Can money be made from a home shop?

[Scott Meskill]

So I'm at a crossroad that a lot of people here have been at, I got laid off from another large company and don't want to go back to a cubicle. I know the saying " if you love it, don't try to do it for a living". And in reality i'm pretty much a novice who has been around tools his whole life. But I'd like to gain experience, make inexpensive stuff, and maybe earn some grocery money. Luckily I'm able to freelance with the computer work i do ( photo retouching ), so I don't necessarily need to make a lot of money, I'd just like to have the option to make a little extra to fill the gaps. LOML would like some stability, but with large companies downsizing all the time, there seems to be no guarantees. I know there are many talented people here, so thanks in advance for any advice.

[LCHIEN]

the danger is that doing what you love to do may become a chore when the pressure is on to make a living.

[dwolsten]

LOML would like some stability, but with large companies downsizing all the time, there seems to be no guarantees.

The thing with large companies is that you can't count on working there that long any more. However, at least in my profession (engineering), there's still a fair amount of work, although it might not last that long. To take advantage of this situation, you have to be mobile. Never buy a house, forget about owning power tools, and be ready to pack up and move to another city on short notice. It used to be that only contractors had to live this way, with 6 or 12-month contracts being the norm, but now it's getting like that for everyone. Oh yeah, forget about having a marriage and kids too; those are just too inconvenient for the corporations.

I know a lot of people on here are older folks. If you have kids or grandkids, ignore all this whining by the government and corporations about how we need better math and science education. No, we don't; they just aren't worth it any more, by and large. Tell your kids to stay the **** away from engineering, IT, computer science, etc.

Here's some better career choices: plumbing, roofing, electricians, pharmacy (expect a $90k starting salary here!), law (evil as it may be, it's where all the power in this country is). Another possibility: get the **** out of the USA while you still can, and move to a civilized country where they value quality of life, instead of spending all your waking hours at work.

[Warren]

The short answer to your question is, yes you can. Make things people need. Make things people desire. That's the only two ways I know.

I supplement my pension making items from dimension lumber which I consign to the local botanical garden so they can make money. A local art galery also carries some items I make. The owner of the nearby Ace Hardware store just started carrying them. I started a few years ago selling the items only at seasonal craft shows. I can devote as much time or as little time to the projects as I wish. Need more money? Build more commercial items. Less monay? Make what I want or need around the house or for gifts. Or just putz around, tinkering with this and that. Retirement is good!

I love working in the shop, no matter what I'm building, so it's all good.

[Hellrazor]

I'll add to that..

Do NOT become a supervisor or anything else that requires being on call 24/7/365. Its annoying and they will abuse it.

[Jim Boyd]

I'll add to that..

Do NOT become a supervisor or anything else that requires being on call 24/7/365. Its annoying and they will abuse it.

I still cringe when the phone rings

[Stytooner]

Yes, you can make some money in a very small shop. There is a lot more to it than simply making a product though.
You have to wear many many hats to make it a small business.

[meika123]

My friend,
With the advent of the "Shark" you should really know about that. Been rather busy lately, huh..

Dave in NC

[venkatbo]

'am no expert in this, but from just hear-say, this is what I've found:

• its getting extremely difficult to compete with $100/liner-foot top/bottom cabinets
• initially, to make some dough, it may be worthwhile to get into the installation biz, especially with these cabs. You can definitely pickup some of the shortcomigs of such cabs and incorporate designs in your cabs that can overcome those
• with a few references under your belt, clients will definitely start lending their ear, for your valuable opinios. They may be willing to see/buy your custom cabs
• hire some minimal help so you can deliver/install on time and when your biz reaches a steady state, just sell it for a profit and move on to another one... I'm seeing quite a few cabinet making shops go out of biz after they reach a certain peak... They can no longer sustain the biz... too much capital investment and not enuf projects/people to sustain it... Call it quits if you start seeing diminshing returns on the horizon...

The few cabinet builders I've come across via the community college,
all seemed to have followed this MO... They all say, know when to
say when! and quit/sell at your peak...

Can always start another, and you still have your clients... don't sell
your rights to that list tho

Best,
/venkat

[bigsteel15]

I still cringe when the phone rings

Amen to that.

My cousin recently moved to Calgary, Alberta and put an add in the local paper for custom WW, cabinets, trim work, etc.
He told me that after 4 months he took the add out because he couldn't keep up with the calls.
Plus he has a full time job...the guy is the most extreme workaholic I've ever met.

[Otter]

the danger is that doing what you love to do may become a chore when the pressure is on to make a living.

Aint that the truth brother......

[RayintheUK]

the danger is that doing what you love to do may become a chore when the pressure is on to make a living.

The question was about making grocery money, not about making a living. Although it's possible to make money, the most difficult thing to overcome is the clients' perception of what materials cost and how much your time is worth.

