Turning a Hobby Into a Small Business
One of my most popular lines of thought here at Free Money Finance is the one that suggests you can turn a hobby into an income (see Turn Your Hobby into a Career and Love What You Do While You Earn and Turn a Hobby into Income for examples). And why not? Who wouldn't love to make some extra cash while also doing something they love? I know I would!
This piece on turning a hobby into a small business takes it one step further. Now, instead of just earning a bit more money with your hobby, you can turn it into a full-fledged business. Good idea, huh? Well, yes, but there are some issues to consider. Namely, to be successful, you have to treat it as a business, not just a hobby. Here are some quotes from the piece that reinforce this thought:
But profiting from a passion still takes hard work, and hobbyists-turned-business owners often find they spend more time running the company than enjoying a pastime.
"Somewhere along the line, there was a transformation from being a chef to being a businesswoman," Shanks said, saying the title of businesswoman was the last role she expected to end up in when she first thought of cooking for a living.
But this clearly isn't a hobby anymore.
"We invested a lot of our retirement in it," Miller said, estimating that between the couple's own funds and loans, $1.6 million was poured into Boom Towne. They've invested time, too. The Millers take turns staying overnight with the dogs who are boarded. And with the demands of the business, Miller said, they don't have the time or money right now to travel to all the dog shows they used to attend.
Many owners who succeed in transforming their hobbies to businesses come to understand - and accept - that they've moved beyond having a pastime.
I wonder if this changes people's perspectives on their hobby. Does it make a loved hobby seem like just a job or do they still enjoy it as a fun pastime? For instance, I love cycling, but I spent all day selling and repairing bikes, I wonder if I'd want to even see one when I went home at night. Or take roses. I like to grow roses (and enjoy all the financial benefits of doing so) but if I spent my workday growing and selling them, would this put a damper on my enthusiasm? Or would it just make me enjoy my time at work more?
What are your thoughts? Any of you out there turned a hobby into a business (or even an extra income)? What's it been like?
For more suggestions on how to earn more money, check out these posts:
I've turned two hobbies into businesses, and am in the process of doing so with a third. And while some of the business-side stuff sucks (especially sales...I _HATE_ sales!) it doesn't make me enjoy the intrinsic activity any less.
But then, I've done it with the sorts of businesses that don't require a full-time commitment once they're up and running (which is why I can have three of them and still hold down a day job and a private life). The hardest part was always building up a base of customers (which is why the business where I still have to work at sales is probably going to be shut down soon, unless I get some serious improvements out of it). If I were in a line where I had to deal with people on their own timetable, instead of mine, I'd probably burn out a lot faster, because then I'd have to do it full-time, which means I'd have to push a lot harder to make it earn money more quickly. If I had to do that, it would be just like any other job...except worse than any regular job I've ever had, because in addition to work, I'd also have to do sales. Turning a hobby into _that_ would really suck.
Posted by: Matt | August 09, 2006 at 05:49 AM
If I as a new business owner, am starting to lose passion in the hobby which is also a business, it coule be the hobby is not my top three hobbies. Having difficulties in running a new business will not affect my passion in the hobby. In fact it is the passion that drives me to outcome those difficulties. I may not be able to turn the hobby into a successful business, but it is still my hobby.
Posted by: globevestor | January 02, 2007 at 09:18 PM
I started out by fixing up a house I was living in, and then starting fixing up other houses and selling them on. DH and I rehabbed 6 houses in one year, using hired help, not DIY.
Posted by: kerry | December 05, 2007 at 05:10 PM