A huge workshop, someone handy and another with good admin skills. Any ideas?

[3luckystars]

Sorry for the very long post but I need help coming up with an idea.

Part 1
My sister has been working in a really stressful office for years, for very little money.
She has gotten quite run down and ill over the last few months because of all the stress at work (people leaving, walking out etc.) She is now on sick leave as she has a virus.
I think she now realises that she has to give up this job now for the sake of her health, but she still needs an income. There must be something else she can do? She is late 40's, a hard worker, excellent at admin, she has a great way with people and is very intelligent.

Part 2.
Her husband was made redundant last year and has been working with a builder for the last year, but is amazing with his hands, can make things with metal, wrought iron gates etc, he built their house himself and was a mechanic years ago. He is very handy, and a hard worker too.

He has a huge garage/workshop beside their house. (Fixing cars will not work as there is a load of car garages nearby.)

Can anyone come up with anything else, a business or something they could do/make/sell, or any ideas at all what they could do with these skills?

I'm hoping for a miracle really. if anyone has any ideas or bolts of inspiration, I would be really glad to hear it. Thanks so much for reading.

Sounds like a perfect partnership to start a property maintenance service. A guy I know started one around here a few years ago and is absolutely cleaning up. He is so so busy, having to expand his team, etc. Handyman service for landlords, also deals direct with homeowners.

A lot of people look for a 'handyman' realises that term will offend someone on MN.
Someone that can do those 'odd jobs' around the home that are too small for a builder but they don't know how to do themselves / don't want to do themselves / aren't physically capable of doing themselves.

Would that interest him ?

I know two people that do this and they have to turn work away, they are so popular without even advertising anywhere.

Then there are lots of people that have practical skills (like him) but not the "paperwork" and admin skills that she does. Do you think there might be a market for her to be the admin for several small businesses - the local gardener / handyman / dog groomer / mail technician / decorator / etc etc ?
I should imagine it is something it would take a while to build up though - probably not 'a salary' in it to begin with.

Yes!! That sounds like a great idea.

Thank you so much for such a wonderful idea. I'm going to run it by her tomorrow. Thank you.

Could your sister offer 'virtual office' services?

I'm not sure what that is, I will go look it up now. Thanks so much for the idea.
I think she would do anything rather than return to that awful job again.

A virtual office/receptionist can answer calls for businesses, deal with customer enquiries and forward calls, undertake business admin such as appointment scheduling, order processing, mail handling etc. It reduces the need for small businesses to run their own offices.

Playing off the property management - as an overseas landlord I employ a friend to manage our house - he's able to sort stuff quicker and easier than the letting agents in-house service and he actually cares (this is our family home so actually that's very important). I do the tax / insurance etc but she could maybe cover that.

My friend also project manages large scale renovations so projects that are more than just putting in a new kitchen, but not enough to need an architect - you'd be amazed at how many people do work that falls into this space. Sometimes a builder will handle it but he handles the different contractors, budgets and sources materials (and over the years knows local tile shops, bathroom/kitchen, curtains etc so gets better deals). I know people who've used him and swear they save more on him running the project than his fees - plus much less stress for them.

Virtual PA : it's all online, you support someone virtually with their admin needs.

She could also offer 'secretarial' services locally : basically offering admin skills and help to people - obviously the way you word it depends on the clientele/industry you want to attract!

Would they consider estate work? As in, a live in couple on a large estate?

If he can work with metal, can he make bespoke garden gates and metal fixtures for large and period properties?
She would need to do the marketing and orders.
She could research and test demand by calling National Trust properties, the local council's Procurement and Parks Department and local architects to find if there is a gap in the market, what they need and which suppliers they use.

Creative event agencies and exhibition companies that build trade show stands sometimes need bespoke metal work too.

The property maintenance / handyman service could evolve into a project management service. As landlords start to trust them to deliver on smaller tasks, they might be asked to oversee renovation of new properties, for instance.

Where do they live? Anywhere touristy? Lots of air B and B management companies

They do live somewhere touristy, yes.
Thank you all so much for the fantastic ideas!!

I am sending her this thread now this morning and we can have a chat about it.
It would be a huge leap of faith for them to go from being employees to having their own business at this age but I know they could do it if it was a good plan.

Thanks so so much.

I follow dealholidaylets on instagram who seem to offer a range of services and an enviable lifestyle. I am not them and don't know them or have used them, but love their enthusiasm and their nice puppy!

What sort of income do they need, now and for the long term?

There are lots of offices where the people are nice. An option would be to look for a nicer (and ideally higher paid) office role.

Self employment can be very challenging, and most people with some skill/talent can’t make enough money to live on from it. So unless they’re wealthy (doesn’t sound like it) it’d be better IMO for at least one of them to be an employee.

Wrought iron monograms are hot right now, if he has the skills and she can do marketing, they do also well with wedding shows and home shows

For her, virtual pa, I do it, but I'm office based in a team, not wfh

Handyman for him.

They could even set up a virtual pa business and his company be her first client, she can take all the calls, manage his diary, ensure he has the materials needed for jobs, book him quote days where he just spends the day visiting potential clients, do the admin and finances, run social media, set him up a website and run that for him etc.

Virtual PA/Handyman/Property Management/Air BnB support/deep cleans for landlords - basically a portfolio of home based services with virtual PA-ing added on. There may even be a market for home admin skills? (Like shopping around for insurance quotes, waiting in for deliveries) but it probably wouldn't pay that much.

My husband is a handyman after 25yrs in military, he's fully booked up til end of march already. His word of mouth clients when he first started was good and then when he went onto check a trade and hasn't looked back. He also does lots of woodwork ie making bespoke radiator covers, made to measure cupboards etc.... Thats how he initially started his business.

We are on south coast and he only works within a 10 mile radius of our house. He also has estate agents who use him as and when required.