Anyone started their own business?

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DELETED_108974

DELETED_108974

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Curious to see how many of you on here have ever started their own business. Has it crashed and burned or are you still running it now?

Post your experiences here, what it is you do, how much did it cost to start up, etc.
 
I set up a software development business 3 years ago specifically medical (anatomical/physiological) modelling. Start up costs were minimal as I did most of the work myself and had most of what I needed to demonstrated already completed. I sold the business 6 months ago - well the controlling share and now I act in an advisory capacity - read I design things and they get people who aren't bad coders to turn them into something usable far more efficiently than I would be able to do. I however do have 'another' idea which I want to run with which will involve me developing 'proper' coding skills to get a working prototype up and running and when that is the case I will start again. But I think I will have to approach things differently that time as I will need an upfront source of funding which I am unwilling to personally contribute towards.
 
Yep, started one whilst at university 4 years ago and still running it now as well as a few others with my business partner.

Wedding videography and corporate film making mostly.

Swings and roundabouts: no bosses to ask for time off, no pension matching, relaxed attire and working hours, no guaranteed income, etc.
 
Kappa303 said:
Wow. Clever.

Thanks for the SERIOUS responses so far guys. Nice to know some people can construct a meaningful post.
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Well you haven't made it clear why you're asking which is why you've mostly only received troll posts.

Maybe you should make it clear what you really want to know as it's pretty obvious that people have started their own businesses before.
 
Russinating said:
Yep, started one whilst at university 4 years ago and still running it now as well as a few others with my business partner.

Wedding videography and corporate film making mostly.

Swings and roundabouts: no bosses to ask for time off, no pension matching, relaxed attire and working hours, no guaranteed income, etc.
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How do you find the income in such a business? I know that it is sporadic but I'm guessing that you must be able to make a healthy profit on each project to be able to continue.

Unless you work another job as well.

Edit: BTW great topic OP, love reading about how people got started. Gives me inspiration that I'll too do it one day, rather than just keep thinking about it.
 
MonkeyMan said:
How do you find the income in such a business? I know that it is sporadic but I'm guessing that you must be able to make a healthy profit on each project to be able to continue.

Unless you work another job as well.
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No, we don't hold other jobs so work full-time for ourselves.

Although sporadic weddings are a great industry for advanced work, which is the original reason (amongst others) that we got into it. At the moment we've got bookings for 2014 for example.
 
I started in ecommerce and product distribution in 2004 and the business is still running now but with different products.

I started the business with about £600 on a credit card. Over the years the annual turnover peaked at just shy of £250k but has reduced a lot now as I have been making changes to the business. I sold 3 sites for about £40k to put in to a new venture which I started from scratch last October. I created my own brand for this product which has been profitable but challenging. Manufacturing ties up a lot of cash.

I have tended to always specialise in individual products but am starting a more traditional ecommerce site next year which should have a lot more longevity. Hopefully this will be the one that makes me millions. :D
 
^ Always wanted a product-based business rather than service, but I guess it's a case of the grass is greener. I wish we had less direct contact and involvement with clients and you probably wish you didn't have to deal with manufacturing costs and stock etc.
 
Russinating said:
^ Always wanted a product-based business rather than service, but I guess it's a case of the grass is greener. I wish we had less direct contact and involvement with clients and you probably wish you didn't have to deal with manufacturing costs and stock etc.
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Very true! :D
 
I fix laptops\desktops, And as I've gotten better at web design I've created a few for people. Even done little tasks like tumblr profiles, for which I've been paid. This is all ontop of working regular nights.

So I've not started my own business, But if I managed to get a decent customer base I would consider leaving my current job.

Unfortunately I dont drive, so it limits my Home call abilities. I do have a reputation amongst most people around here as the go to guy, with regards to computers though. Which is nice. Even had a police officer call around with his daughters laptop this weekend, Dont know him, but he came to me through a recommendation! So that was nice
 
Jambo said:
Very true! :D
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The one benefit you have I think though is fast growth is easier without as many staff, and selling businesses is easier because it doesn't matter to the customer who's running it so long as the product is the same. Often services, especially in weddings, are far too personal to continue at the same rate of growth with new owners/operators.
 
Photography, but I also work a full time job so I don't really do it as my main income. I do need to start pushing it properly!
 
I'll be looking at starting my own business up in a couple of years, depends how much money I have left over as to how long before I can get it up and running.
 
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