loan for the proper equipment and buy it up front, or did you
acquire it over time?
If you’re in the beginning stages I don’t think its wise to dump a
lot of money into this. I’m reminded of that old song…“And all the
stars that never were, are parking cars and pumping gas”. Which is
not to say you can’t make it, just well, there are casualties along
the way, so why risk a pile of dough until the outcome is more
likely. Certainly its risky to borrow until you are on a definite
path, one where you could have reasonable expectations of being
somewhere in a certain amount of time. Buy what you need AS you need
it. Don’t invest in long term profitability yet, invest in getting
something made and sold TODAY, or next week, but soon. Turn your
first sale into the second, then the third and so on. Start with the
basics. You don’t need a rolling mill right off the bat. Nor should
you invest in casting equipment until farming out your casting
becomes overly burdensome, and why waste your time and energy
learning a new process when you can get it done professionally kinda
cheap. Set up your bench with the usual hand tools, torch and flex
shaft. After that I’d suggest a 2 speed buffer(please don’t waste
your money on a single speed, I think they’re dangerous) and an
ultrasonic once you get bored with hand cleaning everything. You’d be
surprised just how much can be made with just the basics.
Of course if you’re independently wealthy forget everything I just
said
Did you write a business plan?
I’ve never had a written plan that would meet the requirements of
even ‘how to start a business’ type books, much less a lending
institution. I’ve owned 4 companies and almost a few more, things
that I axed because it didn’t ‘feel right’. Biz plans can be useful
to map out what you need to do when. But since you’ve never been in
business it will be tough to figure out the goals and procedures. If
your idea is to borrow from a bank or something, while ‘they say’ you
need a business plan, bear in mind that banks don’t lend to
start-ups. They may lend to you on a personal basis with collateral,
but don’t say, “I want to start a jewelry business.”, nuh uh, banks
want no part of that. Until you’re certain that you can make money
consistently do not borrow money.
a bookkeeper, lawyer and/or accountant immediately
You don’t need a bookkeeper until bookkeeping for you is an ungamely
distraction from making and selling jewelry. Lawyer depends. I once
paid my lawyer, I dunno, something like $1000 plus state fees to
incorporate me wrong. These days you can inc online for a few bucks
if you KNOW what your legal entity needs are. An accountant…if you
are doing business its a good idea to get setup with his system from
the get go. Catching up or switching systems can be a real chore.
my logo
Give it a shot, you might be able to make your own. If you use a
design service, might be good to remember that a logo will not GET
you business by itself. I don’t think people buy from logos. Logo is
re-enforcement of your marketing persona. Save the re-enforcement for
when you have something to re-enforce. I’d wait until you’ve done
enough business to get a feel for what you need to say with your
logo. Why pay for the wrong message. Until you do a logo, you can
work quite well with just your trade name. If you do your own logo
it should speak for you instantly, don’t make the customer play
guessing games, same goes for your trade name.
How did you start a website
I pay some company way too much money for a crummy site. But I’m
getting customers from it so how good does it have to be? I’m bricks
and mortar though, I just want it to steer people in the door, I can
take it from there. If you’re selling online it’d be a different
case.
how did you learn to take good pictures
I still haven’t!!! bwahahaha
I have no mentors
call your local SCORE…Service Corps Of Retired Executives. Its
free and they are there to guide you.
Good luck, knock em dead.
