5 businesses to launch for $1,000 or less

One of the biggest concerns beginning entrepreneurs planning a start-up and considering its budget have is that they may empty their savings account and get into a debt only to find their business fail in a few years. Then, they will lose a ton of money instead of generating revenue and building a company that would be able to provide for their living for the rest of the lifetime.

However, when the start-up budget isn’t too high and you can totally provide for it without borrowing money from a bank or drawing in any third-party investments, you may worry less about the financial risks and concentrate on providing excellent services to your customers, promoting your business and improving your positions on the market.

If starting your own business is something you always wanted to do, but the financial aspect of the launch has been holding you back, consider engaging in one of these spheres. As these are the start-ups you may launch for $1000 and less.

Businesses to start for under $1,000

Dog walker

Having a full-time job is not an obstacle for many people when it comes to getting a dog. As anticipated, they can’t take their dogs for long walks two times a day during the working days. Therefore, they seek the assistance of professional dog walking services to make sure that their pets receive the care they deserve while their owners are busy at work.

The pet sitting and walking business will be the most successful in big cities and should be targeted at office workers, people living in large apartment complexes, middle and upper class business owners, etc. The best thing about it is that people who absolutely love dogs get to start their own business without spending too much money. The operation expenses are minimal: you’ll have to purchase certain supplies to be able to walk multiple dogs at a time (leads that allowing attaching several collars and prevent tangling, anti-pulling leashes), as well as some other miscellaneous things to make your doggies comfortable during the walkies (like, a dog water bottle for walks, a mini first aid kid fir dogs, poop bags, etc). Most likely, you won’t even have to apply for a business license, but I would suggest checking that out with you local authorities (county clerk’s office) anyways.

If you manage to find a decent number of customers and generate profit, you will be able to grow your business, purchase a dog walking van and maybe even hire a couple of employees. But, the one-man show will do just great for now.

Fashion stylists

If you have a great sense of fashion, follow the recent trends of the industry and obtain professional styling skills, you may totally go out to the world and present yourself to it as a personal fashion stylist. It’s the kind of business that doesn’t require almost any money to launch. However, as it largely depends on your personal image and skills, you will have to pay a lot of attention to your appearance, as well as learn to improve person’s wardrobe while accommodating to his/her personality and fashion preferences instead of imposing your own tastes.

If you haven’t gone through any sort of professional training yet, you may have to spend money on that to obtain a proof of your qualification, as well as improve your skills.

Photographer

This is the kind of business you will succeed in if you already have great photography skills and experience. Having your own professional equipment to start with (at least a good camera and a laptop that’s powerful enough for editing software) will help a lot. Otherwise, your start-up budget will exceed $1000. I wouldn’t suggest buying an expensive professional camera, tripod, lighting, reflections, etc. Without knowing how to operate them and jump right into freelance photography anyways. As profanity is definitely something clients won’t pay you for.

On the other hand, if you’re already a decent photographer, even a self-taught one, you may totally go ahead and attempt building a business around your passion. Develop an impressive online portfolio, build your social media following, upgrade some of your existing equipment and start making money as a photographer.

Wedding/event planner

If you consider launching a wedding planning business, you need to understand that your excellent organizing skills, stress resistance, obsession with weddings, desire to make your clients happy and ability to build connections with other businesses related to the sphere (caterers, venue owners, florists, decorators, videographers, musicians, etc.) are much more important than start-up budget. But still, when it comes to operation expenses, a well-functioning vehicle, a good planner, stationery and printer are the musts.

Freelance handyman

If you’re a handy guy who has an impressive toolbox and knows how to fix/install everything in the house, home improvement freelancing is totally for you. Again, a reliable vehicle is something you won’t be able to operate without, but buying a van right away isn’t essential.

At the same time, you will most likely have to spend money on obtaining a business license (a lot of states require home improvement contractors to do so) and insurance. And, you may have to add a couple of more advanced tools to your kit. Luckily, you won’t have to spend any more money in the beginning of your operation, as you will buy certain supplies for each repair and have your client cover the material costs anyways. Most handymen prefer having commonly used parts in their stash, though. You’ll figure out what your customers hire you for after a while and create your own stash too.