Want to work from home but not sure what you can do? The Hot Home Business Directory helps you find a business to run out of your home, lists the skills you need to do it and explains how to get started and where to get more information. Read on to find out if this Hot Home Biz is for you!
What You'll Do:
Create unique wreaths that function as decorative indoor and/or outdoor fixtures and that fit the décor and style of your customers. You can easily start this business as a part-time job and then expand to full-time as you gather more customers and markets. You can purchase wreath supplies from wholesale growers or craft shops or gather natural materials if you live in a rural area. You might also grow the materials yourself if you are able.
Skills You'll Need:
A flair for design and handicrafts, a sense of creativity and knowledge of various dried flowers, weeds and other decorative materials. To hone these skills, you can take wreath-making courses at craft shops, craft centers or adult evening schools. Working in a dried flower or wreath shop might also help you garner experience and ideas for your craft.
Items You'll Need:
You may want to use a computer for keeping inventory and accounting files or for building and maintaining a Website. You might also want a fax for receiving orders and two phone lines, so you can use the fax and phone simultaneously. Other items you'll need include:
- Glue and glue gun
- Pruning shears
- Wreath frames
- Dried flowers, vines, weeds and other natural materials
- Decorative accessories
- Drying shed (if drying your own materials)
- Workroom
- Display rack
- Large cardboard boxes for carrying and storing wreaths
- Flexible wire or hangers
Start-Up Costs:
You will spend between $8 and $25 on materials for a single wreath. About $600 to $2,000 will go toward additional supplies, advertising and promotional materials. Sources for these start-up costs can include personal savings, lines of credit from your bank and loans from family and friends. (Note: Your pricing can range from $30 to $350 per wreath, depending on the materials used and whether it is custom-designed. At a weekend craft show, you could potentially earn $700 to $2,000.)
Marketing and Advertising Tips:
You can begin selling your wreaths at craft shows and then move on to home and holiday boutiques. To show off your wreaths, you can donate samples to a community auction or rent a booth at a home show. You should contact interior decorators for referrals. In addition, you should get in touch with real estate agents and ask to decorate sample homes and make direct calls to stores, businesses and institutions that are being built or redecorated.
Tips for Success:
Be unique
For More Information:
- Visit the Crafters Home Business message board to get advice and help on starting a crafting business
- Check out the Vermont Wreath Company for supplies for professional wreath makers
Adapted from 101 Best Home-Based Businesses for Women by Priscilla Y. Huff. Copyright © by Priscilla Y. Huff. Adapted by permission of Crown, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this adaptation may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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