Business Moms

Starting a business from scratch is expensive and very difficult. You have to be an expert in whatever you are doing before you start. Buying a franchise is good because they train you to be an expert however,
VERY expensive. I would keep your options open regarding home businesses. No matter how you slice it, every business is selling something - a product or service. A home business is much less expensive to start. You need to look for one that has amazing training and support systems. I know my business has won awards for it's trainings they offer. The other plus of a home business is that you can leverage your time. Starting your own business...all income is up to you and the hours you put in. Imagine if you opened a Water ice store...there is only so much water ice that I can scoop in a day...but if I taught someone to run a water ice business, they start their own business and I get a small percentage of their business...I am still scooping the same amount of water ice, yet making more. I am in Bucks county...give me a buzz. I would love to talk.

It's extremely hard especially if you are starting from the ground up. If you have very young kids, give it some deep thought. Owning a business is more headache than fun. It can be very rewarding but extremely time consuming and you miss out on a lot with your kids. I've been there. I sold my business to be with my kids. Maybe someday when my kids are older I will venture into this lifestyle again. Good luck whatever you decide.

What kind of business are you looking to start? A typical brick and mortar business could be costly, but if that is what you want then do it. There are a LOT of organizations who help women in business, do a google search in your community, or visit the local business link.

As for income, not sure what you mean, of course you will need some sort of income to sustain your family. Only you can decide what that will look like.

I have done both a typical business and a home based. I MUCH prefer the home based business model. I have done many home based businesses and NONE of them cost me more than $1000 to get started. They all were done with me doing a regular job until it started paying me. That way I eliminated most of the risk.

Currently I run a million dollar a year wellness business from the comfort of my home. It can be done. You just have to find someone who has been there and done that in the area that you want.

The best advice I can give is find something that you are passionate about and they figure out how to get people to pay you for it.

B.
Family Success Coach

My husband has been in sales for 20+ with raw materials. Since he was a rep living pretty far from HQ, I was the one who took care of all his travel, expenses, etc. The company he worked for actually got upset because customers called me instead of his customer service rep at HQ because the customers knew I knew exactly where he was and how fast I could get him. I ended up as his customer service rep.

Move forward a bunch of years, we had the opportunity to set up our LLC and now we run it together. Same industry. He is still the sales guy but he also does the purchasing, brokering, etc of the material and I am the travel person, Quickbooks, manage taxes, etc. it was a win-win for us because we've been in it together for years.

That said, to go on your own..... you need a solid business plan, good CPA and good legal counsel. Although we knew a LOT of about our industry, we are still learing a LOT about tax laws, etc. You have to plan cash flow, set up terms with your customers and manage to get terms with your suppliers. We are very happy we took the plunge and did this together. We do not rely on any bank loans, private equity groups or anything like that.....we are sole owners, with our daughter also as a partner.

Best wishes to you!

it is very hard and costly. i started an insurance agency from scratch. there is a lot to consider. i have been in business for 5 years now and i work all hours of the day. but i also have the benefit of going to all my kids field trips, appointments, activities, etc. they are not in aftercare anymore because my hours are flexible. if you are considering starting a biz from scratch, ask around from people who are in the same business and have done the same thing you are looking to do. they will have a bunch of advice of things you probably haven't thought of. also get an insurance quote for what you are doing. some are very expensive and people sort of 'forget' about the insurance side of it and it can be a significant cost depending on what you are doing. good luck!!!