Warren is in a great position by working to supplement his income, which is a similar situation to the original question, but he has cultivated outlets for what he produces - another problem cleverly solved. However, the deal with offering stuff for sale is that you have to wait until it's bought. With commissioned work, hopefully, the payment is there when you finish (and ideally, money up front for materials).

Reputation is vital in the small business field, as a great deal of work can come from satisfied customers' word-of-mouth advertising. This can also be a burden, as you may be asked to do work that you don't want to take on, or that is outside your scope. You need to find a way to politely refuse such work in a way that does not prevent the person from contacting you again for work that you do want to take on.

Like Warren, I'm retired. I don't need to work to make a living. Even so, I'm snowed under with requests for stuff, which could get to be a real pain - if I let it. I've learned to say "No" where appropriate and also to be totally realistic with regard to clients' deadlines and how they fit into my life. I'm totally up front about material costs and the expected final cost to the client. I will not compromise on valuing my time - either the client wants the product as quoted, or they go elsewhere. Those are my circumstances and my rules.

Yes, you can make money, but - at least initially - don't rely on that income. Have you thought about public liability insurance (or the equivalent over there)? What is your position if something you make and sell collapses, causing injury? What if you cause damage when installing in a client's house?

You might not think any of these circumstances will arise, especially if working for friends, but I have seen real personal hardship caused to good people who made mistakes (through inexperience) and then suffered for it because they weren't insured and certainly didn't expect the litigation that followed.

Probably not want you wanted to hear, but my rose-tinted spectacles were put in the trash many years ago!

Ray.

[Tundra_Man]

But I'd like to gain experience, make inexpensive stuff, and maybe earn some grocery money.

As someone who found himself in the middle a business he never really intended to start (but loves the heck out of it!), yes it is possible. The key is to find your niche. As someone mentioned above, you probably can't be competitive building cabinets; there are too many large shops who can churn them out for less than our materials would cost.

The trick is to discover something you can make reasonably well and sell for a good profit factoring in your material costs and labor. Make something different that people can't run down to Wal-Mart and buy. Make something that you really enjoy building, so it's less of a chore and more of a "hobby with benefits." Figure out your target customers and how to best market your product to these potential buyers. Within reason, don't try to compete on price; find other ways to make yourself competitive (i.e. features, delivery times, customer service, quality, etc.) Promote your ability to build to meet your customers desires; the ease and willingness to do one-off or custom work is one of the few advantages small businesses have over most large shops that are set up for assembly-line style manufacturing.

Making the jump to a full-time income is a big step, and one that you may never achieve. I've done some calculating with my own business, and unless I can develop enough demand to allow me to quadruple my sales and triple my selling price, I'll never make enough money building instruments to do this full-time. Let's just say I'm not holding my breath that this will happen.

On the flip side, I'd be in the shop building things anyway, so it's nice to have someone else paying for the materials and my labor. I've been able to buy a few small toys and supplement the grocery money while doing something I thoroughly enjoy.

[Warren]

Terry and Ray are spot on. The key is to keep control. I hardly ever work on a customer imposed deadline. If I'm doing a piece which has been requested obviously I set a self imposed deadline, but the customer is told that it will be done, when it's done.

I suppose I could get the necessary business license and go pro but, that's not my objective. I do it strickly to supplement my income. If I want to travel I might produce more to generate more monies. Also, I do not want to staturate my, somewhat small, market here in the Anchorage area. Therefore, I keep my commercial items limited.

I had a $1,000.000/00 rider on my homeowner's policy before I started this to cover injury or death to mailmen, contractors and etc. woriking on my property and consider that sufficient unforeseen lawsuits. But, in this litiguous society we live in in this country, who knows. Life is full of risks. But, do give some thought to protecting yourself, family and property.

I do this simply to finance new tools and the extras which make my comfortable. And, I suspect like Terry and Ray, I get a kick out of seeing my creations providing some little joy to others. It's satisfying and makes me a little money.

[jabe]

Ray & Warren are right!
You can make $$ by doing some woodworking. Just do not short change yourself, pay yourself what you're worth. Make sure you cover your material cost, utilities used, fuel for your vehicle, wear & tear on your tools & equipment. If you need to purchase a tool or machine for the job be sure to factor the cost in the product or service you're doing.
I'm retired shop teacher and I supplement my pension by doing home remodeling & custom kitchen/bath cabinets. I tell my customers up front that I work at my pace and if it's sunny, I'll be on the golf course or fishing. I aslo require that they put up 50% of the cost of the job first before I start. Even with those stipulations, I have customers scheduled up till Feb. 07. I do finish my jobs on time though. I don't advertise all my clients are through word of mouth.
Put out a quality product or service and your customers will come.