Page 121 - 25148.pdf

Ten Greatest Ideas for Building the

Retail Business of Your Dreams

Introduction

One of the interesting things that happens when you become a freelance or set up
your own business is that other people frequently confide in you their version of the
business of their dreams. Often they are doing just that - dreaming, and have no
intention of attempting to make it come true. (Indeed some people dream and are
on the brink of taking the plunge for so long that one comes to the conclusion that
they are super-glued to the diving board.)

Sometimes their dream, if they were to implement it, would in fact be a night-
mare. (I mean, have you ever really thought through what it would be like to run a
pub in the country? It would be like opening up your living room to the same people
every night whether you like them or not. And there are no police and no brewery
overlord to enforce the licensing laws, so these people will stay until they want to go.
Oh, and your hours are nine in the morning until, say, midnight, and that's on a
good day.)

Nonetheless, there are good opportunities for turning a hobby into a business.
In this section we are going to take as an example the business that most dreamers
think about - retailing or consulting about things that excite them. So, if you want
to open your art gallery or antiques shop; or if your bent is towards designing and
installing kitchens or gardens here are a few great ideas supplied by people who have
done it and achieved a lifestyle that suited them with an income sufficient to support
it and more than a glimmer of hope that it might, with the Chancellor's blessing,
turn into a retirement pension vehicle as well.