Starting a Woodworking Business
By Shaun D Richards
Turning a hobby into a business is how a lot of successful businesses get started. Most
hobbies can be transferred from hobby to business quiet easily, with little effort, all that
changes is the hobbyist makes things to sell to others rather than making them for him or herself.
The list of hobbies that can be turned into a business is virtually endless from making greeting
cards, flower arranging to painting. As long as there is a market for the products, and there's
always a market for custom made products, a business can be made from a hobby.
Woodworking fits the bill perfectly. Starting a woodworking business falls well into
the category of a hobby that can be transferred to a business with little effort. There's a
huge market for custom made wooden products from children's toys to garden furniture.
You don't have to be a master carpenter to make quality wooden products; most woodworking
hobbyists have the skills to make unique quality wooden products and can easily make money
woodworking by making products to sell.
A quick walk around craft fairs will show you that many people are already doing this.
I always pay particular attention to handmade wooden products when I visit craft fairs and
I'm always amazed by the wonderful products people make and they don't last long because people
snap them up. The demand for unique wooden products is huge and constant. So many people want
unique hand crafted wooden products in their home and are prepared to pay for them.
There's no need to put yourself under any pressure if you decide to start a wood working
business, just make something you enjoy making in your own time and when you've finished sell
it. You can sell at craft fairs or to neighbours and friends. I'm not talking about building
a huge woodworking business, although that's more than possible, I'm talking about making an
extra income from doing something you love in your own time.
If you can build wooden furniture or toys you can start a woodworking business and earn
an extra income for you. If you've been a woodworking hobbyist for some time you will probably
have all the tools you will need to make products. One of the great things about making money
from your woodworking skills is you will soon build up enough cash to buy some heavy machinery
giving you more options. This alone makes cashing in on your woodworking skills is a good idea.
When I tell my students this they laugh. Why do they laugh? Because they believe only
other people have the knowledge and skills to make wooden products to sell. And they are wrong;
they have the skills to make nice furniture for themselves so they can do it for others for
a price. Most people underestimate their skills and lack the confidence to make things for
others when they are more than capable of doing it.
If you've been thinking of trying to earn money from your woodworking skills but are
afraid to take the leap then there's an easy way to start that involves no pressure. I'd start
making garden furniture first because it doesn't require any delicate finishing or expensive
machinery and it's always in demand.
Garden furniture is a big seller, just wander through the big stores and see how many
tables and chairs are for sale. We all love to spend time in our garden and we like our garden
furniture to be robust.
The way to get off the start line is to look around at the table and chairs sets that
are for sale, choose one type you like and get hold of some plans. Then simply go to your garage
in your spare time and start to make a table and chair set. You're not competing against the
big stores because none of them have the unique products you can make.
Remember that while you may be building the furniture to sell it's still your hobby so
there's no rush, no deadlines so take your time just as you normally would if you were building
it for yourself. You're using your woodworking skills to produce some unique garden furniture
that the big stores can't compete with. There are plenty of people who will always buy cheap
but there are also lots of people who appreciate quality unique furniture and are more than
willing to pay good prices to get it. These people are your market.
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