Dutchy Posted January 3, 2008 Report Share Posted January 3, 2008 Hi guys, I'm thinking of starting a small business at university that could have major potential. Are there any business owners / entrepreneurs on the boards?? I'm looking to get as much advice / info / suggestions before I take any real action. Just to clarify, I'm not exposing my plans / idea yet because you never know if someone takes the chance from under your nose or becomes competition, hehe. Anyway, was just wondering. No matter how big the company or what kind of entrepreneur (nor how successful). I'm just looking for information! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dutchy Posted January 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2008 LOL, thanks V for the 'zing!' rating, hehe. Come on guys, no one here their own boss?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jraines87 Posted January 3, 2008 Report Share Posted January 3, 2008 LOL, thanks V for the 'zing!' rating, hehe. Come on guys, no one here their own boss?? Be prepared to work long hours, go without pay, drink coffee at all hours, go in debt, etc...... Been there done that. It's hard to give advice unless we know a little more about your plan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b16a2 Posted January 3, 2008 Report Share Posted January 3, 2008 Hey there Dutchy. Im in the same boat as you. I'm a partner in the family construction firm. Although Im at uni I still help run it part time. When business is going well it pays dividends. When it has a quiet phase, it can be tough. Thankfully we have had a constant flow of work recently. A year and a half ago though, we had a few months where there was a slight downturn. Cash flow was a problem. It certainly has pro's and con's. We work until we finish the job, and if we don't have another job to do, we have the afternoon off, funded by the previous job. When you take time off for holiday, you dont get paid. However, if it is successful the income should even out. Know your market well. Thoroughly research it. Have a realistic target, and a time frame. Do the number crunching, and make sure it is viable. If it is possible, test the market first before you make the jump and invest a large quantity of money and time. If you're overheads are high, and it doesn't work out, it will be a stressful period. If you have done your research, and the numbers look good, check everything again. If you're convinced by realistic and positive evidence that it will succeed try it. Sorrry I can't be a little more specific without further details of the venture., Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfreeman420 Posted January 4, 2008 Report Share Posted January 4, 2008 I have been an entrepreneur since I was 10. I used to sell blow pops in school. The great thing was my mom bought them and I sold them for a quarter. All profit. Too bad I can't convince anyone to fund me with the same business model today . I am also in the midst of starting a new business and have been down this road many times. Unfortunatley many things I have marketed have had short life spans although have been very successful in a short period of time. The last was a residential development in Costa Rica. We successfully sold close to 300 home sites in 2 years. One piece of advice I can pass along to you is one that I heard from Ted Turner. He said "do what you love and the money will come". This is some of the best advice I have ever heard. You must be passionate about whatever you do or you will not be excited about it and you will fail miserably. If you don't have passion about whatever product or service you are marketing you will never be able to get any customers excited about buying your product or service. If you don't lose sleep because you have so many ideas on how to make money rolling around in your head you are probably not a business man. I was up until 5:00 this morning typing copy for my new website. I have people I deal with ask me "why were yu emailing me at 3am? This all boils down to passion. I love making deals and I love making business happen. Nothing else in this world gives me the same rush. The next thing I can tell you is make sure you have enough money to do exactly what you want to do. I have had and seen many good ideas go down the toilet because they were undercapitalized. You need to find someone with money who is willing to invest in you. At the same time don't compromise your vision for a partner who wants too much control. There is a fine balance between venture capital and working partners. Don't give up. Starting a new business is not easy. You will encounter a lot of pitfalls. Your friends and family will tell you you are crazy. Surround yourself with successful people who you can learn from and take every bump in the road or even failure as a learning experience. I have had many businesses fail. Any successful entrepreneur will tell you they have had at least 5 or 6 failures before they found a winner. Good Luck. If it is possible, test the market first before you make the jump and invest a large quantity of money and time. If you're overheads are high, and it doesn't work out, it will be a stressful period. If you have done your research, and the numbers look good, check everything again. If you're convinced by realistic and positive evidence that it will succeed try it. Research is great, but all your research is worth squat without real world trial and error. I am more of a gambler than most and have gone broke as many times as I have gotten rich. Gotta roll the dice............ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keith_bran Posted January 4, 2008 Report Share Posted January 4, 2008 Hi Dutchy - I've worked for myself pretty much all my life. I've been deaf since birth and "doing my own thing" has always been easier than working in some environment like an office where, meaningfully or not, prejudice occurs. The advent of email was an absolute godsend to me. The main piece of advice I would give is not to concern yourself with expanding too quickly. If you don't need a flash (expensive) office, work from home. The BMW can wait. Unless you really really need staff, don't employ them. Even a secretarial assistant will cost you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dutchy Posted January 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2008 WOW, I didn't expect this level of openness and advice, many many thanks guys!! I am returning to England tomorrow morning, arrive Sunday afternoon, and have exams pretty much right after (Monday morning, Wednesday and Friday). I will do my best to explain a bit more on what it is what I want to do. I'm starting off with one aspect of the business idea, and if it works, great, if it doesn't I wouldn't have lost a lot of cash or anything. I'll keep you updated and many thanks once again for all your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
llsteve80 Posted January 8, 2008 Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 Dutchy, I am also planning on starting a small business in the college town I will hopefully be attending when I return to college in August. I'm basing my business model on several different companies that I have worked for since I decided college wasn't my way. (I was dead wrong BTW) First things first though, I have to get all of my records in order and actually get IN. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeJay Posted January 8, 2008 Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 All fantastic advice, I can't really think of anything to add, other than 'get the money upfront'. I've learned that the hard way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevie7s Posted January 8, 2008 Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 Dutchy, I should have you talk to my wife...she thinks she's a friggin' know-it-all. Good luck with your venture. I had done it in the past and plan on doing it again very soon. Remember the words of Mario Andretti, "Find a job that you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeJay Posted January 8, 2008 Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 I forgot to say... Don't do 'freebies' for friends and family... Enough to be considered 'advertizing' is one thing, but after that, it is a case of any work you're doing free for them, someone else would be paying for Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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