business opportunities

overthenest

hi folks,

i am currently in a job however the plug could be pulled any day now. i am trying to move myself on to something so i wont be left stranded when the inevitable happens. there may be a possibility of getting work else where but i would like to have some sort of fall back. i was thinking of maybe putting a few quid into a viable bar or chipper or something, surely there is something out there that works? maybe there are people who would be looking for the same kind of opportunity as myself that may be able to give me some advice on what to do?

any help much appreciated.

The Apprentice

Theres very little money in the pub area at the moment.. Those that have profitable bars aint letting em go. The ones u see for rent are in crap locations, with little footfall psst the door every night.

U might have an opportunity if u know the areas quite well with pub soccer teams and things like that..
Its not something i would tell even the most experienced to look at wisely unless they had it eyeballed for a long time

overthenest

cheers for your feedback, would anyone have any feedback on decent business opportunities to look at?

EamonOSullivan

OP I'd suggest that you look at an area that you have some experience in, otherwise you'll just pay for the education...

Anything people can avoid paying for at the moment is doing badly - including chips and beer.

chillywilly

EamonOSullivan wrote: »

OP I'd suggest that you look at an area that you have some experience in, otherwise you'll just pay for the education...

Anything people can avoid paying for at the moment is doing badly - including chips and beer.

I agree with the beer but I heard chippers/take aways are doing better at the moment. i couldn't find a link to the Irish article, or a very recent but here is one for Dominos in the UK (of course no chipper starting off is going to have the same growth as Dominos )

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/leisure/article7029411.ece

The Apprentice

Well food i do hear is doing very well, the its the cheapest on the meal menu they said. It was said in the indo at one point cooking that lamb cutlet for €28 for a family of four can be a sausages and chips for 4 at €15.. But i wouldnt be advising anyone to go punting on what the media say at any level.. bunch of conmen.

drunkmonkey

I'm thinking there's a serious lack of pawn shops around the country, you'd need to know a bit about the value of everything and a keen eye for antiques. There's over 1000 in the UK and about 10 in Ireland. Should be at least 100 I reckon, think dublin alone had close to 300 at the turn of the century.

ssbob

Take aways do a lot better in recessionary times because people can't afford to eat out as much so they order take away. However there seems to be a takeaway on every street corner.

As for pubs, tricky business and unless you actually own the premises I wouldn't dream of going into it, your talking anywhere in the region of €800 a week rent in a small town and probably have to stump up 6 months rent as a deposit!!!!

Maybe if you tell us what you currently do or what your interests are we may be able to help you a little bit better.

calahans

I think i great area to get into is food at fairs/concerts/events etc. The margins have to be great. I hear its hard to get a spot at these events though.

Nutri Eire

I think that you are in a good position if you have finance already and are just looking for a good idea. Most people have the shoe on the other foot.

I don't think you should rush into anything, seems to be a lot of good advice been given above. One of the biggest growth areas for the forseable future will be in e-commerce.

overthenest

could you elaborate in relation to e-commerce? many thanks

overthenest

i am currently in sales in the fmcg sector, and i have experience in banking, mortgage lending, the tyre industry and the agri sector, i am essentially looking to get away from the paye sector and into something where i can control my own income and living

Nutri Eire

e-commerce as in online retailing.

Ben Moore

overthenest wrote: »

i am currently in sales in the fmcg sector, and i have experience in banking, mortgage lending, the tyre industry and the agri sector, i am essentially looking to get away from the paye sector and into something where i can control my own income and living

With a spread of experience you could freelance in blogging and social media (facebook & twitter) in those areas.

With a good grasp of written English and a little investigation into uploading and the engagment in online discussion forums you could write blogs, and find the customers, your sales skills will come in handy there.

If you google social media online tutorials they will give you an idea if you would like to take it on.

ssbob

overthenest wrote: »

i am currently in sales in the fmcg sector, and i have experience in banking, mortgage lending, the tyre industry and the agri sector, i am essentially looking to get away from the paye sector and into something where i can control my own income and living

Well pub/chipper is not for you mate,no experience at all! How about working as a salesman importing products? You have some money behind you to get you started so you should be able to shift stuff relatively easy considering you have a sales background!

TylerIE

overthenest wrote: »

hi folks,

i am currently in a job however the plug could be pulled any day now. i am trying to move myself on to something so i wont be left stranded when the inevitable happens. there may be a possibility of getting work else where but i would like to have some sort of fall back. i was thinking of maybe putting a few quid into a viable bar or chipper or something, surely there is something out there that works? maybe there are people who would be looking for the same kind of opportunity as myself that may be able to give me some advice on what to do?

any help much appreciated.

