky Dogz with enough cashflow to operate.
7. Massage
In theory all you need to massage someone is your hands and one of those strange tables with a hole in it.
Costs vary depending on what you specialise in but massage is generally an investment-light sector.
Cameron Blewett from Remedial Massage and Myotherapy says he pays $480 to be part of the Registered Myotherapists Association.
Towels, creams and oils need to be constantly restocked, which can cost around $500 a year.
Blewett says: “I provide acupuncture and use suction cups. The clients enjoy the treatment and are experiencing great results but it does add extra costs.
Tables range in prices quite considerably. They can be anywhere from $280 to $3,000”.
The decision on where to set up will also impact on costs – starting at home will be the most cost effective option followed by a mobile service.
Blewett says that most businesses in the sector take 40% of revenue.
8. Handyman/woman
Provided you have the skills to fix a faulty tap or do a spot of rewiring, all you will need to become a handyperson is a set of tools and transport.
A generational increase in deskbound white collar jobs and time pressures means that many people are looking for help for odd jobs around the house.
Provided you take on much of the work yourself and don’t hire independent contractors from the outset your start-up costs will be low.
Insurance, industry licensing and basic marketing should cost a few thousand dollars.
Tools are a must, although you’ll be able to charge certain items to customers as “materials”.
9. Technology repair business
Computer installing and repair businesses may be threatened by the falling cost of technology, meaning people will simply replace equipment rather than mend it, but there remains a need to assist the computer illiterate.
Some very simple tools and dextrous fingers are all it takes to help people with their computers.
Ty Koers, who built a living from recommending, purchasing and installing computer hardware and software for small businesses, says: “I just have some basic little tools to pull apart and put computers back together but apart from that it’s just my car and my phone that I need.
“I spend lots of time researching new products and talking with manufactures. The business is based on my clients trusting my knowledge.”
Koers has never advertised his business, instead relying on word of mouth for jobs.
10. Bookkeeper
Basic bookkeeping roles can be undertaken by someone who has some accounting software training, which costs around $400.
Given high school bookkeeping knowledge and ability to work at clients’ premises that could be the main expense, with costs rising the more you attempt to take on.
To be a registered BAS agent you must be registered with the Tax Practitioners Board, which costs $100 every three years, have professional indemnity insurance starting at $400, qualifications will cost between $1,000-$35,000, 15 hours of continuing education at $1,500 a year, plus associated software, internet and phone costs.
