Many people want to start their own business and there are lots of resources out there telling you how to do your market research; how to prototype your products; and how to get your finances in place. Once you've done all that though there are still several things you might have forgotten to consider.
Space
Think about where you are going to actually work. Even if it seems obvious – for example you want to use the spare room as an office – you need to create a workspace. You might need to move some of the bedroom furniture out to make space for office furniture. Self-storage units are cheap if you only see yourself using the spare room short term or in case things don't work out.
Visitors
Some businesses can be run without anyone ever needing to visit you except the postman and perhaps some couriers. If you are going to have lots of visitors you need to think whether this is likely to cause a problem for your neighbours (and also check your lease or deeds to ensure you legally can run a business of that type from your home). You can hire meeting rooms in business centres on a per hour basis but if you are going to have to do this don't forget to include the cost in your business plan.
Transport
If your business idea is home based but requires you to make site visits or deliveries then you need to think about how that's going to work. Will your equipment or product fit in your car? Is your car reliable enough? What will be your backup plan if it fails to start? If you decide that you need to buy a van for your business then make sure you have somewhere to park it that isn't going to upset your neighbours or make it difficult for you to get it out in the morning.
Hours
Working from home can be very rewarding – especially if it means swapping your hour-long commute for a minute long one. It can also tie up every single spare minute if you let it. Of course, when you first start out you want to be putting in the hours as you nurture your venture. Once it's up and running are you going to continue working every hour of the day or are you going to start treating it like a job and close the door at 5pm every evening? Everyone is different and every business is different but you still need to think about creating that divide between your personal and professional life.
Legal Stuff
We mentioned further up about checking you can use your home for a business. You also need to ensure you have any relevant certificates, such as food hygiene certification if you are preparing food. Also check whether you need insurance, for example public liability, or whether your product needs CE testing before you can sell it.
