These people managed to make money from their hobby and with little investment. A unique hobby - a sustainable business model

Every passionate person sooner or later thinks about earning extra money.

The first thing that comes to mind is to make a business out of a hobby. And this is quite real. Firstly, you are good at what you are passionate about and know a lot about your hobby. Secondly, you don’t have to start from scratch, since you already have not only the skills, but also the initial tools to implement your plans. All that remains is to sort out the details, weigh the risks and move from plans and dreams to action.

What hobbies can you build a business on?

You can turn almost any hobby into a business, both well-known and popular ones and the most rare ones. Suitable for earning money:

All types of handicrafts, even if you live in a small village where there is no one to sell handicrafts.
Drawing in any technique, including creating digital images.
Photography and photo processing.
Everything related to the beauty of women, men and pets.
Love of gardening, gardening and landscape design.
The ability to compose elements and beautifully express thoughts in prose.
An unrealized dream of becoming an artist or singer, TV program host or announcer.
Cooking.
Love for children.
Floriculture and floristry.
Interest in digital technologies.

The list of hobbies that can actually be turned into a profitable business can be continued endlessly. After all, what you create easily, others cannot do.

Handicraft business - brief plan

Most women dream of making money from their favorite handicraft. And this is more than realistic, because handmade crafts are now very popular and in demand not only in the domestic market, but also abroad.

Perhaps this is a question that, if not all mothers on maternity leave, then most of our readers ask themselves. Where to start? How to continue? Is it even possible to turn a hobby into a business? Yes, he answers with confidence. Hope, who, being a full-time mother, decided to open her own business. She writes about how it develops, about the difficulties and joys of all stages of the development of a “business for the soul” in her blog "Mom's business from scratch". It is intended for mothers who want to start their own business, but do not know where to start, or doubt their abilities, think that they cannot combine raising children and working for themselves.

We are confident that today’s guest post by Nadezhda and the articles that you will find on her blog will help you, if not start your own business, then at least find answers to many questions about working without interrupting motherhood.

Man is an active being, to feel happiness he needs to do something, create (and not sit straight on his butt, drinking cocktails, as they try to convince us through advertising). That is why we, mothers, even despite our exceptional busyness in raising the new generation, find a moment to knit, embroider, draw, sew or compose.

And one day the thought arises: shouldn’t I turn my hobby into a job? In a matter for the soul? Yes! Convert! But how? What needs to be done to implement it? How to take a step separating hobby from business?

In this article I will talk about a hobby that involves doing something with your hands, on a computer, and so on. When we receive the finished product. But many points in the plan are very applicable to all types of hobbies. The main thing is to understand how you can monetize creativity, and go ahead!

How to turn a hobby into a business: first steps

Firstly, and this is the most important thing, put aside false modesty and stop putting off starting your own business just because you don’t yet know how to draw as cool as that guy from England, or embroider as cool as the woman you wrote about read it in a magazine. Because no matter what peak of skill you are at, the requirements for your level will always increase, so with such thoughts you may never open your own business.

Cast aside your fears and get started! And in no case do not pay attention to spiteful critics (such, alas, there are), dissatisfied with the fact that “he can’t do anything, but he sells his handicrafts, he would be ashamed.” I have met such people, professionals in their field, intolerant of beginners - well, that’s their problem! Each product has its own buyer. We buy things that evoke emotions in us, touch the soul, and not because of professional execution. So create from your heart and you will be successful. And a high level of technology will come with time.

Secondly, try to communicate with those who support you and, perhaps, are already successful in this area. What to do if a loved one does not support you? Shouldn't you stop communicating with him? Of course not, but try not to bring up the sore subject in conversations with him. Man is a creature of habit, and if you don’t constantly add fuel to the fire, then most likely he will gradually “endure it, fall in love.” And in this case, for understanding, go to the Internet (forums, websites, blogs on your topic) and to real (offline) meetings on interests. As much positive reinforcement and motivation as possible, this is very important!

Blog to help!

But what exactly needs to be done? We're all moms with blogs here, so we know that the easiest way is to start a blog and promote yourself with it. Blog on the topic of your hobby and new business. And write to it as often as possible – ideally, every day. Make yourself a plan: how many creations do you want to post approximately per month (week). If your items take a long time to create, you can post the stages - with comments, explanations, this is even more interesting!

The trick is to do this consistently. Even in the very first months, when you seem to be writing only for close friends and family, even then you need to write regularly. This will keep your blog visitors coming back, knowing that if they haven’t visited it for a day or two or three, there is already new interesting information that will probably be useful to them.

