Ask Questions 
Share Tips 
List Your Business 
Coffee Talk with Experts 
Biz Planning | Sample Plans 
Idea 
Name 
$ 
Do It! 
Promotional Merchandise
Managing | Operations
Work @ Home 
Yoga @ Your Desk 
|
|
Expert Answers to Biz Questions
Listen in! Pick up some expert advice to a reader's question that we selected from CyberSchmooz.
High-Overhead Businesses: What Are Your Funding Options?
In recent years, there’s been a lot of attention focused on businesses with low startup costs, and that makes perfect sense. After all, in the age of the internet, there are a lot of professional opportunities that require a minimal initial investment. Still, for those with other skills, these online jobs may not be suitable or desirable. Unfortunately, if you want a small business with significant overhead costs, then you need to find ways to address those expenses.
Know Your Overhead
Overhead costs include a wide variety of expenses, some of which are seemingly quite different. Among them are basic costs like rent and utilities, taxes, advertising, and salaries for any staff. Renting a small office or working from home as a consultant, however, is obviously much less expensive than opening a construction business, working in food service, or really operating any type of business that requires a lot of equipment. That’s why, before launching into any new venture, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the industry and with your particular operational costs. These should all be set out in your business plan.
Equipment Costs And Challenges
Since equipment costs represent one of the major barriers to entry for small businesses, you’ll want to start by exploring alternatives and options. Typically, when it comes to large construction equipment or other big tools, you’ll have the option to buy or lease your equipment, as well as to buy used equipment. Leasing is often more expensive over the long-term, so it’s important to read the agreements carefully and run the numbers. If you can buy out of the lease early, though, that might make it a more financially sound decision.
Seek Targeted Funding
Despite the fact that it’s typically more expensive to break into industrial fields and other equipment-heavy industries, they do have a few funding advantages that many of the low-cost businesses don’t. Because of demand for more businesses in these niche industries, many startups can often access targeted funding sources. For example, if your business will provide specialized services like cone penetration testing, you may be able to qualify for industry specific loans or partnerships that more generic businesses wouldn’t be able to access.
Look For Partnerships
Just as you can expect to have access to niche funding sources if you’re working in a high-overhead, technical industry, you may also find that you can cut expenses by seeking out connections, or at least give yourself a funding boost. Rental repair businesses, like those that work on mobile homes and apartments, may find it useful to build relationships with landlords to ensure that they have a steady stream of service requests. Early contracts may be discounted or otherwise incentivized, ensuring that you have the funds you need to get started.
As you seek funding options for your business, the most important thing you can do is to be open to any and all opportunities. While SBA loans are common knowledge and even construction loans are fairly accessible, don’t be afraid to dig deeper. Look into building reuse grants, regional funding opportunities, and industry associations that can help you get your operation off the ground. You need to be savvy about what opportunities you take advantage of, but you should seriously consider all the possibilities.
|
|
Small Business Tax Center • Idea Cafe Home • Sign Up • Biz Grant Center • CyberSchmooz •Coffee Talk with Experts • People in Biz Profiles • Starting Your Biz • Biz Planning • Running Your Biz • FREE Trade Publications • Marketing • Financing Your Biz • Human Resources • Legal & Biz Forms • Managing Your Biz • eCommerce • You and Your Biz • Gen X • Work@Home • The Fridge • De-Stress • Send an Award • Send an eGreeting • Yoga @ Your Desk • Web Guide • Idea Cafe in the News • About Idea Cafe • Advertise on Idea Cafe • Contact Us • Privacy Policy • Site Map • Small Biz News
Copyright 1995-2024, Idea Cafe Inc. Downloads are for personal use only, not for resale to others, and may not be reprinted in any form without written permission from Idea Cafe Inc.
DISCLAIMER: We hope whatever you find on this site is helpful, but be cautioned that it may not apply to your own situation, or be totally current at any given time. Idea Cafe Inc. and all of its current and past experts, sponsors, advertisers, agents, contractors and advisors disclaim all warranties with regard to anything found anywhere on this family of websites, quoted from, or sent from Idea Cafe. and its related sites, publications and companies. We also take no responsibility for comments published by others on these pages. TRADEMARKS: The following are Registered Trademarks or Servicemarks of DevStart, Inc.: Idea Cafe®, Online Coffee Break®, The Small Business Gathering Place®, Take out Info®, Biz Bar & Grill®, Complaint-O-Meter®, A Fun Approach to Serious Business™, CyberSchmooz™, and BizCafe™.
|
|
|
|