Starting from home to avoid working away

Hi Phil, What area of the construction business can you run from home? What experiance do you have regarding running a business? Good luck with your start up!
------------------------
Richard Mellor
www.augusthomefinders.co.uk
www.planetairedale.com

Hi there, I have alot of experience in the shopfitting/jjoinery industry, I also have my father who has about 40 years experience. I can run everything from home, all I need is tools and a van to cart them about in, any sort of premises would be a waste of money and space. I have some experience of running a business, I have a PC hardware store that runs quite well although I no longer do any of the running. Many Thanx

Hi Phil, Am I right in saying you wish to carry on what you are doing now, but closer to home, and with time off to spend with your family? I'm afraid I know nothing of Shopfitting except you always see these guys refitting some shop over night, working all hours, while the rest of us sleep and play, over a weekend, to get the shop ready to reopen at 9am on Monday morning. Is this the sort of work you do? If so, I take may hat off to you, it looks like bl**dy hard work!! But how can you run your own business, in the same trade, and not end up working just as long hours - I don't know the answer to this. Can you afford to have periods without work, and without money coming in? Is there work for you locally? (Where do you live?) Good luck with your business but be prepared to work just as long hours as now!
------------------------
Richard Mellor
www.augusthomefinders.co.uk
www.planetairedale.com

Hi there richard. I dont mind the long hours, infact i enjoy it. it is nice to see the finished product in use everyday by people. I want to start from home to save me working away, I will without a doubt take a drop in wages which is fine also. How ever I dont just want to stick to shopfitting, I would rather be doing work such as kitchen and bathroom fitting which is alot easier than fitting out a shop. I have been doing alot of work on a house renovation lately (my own) which has been great fun and has made me a good profit return on the property, I am also thinking about doing this again with another property. PS, I really dont mind the 12-14 hour days, as long as I am going home to my own bed on a night and not one in the travel lodge. []

Hi Phil, Have you thought about contacting some of the larger kitchen manufacturer's that advertise on TV, wont name names....we had a kitchen fitted at our old house, and the fitters where shop fitters, it might be a way to get steady work, they seem to work on a self employed basis from want I remember and got paid a set fee per kitchen, and they didnt work weekends! I think housing renovation is an amazingly easy way to make money, as long as you get your figures right! Good Luck with it, lisa

Thanks for that Lisa, I have made enough money from renovating my first house to buy another outright. I am always told by friends that I should stick to rebuilding houses etc. I used to have a good carrer in IT, building websites, installing networks, all sorts of things, I am MCSE qualified but up north that doesnt seem to do much for getting me a good job. [] However I still prefer joinery / shopfitting as well as other things on the side. I will contact a few Kitchen manufacturers over the next few weeks and see what they say. Thanks again.