Spending your free time gardening, restoring classic cars or
collecting antique jewelry can be a joy, right? It's the thing
that renews your passion, the thing that makes you feel that all is
right with the world. Wouldn't it be great to find a way to
make money doing what you love? Turning your treasured hobby into a
business will take hard work and a truckload of creativity, but the
rewards are endless. You'll be doing what you love--and getting
paid for it.
The benefits of starting a business based on your hobby are
many, according to Rachna D. Jain, founder of business coaching
firm Excel With Ease Coaching in Columbia, Maryland.
"Many times you'll have a lot of knowledge about [your
hobby] already," she says. "And the most successful
entrepreneurs are the ones who have a passion for the work they
do.
Turning passion into profit takes serious work, though. Just
because you love making pottery doesn't mean you know enough to
create a profitable business from it. Experts and entrepreneurs
stress the importance of researching any business idea before
jumping in. Denise O'Berry, president of business consulting
firm Small
Business Edge Corp. in Tampa, Florida, notes that research is
one of the most important first steps: "You need a full plan
of how you're going to address your objectives. It's all
that stuff everybody hates to do."
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You may know everything about your hobby, but you only know it
from a hobbyist's point of view. Think like a business owner by
conducting a market analysis and a competitive analysis to see if
existing businesses are similar to your idea. Is there a similar
business in your area or nationally?
Next, find out if selling your hobby wares will sustain you.
Jain echoes that sentiment: "Once you have a market
identified, canvas Internet neighborhoods and invite people to meet
with you [for focus groups]." You may even consider contacting
a mentor who can point you in the right direction while you're
researching your business plan.
Mentors can also offer guidance about what kinds of businesses
are a natural fit for your hobby. To jog your brain for any
possible business ideas, Jain suggests listing 20 ways you can use
your knowledge, skills, talents or hobbies.
Originally published in the April 2003 issue of Entrepreneur Magazine
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