As you have been working as an employee for a while Im just wondering how you really feel about being self employed? Is it something you always wanted to do but didnt cause you had a good job, or is it purely out of the fact that you could be left unemployed? Or halfway between... Sometimes I guess this kinda affects what type of business project suits you...

I found a great book a few years ago that kinda serves good as an "examination of conscience" for those considering becoming their own boss. It was quite unique in that most other business books are more how-to or motivational, this is kinda a why? Its called Fire in the Belly and is here.

ezspeeder

Ever think of a sweet shop? I've been in a few over the summer - all jammers with kids and parents buying them whatever they want. I'm talking about specialist ones like sweet emporiums - nice one in Waterford - Mr. Simms Olde Sweet Shoppe - is a franchise. Could be easy to get into.

EamonOSullivan

OP with the experience you have in various industries, I'd say you're well-positioned to enter into many of the industries you mention.

You may not have experience of the overall running of a business, so I'd seek help / advise on the administration side of things. things like the legal aspects that you need to look after, maybe a 'run your own business' evening course. This should give you an idea of the many facets of running your own business apart from the most important one - selling good or services.

One aspect of the internet is that there is a lot of information available on prices etc when it comes to importing goods, and it is a lot easier to establish contact with potential suppliers outside of Ireland than it was 5 years ago. Say you wanted to start importing tyres, you will find it easy to get started and get wholesalers / manufacturers to deal with you from Day One.

Best of luck with your endeavours.

YouBuyLocal

There is a lot of innovation going on in small business lending. Companies are specialising in lending to online sellers (there are many ebay businesses with over €1m turnover and other established businesses throwing up cheap done deal ads) that can't necessarily get credit but who have detailed digital records and transaction histories and have recorded testimonials & business references from customers and clients. Its a very interesting space and you could help teach small businesses how to get credit in less conventional ways in a cheaper way than a bank loan. Fundingcircle.co.uk is the one that enters my head but there are lots and lots of them.

Thats what came to my mind when reading your experience and this is a space with a lot of movement and disruption. The financial sector will be hit badly by the tech sector in the next 20years, just like the music industry, because tech companies do similar jobs with similar sized companies (distributing information rather than credit, and considering credit is just a specific type of information, they are very close) with a tenth or less of the workforce. With this new movement, people with business experience and a banking background can be very well placed as agents in the new ad complex systems of distributing credit.

overthenest

ssbob wrote: »

Well pub/chipper is not for you mate,no experience at all! How about working as a salesman importing products? You have some money behind you to get you started so you should be able to shift stuff relatively easy considering you have a sales background!

thanks for the replys guys, ssbob, im very interested, can you enlighten me with a little more detail, i would be very grateful

ssbob

overthenest wrote: »

thanks for the replys guys, ssbob, im very interested, can you enlighten me with a little more detail, i would be very grateful

PM sent

overthenest

Ben Moore wrote: »

With a spread of experience you could freelance in blogging and social media (facebook & twitter) in those areas.

With a good grasp of written English and a little investigation into uploading and the engagment in online discussion forums you could write blogs, and find the customers, your sales skills will come in handy there.

If you google social media online tutorials they will give you an idea if you would like to take it on.

cheers ben, tell me is there much money to be made at this do you know?

The Apprentice

Yes there is 1000s to be made in this area... ^^

U need experience and results..

EamonOSullivan

Apprentice who are the customers for blogging services?

The Apprentice

I was going to leave a terribly smart answer to that question my friend but i,ll refrain from goading you

To answer that you,ll need to find customers yourself.

EamonOSullivan

Mr Apprentice I suspect there are very few customers for blogging and other editing services, as most businesses will do this for themselves.

And that's avoiding the smart answer to your own admirably restrained response.

The Apprentice

Strangely enough it has showed to have the largest growth out of anything over the last couple of years in this lovely recession of ours.. Seemingly..

You learn something new everyday eamo

EamonOSullivan

Apprento I have learnt nothing new from this exchange.

I suspect you haven't changed your opinion that there are 1,000s to be made blogging. Neither have you changed my opinion that there is very little money made by most people who try their hand at blogging, so we will have to agree to differ.

Axwell

The Apprentice wrote: »

Strangely enough it has showed to have the largest growth out of anything over the last couple of years in this lovely recession of ours.. Seemingly..

You have a source for this?