An Idea for a Small Business You Can Start

Start-up costs range $50 to $500,000+, earnings $5,000 to $2,000,000++, skills from knowing nothing to running an airline. Bon appetit!

IMAGE CONSULTING SERVICE

Start-up cost: $6,000 - $8,000 for a home office equipped for consultations.

Potential earnings: $10,000+ part-time; $20,000 - $100,000+ full-time.

Advertising: Network with professionals; give talks or hold workshops for companies; hand out professional-looking, well-designed promotional materials at meetings, conventions, seminars, and business trade shows; contact the Chamber of Commerce and other local and civic groups for individual clients.

Equipment needed: A good personal wardrobe and accessories; business telephone line with answering machine, answering service, or voice mail; copier; fax machine; comfortable chairs and a small conference table; audio and visual aids if you are giving talks or conducting workshops; a portfolio of before and after photos of clients; a camera.

WHAT YOU DO
In this business you assist individuals and corporate employees in improving their overall appearance, speech, and manners, thereby enabling them to project the image they need to achieve their personal or professional goals. Some of the reasons professional image consultants are hired include job promotions, interviews for jobs or admittance to programs, appearances on television, public speaking, competitions (such as beauty pageants), adult rehabilitation programs, companies wanting to upgrade their employees' images, entertainers wanting to improve their public image.

An image consultant can specialize in make-up or wardrobe, for example, or advise clients about several areas in which they wish to improve.

Excerpted with permission from "101 Best Home-Based Businesses for Women" by Priscilla Y. Huff. Published by Prima Publishing. For more on this and 100 other great businesses you can start, Buy the book now or ask for it at your favorite bookstore. You can also call (800) 632-8676 www.primapublishing.com

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