So, you write on a blog and appear on forums and in thematic communities. You post there photographs of your works and descriptions of them.

And also a photo circle

Try to take the best, most interesting photographs possible. It’s one thing if you sell your work to stores, and another thing if you sell it online, where the buyer cannot touch it and examine it from all sides. You need to give the opportunity to see your work from its best side and at the same time realistic.

Good quality (no graininess, moderately bright so that details can be seen). With a thoughtful composition (don’t fill up the horizon, don’t leave an ill-considered large empty space just because you don’t want to edit the photo in Photoshop). With good sharpness (it is provided by daylight). With an interesting (or just white) background, maybe with decoration (a classic of the genre: coffee soap sprinkled with coffee beans). Be sure to do it from different angles: closer, further away, from the side, from above. Firstly, so that the buyer can accurately imagine what he is purchasing - and buy the item without hesitation, and, secondly, so that there is no disappointment after the purchase, when he pictured one thing in his head and received something completely different. Then there will be more initial and repeat purchases.

Fantasy and non-standard approach

Down with boring descriptions like “porcelain plate, diameter 30 cm, hand painted.” How about this option: “An elegant porcelain plate, painted based on the ancient Chinese painting “Plum Blossom at Mount Fun-An”, will add a subtle oriental flavor to your interior. Perfect for serving fruit (diameter 30 cm).” Or maybe this plate has its own story? Tell it, a product with a legend is always more valuable. It is what gives us the emotions that we react to. And we buy.

Improve your skills and learn the art of sales

I also highly recommend reading books and blogs on marketing and sales. Just focus on the experience of small businesses, not giant corporations, because huge enterprises have completely different methods of work, which are often unsuitable for small companies. You need to learn to sell competently, that is, be able to speak with the client in his language, highlight the benefits for the buyer and do many other interesting things.

Total

Write blog posts (at least 5 times a week), support in every imaginable way the desire to create and share your creations with the world, slowly learn to sell - and success will come. I'm not talking about overnight popularity, but rather steady, albeit slow, growth. Give yourself a year. And don’t fuss, do what you love – perhaps only with more determination than before. Treat your new business - business development - like a game: with passion and interest.

During the first year, you will deal with various questions that will gradually arise in your mind: how best to accept payments, how to send parcels to other cities and even countries, which clients are more interesting and profitable to work with, whether to register legally, whether to expand into a company with hired employees – and many, many others.

It will be exciting, but a completely different story. First you need to take the first step and go in the chosen direction. And if you have any other questions about how to turn a hobby into a job, I’ll be glad to answer them.

Good luck in your endeavors!

Instructions

Remember what you did with pleasure? Did you sew dresses, bake pies, make bouquets? What you love can become a good source of income if you put it on stream, or bring in additional income if you do it occasionally. One of the advantages is the absence of management. You also set the scope of work yourself; in addition, the new business will not require initial capital. If you liked to sew, then you already have a sewing machine, and customers will purchase the material and accessories. Do you know the history of the local region? There will be visitors who will be interested in local attractions.

Do you love children? Maybe you can come up with games, programs for calendar holidays and contact secondary schools. Primary school teachers will be only too glad to see you. This requires your personal creative ideas, artistry, and the ability to command the attention of a children's audience. Contact the management of the nearest schools and boarding schools. Approximate earnings vary between 1000-3000 per event.

Remember, maybe you are good at sewing, drawing, knitting? Hand-knitted products are always in fashion, any item - from interior accessories to knitted or appliquéd items will find its buyer. Very often such things are required as gifts for loved ones, so the demand is growing all the time. In addition, the client pays for the materials himself, leaving you to receive money for the work performed.

Take high-quality photos of your crafts, clear, under professional lighting. However, a good photographer is perhaps the only thing you will have to spend money on. Place the images on websites on the Internet, in newspapers, and show them to your friends. Approximate earnings depend on the complexity of the work, on average 50% of the cost of the material you work with.

Make money from pets if you love them and find a common language. To do this, you need to purchase materials to cut cats too. Attend grooming courses, which will cost at least 5,000 rubles. Start by talking with animal owners, this can be done in, on the landing, publish advertisements in the newspaper. Approximate earnings range from 500 rubles per haircut.

