Starting a New Business

Starting a new business is hard. It’s even harder when you have no experience. And depending on your niche, it can be even harder. My niche is woodworking and handyman work. My business is called Bear Woodworking. I set up a new Facebook page and Instagram is my portfolio. I have a YouTube channel, which I have written about I previous blogs. I am in the process of building a website, but its a slow go. But my biggest hurtle is a business model and a plan. Short of going to school for business, research is the best way to get my business planned out on paper. This is mainly a hobby for me but I know I’m good enough, as do many other people, to make quality projects and give professional service to customers. I don’t expect to make loads of money. In this business that is a pipe dream. But I can definitely make a nice bit of cash on the side.

This is my logo. My brother, who is a graphic designer, made it. It represents my passion for woodworking and building and his passion for graphic design. The bear is me. My last name is Bear. The log, wood, crafting and making something from a pice of wood. The saw blade, my workshop and passion. My happy place. The axes, working with my hands, callas’d and dry, worn. And the name. Everything in this logo catches your eye. It’s a great work of art.

In my passion blog I talked about what the definition of passion is and how it applies to me. My passion is building. Making things is an addiction. I love it more than words can say. Again, for quite a while I’ve had the thought that because this is my passion why am I not making money from it? Excellent question, I thought to myself... why not make money? What would I focus on making and how much would I charge? More over, how would I advertise myself and how would I price these projects? But, because I am a handyman as well, I can’t charge woodworking projects by the hour, or maybe I could? I only work in the shop a couple hours a night, a few nights a week and weekends. But if I charged hourly the cost would be outrageous by the end. So, I figure the best way to do an estimate is to price the materials then multiply that by 1.5 or 2 equaling my total cost which includes both materials and labor.

Above all, making things for people or myself makes me happy. Making money is a bonus. My mission stament will say something to the effect of

“Bear Woodworking is a family company. We exist for the sole purpose of providing fine furniture and decor with heart and soul. Happy customers are our No. 1 aspiration resulting from acceptional customer service and quality work and achieving our goal to become a household name as we grow as a company and personally.”

There will be several revisions as the company grows and I figure out what direction I want to take it. But for now, it’s a good start. Right now things are slow and there isn’t much money coming in from outside customers besides family and friends. But as with any new company you have to pay your dues before you “hit it big” so to speak.