Business is hard enough without the business owner making it harder than need be. Here Brian Linton, founder of Sand Shack, talks about how he keeps it simple with his business by keeping it close to home.
Struggling to find the right product or service to sell?
You may not realize it, but business opportunities are all around you. When thinking of a business to start many people fail to realize that they don’t have to look far away to find a product or service to sell.
Most successful business ideas develop because of the unavoidable, obvious truth that, “everyone is different.”
So what does this have to do with entrepreneurship?
Each person has unique resources, knowledge, or experiences to build a successful company from – it is just a matter of exposing them.
When I turned towards entrepreneurship as a college student 3 years ago I came up with a ton of good idea. One of the ideas that I seriously considered implementing was buying and developing remote tropical islands in the Philippines. Ok, don’t laugh, I seriously considered doing this. Because I grew up overseas I speak Mandarin Chinese and I thought I could buy an island, fit it with a house and a helicopter pad and then sell it to some rich Chinese business mogul. Although to me the Philippines and China were “close to home” (I grew up in Singapore) – I obviously did not have the resources to carry out such an endeavor, as I realized $1000 would not be enough!
You Don’t Have to Have a Novel Idea or Innovative Product
Eventually I found something that was close to home, easy to get, and something a scalable business model could be built around. The idea? Buying beaded necklaces from Thailand and selling them under my own brand in Cape Cod, Massachusetts during my summer vacation from college. It wasn’t a novel or innovative idea but it was ‘close to home’ for a variety of reasons.
First off, because I grew up in Singapore I have friends all over South East Asia, including Thailand. Secondly, whenever I would visit the United States I would go to Cape Cod to see my grandparents, and during college this is where I would spend my summers. While going back and forth between Asia and America I made the simple realization that all the beachy, choker, shell necklaces being sold in Cape Cod for $10 could be purchased in Thailand for $0.20. Hence, Sand Shack was born.
Obviously, jewelry is a very competitive industry, however, truth be told, you can make money selling anything – the key is finding something ‘close to home’ to sell. Something you can easily get or develop. And although I looked in areas across the globe for my business, this to me was close to home – it was a natural and un-daunting process for me to carry out, and it was something I knew I had a competitive advantage doing.
3 Steps to Find Out What You Can Sell That Are Close to Your Home
So when you are choosing what your company will sell, take note to the following steps. Following these three simple steps will not guarantee your success, success will be based upon your merit to sell what you chose, however, following these steps will ensure that you enjoy, and are passionate about, what you are selling.
1. Decide what you are passionate about. What do you love?
2. Find out what product or service you can easily offer. What can you offer that is already close to home?
3. Research the market for the items you have chosen. Can you make money offering these products or services?
About the Author:
Brian Linton is the Founder of Sand Shack, an environmentally friendly brand of resort merchandise sold in stores across the United States. Brian is an entrepreneur, world traveler, and avid writer at his blog Brianlinton.com. Brian can be reached at brian [at] sandshack.com and followed @brianlinton
Photo Credit: martinreach
Can’t visit Small Biz Bee on a regular basis? You can stay up to date by having the latest Small Biz Bee news delivered to you for free via RSS or Email.
For exclusive Small Biz Bee content and offers, sign up for our free newsletter:
Similar Posts:
- The Easiest Way to Sell Stuff EVER
- The Reason Nobody’s Buying What You’re Selling
- The Tale of a Marketing Dictum, Mantra, and Yo-Yo
- 5 Small Business Website Tips
- The One Word Many Business Owners Don’t Understand
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
I love #1. With enough passion and dedication anything is possible!!!
Great job on this article, Brian.
*smiles*
Michele
Truly doing what you love and are passionate about is a big key to success in anything! Music is my passion and my life and now is my business.
Thanks Michele!
I have a saying I often use:
“You only fail if you lose the desire to succeed”
This desire is also ‘passion’… it may be overused, but it is so important.
You’re most welcome, Brian! I love that saying!! It’s sooooooooo true.
I have a lot of desire and passion so I guess that’s why I just keep going and going–always trying to improve things.
*smiles*
Michele
Finding out what you can offer close to home is a good one.
In my Internet Consulting business we always offer this option to our clients. They seem to appreciate it.
One thing I really liked about Brian’s article, and I mentioned this to him before we posted it, is that by focusing on something that is close to home you invariably simplify your business.
Running and growing a business is hard enough, and sometimes we business owners make things more difficult than need be by putting up logistical or geographical roadblocks.
Great article Brian!
Matt