Do you know how to cut people’s hair, do manicures, pedicures, and perform complex hair styling? Salon services are very expensive, but you can do the same for less money. For example, it is difficult for elderly pensioners to get to the hairdresser, and working people cannot get to the salon due to their schedule; for some, it is more convenient to cut their child’s hair at home. You need to buy a set of professional tools for styling and cutting, materials for regular manicure

It is extremely easy for creative people with unusual ideas and talent to create a sustainable business model. Both examples in this post are about just such a case.

Both business models were created by creative and talented people, both business models are similar in target audience, points of contact and a set of competitive advantages in general. Even the reason for buying products is actually similar. This is basically an unusual expensive gift, in most cases for a corporate client. The only question that always arises with such business models is what will happen to the business when the founding father retires. This is the biggest longevity risk for this type of business model.

The first example is the business of Patrick Richard, who creates unusual three-dimensional paintings - La Ruée vers l'Art. The business started as a continuation of an unusual hobby and has existed for quite a long time - the company was founded in 1988. All paintings are created by hand for a specific order. The author’s favorite topic is cars, professions and everything connected with it. It looks fascinating, and the comparison with the painting is relative.

The second example is the business of Martin Hekeshoven, who creates collectible rusty scale models of cars. The trick of this hobby, which grew into a business, by the way, also in the 80s, is precisely in its unique product. Buying a model of almost any car now is not difficult, but buying a hand-made, fantastically detailed model of a rusty car other than Martin’s is impossible. It looks amazing too and costs really a lot of money too. Although such things are valuable not because of the price, but precisely because of their uniqueness.

Anna-Maria Faiola (Bramble Berry)

34-year-old Anna-Maria Faiola from Bellingham, Washington, became interested in making soap during her school and college years, and at the age of 20 she decided to turn her passion into a business. As of 2011, the income of her company Bramble Berry is estimated at $3 million, and the assortment includes 2,500 items. Three factors helped the girl succeed: a rare determination to put all her property on the line, education as a marketer, and the boom of social networks. Having taken out a large loan through the government's small business support program, she developed a promotion concept that was extremely popular with clients - L.O.V.E. This is an untranslatable play on words that means something like this: Bramble Berry changes the Lives of its customers by creating Opportunities for them, sharing high values (Value) and inspiring self-expression (Expression). Most of her B2B clients are soap designers and cosmetics manufacturers themselves, and they want to know that the supplier shares their aesthetic beliefs. And the explosive growth of the Internet that happened in the 2000s helped Anna-Maria win the hearts of buyers: she started her business back in 1998, and she had time to prepare her products for the Web 2.0 era.

Joe Maddalena (Profiles in History)

Joe Maddalena, the son of Rhode Island antiques dealers, surpassed his parents' passion for collecting as a child. By the age of fourteen, he already had 100,000 issues of comic books, over a million baseball cards, thousands of celebrity autographs (and even more from people whose autographs the enterprising Joe would get in case they ever became famous), and even a few paintings The money received from the sale of these riches was enough for the young businessman to open the Profiles in History auction, selling personal correspondence of Hollywood stars and high-status historical documents. Maddalena's items include the last memo signed by John F. Kennedy and a letter from Abraham Lincoln passionately advocating to his political opponents for the Emancipation Proclamation. Experts believe that the latest document will be sold for at least $5 million. Good professional growth for a person who recently took autographs from his classmates, and today has a fortune estimated at $2-3 million.

Robert Sternowski (Softronics)

Robert Sternowski spent his early years working as an engineer at Rockwell Collins, a corporation serving the interests of the American military-industrial complex and the space industry. In his free time, the inventor made radio equipment in his garage. When it turned out by chance that his passion was shared by several colleagues and acquaintances, the decision was made to start his own business. For a long time, Softronics operated in a makeshift mode: the office moved every now and then, employees came to work around noon and went home in the morning, each time leaving the cleaning lady with batteries of empty Mountain Dew cans and pizza boxes. At the same time, Softronics turned out excellent transmitters, receivers and other gadgets, but respectable clients somehow did not dare to trust large contracts to a gang of crazy slobs. Sternowski turned the tide in less than six months by implementing ISO quality standards. The engineers had to comb their hair, and the office had to be transformed. The hobby turned into a business, but the company of two dozen people began to earn an indecent amount of money: a contract for the supply of equipment worth $200 million was signed with Rockwell Collins alone, and the annual turnover is over $20 million.

