Garden Umbrellas
I have a friend who accidentally stumbled upon a business idea when he ordered a special garden umbrella from a furniture manufacturer in China. This was someone that he did business with on a regular basis and he thought nothing much of the request, although he was very pleased with the result. After he got the new umbrella home, being a sociable guy he had some people over for drinks and one of them asked where he got the umbrella.
To cut a long story short, people kept asking him to help them get the garden umbrellas, often made in specific colours or sizes, which his furniture manufacturer contact was able to do. It didn¡¦t take him long to realise that he should be charging a premium for doing this and he now makes an easy $100 every time an order is placed.
My friend is in a fairly unique environment as he lives somewhere warm, and has easy access to manufacturers in China through his work, but there is no reason why you cannot replicate his success with this, or any other product. Remember that this is a business that does not take up a lot of his time; it is just something that brings him a bit of cash from time to time. If he marketed the service that he provides more aggressively it is quite probable that it could provide a reasonable income.
You will need to find a manufacturer that you are happy with and understand the cost of shipping, to ensure that you don¡¦t lose money. This is a bulky item but nevertheless can be shipped individually when ordered and you may want to explore the cost of shipping express in case one of your customers needs their umbrella in a hurry.
In terms of marketing, you could just order an umbrella for your own patio
set and wait for orders to come in as my friend did. You would have a beautiful
piece of garden furniture, and at a fraction of the cost of what it would cost
you at a garden centre; even if no orders came out of the blue. Alternatively
you could explore the following options: -
Friends, Family, Colleagues
Bars and restaurants
Shop fitters and designers
EBay
Website
Advertise
Garden Centres
I am sure that my friend did not completely accidentally fall into his umbrella sideline. He is a very enthusiastic guy and would naturally have talked about his new umbrella, what a bargain it was, and how he stumbled across them. The fact that I know the story is testament to that. If you are enthusiastic about any business enterprise (or even your job) people will want to know more about it. You don't need to be a killer salesman, if you tell enough people some of them will want what you are selling, or know someone else who does.
If you are confident enough you could try approaching bars and restaurants and asking whether they are looking for garden furniture, or looking to give older tables and chairs a face lift. Many bars in particular use sponsored umbrellas but if you point out to them that this advertising could be used to improve their own image and branding, and that the cost is very reasonable they may be prepared to listen. If you are less comfortable face to face then you could try calling some bars and restaurants in your yellow pages, but you are likely to only get hold of bar staff as opposed to the owners.
Another good source of leads could be interior designers and/or shop fitters. You could either offer them an incentive or a discount that they can pass on to their customers. These people often have a lot of power when it comes to details as opening a new bar or restaurant is a very detailed and often stressful affair. You can definitely call these guys directly or even drop them an email. There are plenty of designers directories listing companies available or you can search for them online using your local town or city as a key search term.
EBay only has 27 people advertising under garden umbrellas, which means you would have a good chance of getting noticed. You could try placing an advert today and see how much interest you get. Timing is good as the weather is starting to improve and spring will soon be here (sorry Southern hemisphere dwellers).
Google only has 1.5 million results for the term <garden umbrella>, localise the search for say <Bradford> and this comes down to about 200,000. This may sound like a lot but ideas2earn has almost 300 results and is less than 8 weeks old, you may be talking about a few companies that are well established. If you either build yourself a website, or get one built it can be cheaply promoted both online and offline and may work to bring in additional orders through your own network, or to close deals from people who are not quite sure.
Advertising does not need to be expensive. You can place a cheap advert in your local paper, distribute fliers in neighbourhoods with big gardens, or use "Guerilla" marketing techniques to get yourself noticed on a small budget. Keeping this local will help you build a nice stream of enquiries and ultimately sales. Include a web address, telephone number and email where possible, if space is limited then use whichever will be your key contact medium. For me this would be email but others are more comfortable on the telephone.
Garden centres are worth approaching, many will already have suppliers for this type of item, but they may only sell the umbrellas as part of a set, so may consider taking on your range, or at least carrying a poster or stand advertising a custom service for their customers through you. Naturally you would offer to pay for any display materials and make sure that there is enough profit to share with the garden centre owners.
www.alibaba.com has approximately 350 items listed under <garden umbrella> so it should be no problem finding a supplier who will provide you with individual orders. If you do struggle then I suggest doing what my friend did and asking a furniture supplier in China, India, Vietnam (etc) whether they would be willing to source this kind of item for you. You should always get a quote before you order and make sure that you ask about shipping costs. It is probably worth having items shipped directly to your customers to save time and hassle for yourself, and to improve your customers' service.
This can start as a very small incremental income and would be a great way to establish a business as a hobby.
If you are a naturally sociable person then holding gatherings around your new umbrella at home (possibly initialled or otherwise customised) will be great fun for you, and a brilliant way to generate new leads.