Marcus Person (Mojang)

Thirty-two-year-old Swede Markus Person began playing and programming even before he went to school: at seven, the boy already knew the code for the Commodore 128. Until 2009, Person lived his life according to the same scenario as many talented but absent-minded peers: he worked as a freelancer in good, but not the best game studios, sometimes successfully, sometimes unsuccessfully, got involved in programming championships - in general, he was professionally inactive. However, all this time, Person was looking for his idea, which would provide him with the coveted fifteen minutes of fame. And I found it: the ticket to a new life turned out to be the mobile video game Minecraft, developed in my spare time as a hobby. Person wrote the first version of the program in a week. The reaction from the gaming community was so positive that the developer quit all the places where he (pretended to) work, opened a company called Mojang, recruited people and began to polish the Minecraft concept. The result is 5 million copies sold even before the release of the official, latest version of the game, 18 million users registered on the project’s website and ready to fork out money after the release, and $4.16 million in net profit last year.

David and Wendy Kast (ContemporaryCandles)

David and Wendy Kast of Glendale Heights, Illinois, turned their hobby into a business not only for profit, but also for experimentation. When making candles, dozens of types of wicks alone are used, not to mention varieties of wax and aromatic oils, and each combination of them makes the candles burn differently. When there were too many options, the Castes began to distribute candles to friends - with a mandatory condition: they must carefully monitor how the candle burns and make notes in a special form. Friends did not refuse to participate in the experiment and even convinced the Castes to turn their hobby into a full-fledged business. The couple were stubborn for a long time, but they were forced by circumstances: Wendy was fired in 2001, and even in the USA it can be difficult for a deaf girl to find a job. David, also suffering from deafness, supported his wife, and within ten years the Castes filled the whole of Illinois with hundreds of types of candles and related products: coasters, wax toys, bath accessories. Their business could have been even more successful if not for their fanatical devotion to family values: the Castes reject tempting offers to expand the business and large overtime orders in order to spend more time with their children. And yet their annual turnover is estimated at $1 million.

Alan Ellis (Oink)

The business of British student Alan Ellis began with a hobby: the young man liked to program and show off his ingenuity to other coders. Ellis's most professional amateur project was the music file sharing site Oink, launched in 2004 and closed in 2007 by court order. Oink worked on the torrent principle: its users shared audio recordings with each other that were stored on their computers, and not on the company’s servers. Ellis received income from the sale of invitation tickets: in order to get into a closed social network, he had to persuade one of his already connected friends to pay $5 for an “invite.” In three years, 200,000 people registered on the site. Of course, the exchange of music was illegal, and the copyright holders did not receive a penny from Oink. The English court was never able to prove Ellis’s guilt and recover from him the money he made from the project (according to various estimates, from $300,000 to several million): during the hearings, Alan argued that he was not responsible for the crimes of site visitors, and that Oink is just a search engine, and if he is judged, then the rest of the world's search engines should also be judged.

Rachael Ray (30 Minute Meals)

American TV star Rachael Ray, as befits the descendants of emigrants from Sicily, has loved cooking since childhood. But her original concept helped her break into big business with this common hobby: her show 30 Minute Meals is designed specifically for those who don’t like cooking and are afraid to go into the kitchen for more than half an hour. The format unexpectedly caught on: today forty-three-year-old Ray is the second person on American TV after Oprah Winfrey, the host of four TV shows at once, the author of countless books about delicious and healthy food, the face of several food brands and, of course, a chef. However, the American dream did not come true as quickly as it seems when you read articles about successful people. Before 30 Minute Meals took off, Rae spent five years perfecting its format on a local television station. For the first two years, she literally worked for food, then she began to receive $50 per issue - less than her gasoline expenses then. And in 2009, Forbes ranked Rae 79th on the list of the most influential celebrities on the planet, estimating her annual income at $15 million.

Anthony Schweiger (Anthony Beehive)

Anthony Schweiger, 25, of Lawrence, Kansas, may not have made his million yet, but he runs a $260,000-a-year operation. And his example shows how people with disabilities (Anthony suffers from epilepsy and mental retardation) can effectively integrate not only into social life, but also into business. In the third grade, the boy became fanatically interested in bees, and his parents decided to support him. The family business started with a beehive in the backyard and a Sunday farmer's market, but within two years it required regular truck-trailer trips to transport the goods. Anthony is a lifelong learner: in high school, his parents enrolled him in entrepreneurial courses at the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship and Youth Entrepreneurs of Kansas, and the owner-seller's natural charm was complemented by a knack for marketing. Anthony got his honey on separate shelves in Fortune 500 megastores that were inaccessible to small merchants, developed a website, designed eye-catching packaging for each of his two dozen products, and began producing complimentary products—balms, scented candles, and all sorts of treats based on honey