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Original poster

Sahm who would love to set up a little business ideas please.

210 replies

Somersby12 · 07/12/2023 00:58

I am a very happy sahm & I need to be due go dhs irregular work pattern which involves being on call /needing to leave the country at the last minute etc.. So I obviously need to be here for the dc.
I would love to set up a small enterprise to keep myself busy & for the extra income for myself. Would love some ideas & I am absolutely not in any way crafty. Non crafty ideas would be most welcome

OP posts:
Wiccan · 08/12/2023 13:04

Itsallok · 07/12/2023 07:28

If your kids are in school then think about things that can be done then - but realistically, the vast amount of "cute little businesses" for SAHM with no skills make no money. Fact. Stop using your husband as an excuse to never work. Or at least pledge to not come back to MM whining when your husband leaves you for someone less boring.

This 👆 I rest my case !

janfebmarchapril · 08/12/2023 13:04

Plumful · 07/12/2023 08:08

OP doesn’t it worry you being so reliant on your husband? What if something happened, how would you provide for your kids?

As in they died? I'm a SAHM, if my husband died we'd be fine financially without me working. Some people do have these things sorted hun

Vettrianofan · 08/12/2023 13:08

janfebmarchapril · 08/12/2023 13:04

As in they died? I'm a SAHM, if my husband died we'd be fine financially without me working. Some people do have these things sorted hun

Show quote history

The same way that two working parents could be struck down with long term illness? Anyone can fall on hard times whether they work or not.

I never understood this argument. DH has funds organised if he passes away before me to help raise the family. If you have long term illness there's not always much choice in whether you can work 🤷🏻

OneOffQuestions · 08/12/2023 13:17

Lunchtime supervisor / play leader in primary school. Rubbish pay but better than nothing. Can lead onto TA or even teacher work with some training and qualifications.

Hattie89 · 08/12/2023 13:25

MoveOnTheCards · 07/12/2023 07:06

Any qualifications from before retail? What was your role there? Maybe you could use some of those transferable skills as a starting point.

Otherwise do you have time abs funds to get some qualifications in the areas that interest you?

I second the PPs who point out setting up and running a business (however small) isn’t easy or something you can do without some kind of knowledge of that specific sector.

Like wise tutoring (as suggested above), are you qualified to do so, or can you work for those qualifications? People won’t pay for a service that doesn’t deliver.

I’d also add you really need to smash in the hours to make anything beyond a little bit of pocket money if tutoring. There’s also the time planning the lessons. Difficult to work around young children.

bakewellbride · 08/12/2023 13:27

Would childminding be an option for you?

Hattie89 · 08/12/2023 13:28

Hi OP. Really difficult to suggest anything if you don’t have any interests. What I found quite intimidating when considering this was how talented people who do this kind of thing are. I agree child minding could be an option.

Hattie89 · 08/12/2023 13:33

LaurieStrode · 08/12/2023 08:04

People always seem desperate for child minders and babysitters.

Yep, my husband’s checklist for a business idea is:

Is it in demand?
OR
Are you really, really talented in it?

Ideally both of course.

janfebmarchapril · 08/12/2023 13:34

janfebmarchapril
As in they died? I'm a SAHM, if my husband died we'd be fine financially without me working. Some people do have these things sorted hun

The same way that two working parents could be struck down with long term illness? Anyone can fall on hard times whether they work or not.

I never understood this argument. DH has funds organised if he passes away before me to help raise the family. If you have long term illness there's not always much choice in whether you can work 🤷🏻

We have insurance for that. My husbands a dental specialist and will get a big pay out if he can't work due to illness which he pays a lot for every month. We've thought about these things 🙃 and also I made 20K compared to his 200K so even if I was working i can't afford our mortgage payments let alone anything else. I also have a pension that he pays into every month. Not everyone goes into being a SAHM with their eyes closed.

AngeloMysterioso · 08/12/2023 14:00

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

Of the two of us, one is being realistic and the other is just hurling insults… I think I know which of us is the nasty one and it isn’t me!

Original poster
Somersby12 · 08/12/2023 14:20

@AngeloMysterioso you were not being realistic you were generalising. My friend is a sahm, her family are landed gentry, she doesn't need to work & is very happy supporting her husband & kids.
What advice would you give her? I fully imagine her husband would be far worse off without his sahm wife. Every sahm will have a different set up just like every working mam will have a different set up too!

OP posts:
Plumful · 08/12/2023 14:21

Not talking about death, the number of threads on here from vulnerable women after their husband fucks off and leaves them, with no career etc, it’s risky.

elizabethdraper · 08/12/2023 14:28

TicTok seems to make millions
you would need to create loads of drama and coin a catch phrase - Roots

YogaLite · 08/12/2023 14:33

Phone sex?

Plumful · 08/12/2023 14:33

😂

Wiccan · 08/12/2023 14:35

YogaLite · 08/12/2023 14:33

Phone sex?

Wow I never ever thought of that , I could soooooo talk dirty to people 🤣🤣

Wiccan · 08/12/2023 14:40

Plumful · 08/12/2023 14:21

Not talking about death, the number of threads on here from vulnerable women after their husband fucks off and leaves them, with no career etc, it’s risky.

But again this isn't one of those threads 🙄

blacksax · 08/12/2023 14:45

£6 grand a year? If only it were that easy. There really aren't all that many business ideas that you can fit in around all your other commitments that would get you £6k profit for relatively little time commitment or without an existing skill.

LondonLass91 · 08/12/2023 14:50

Pinkpinkpink15 · 07/12/2023 01:19

OK, not what you asked but make sure you have a pension & savings etc out of the family income. Too many marriages end in divorce & the SAHP is left without financial security in their own name.

For an entirely different reason I'm looking at doing something to be self employed again. I can't return to previous self employed things so need something new, but no idea what.

Yes, this is the one thing i wish I had insisted on. X

Wiccan · 08/12/2023 14:59

blacksax · 08/12/2023 14:45

£6 grand a year? If only it were that easy. There really aren't all that many business ideas that you can fit in around all your other commitments that would get you £6k profit for relatively little time commitment or without an existing skill.

You'd be surprised actually.

LahnaMJA · 08/12/2023 15:02

School based jobs?

Midday supervisor, caretaking, kitchen assistants and cooks. We have so many jobs available.
Experience as a midday supervisor can lead to teaching assistant and support roles.
My LA have these roles as bank staff, as do some of the private caters to schools and supply agencies. Might be worth checking out.

I have so many head teachers having to cover lunch duties because there is such a shortage of staff.

SmokySilverShine · 08/12/2023 15:03

Tiny business idea I would support, someone discreet to help me tidy up and sort out my horrifically messy house
It’s awful and I need help with it.

blacksax · 08/12/2023 15:39

Wiccan · 08/12/2023 14:59

You'd be surprised actually.

Show quote history

Most small businesses which sell goods only make a net profit as a percentage of turnover of about 10%, so you'd have to have sales of £60k to achieve a gross profit of £6k, and then you'd have overheads and other expenses on top. Providing a service would be better, but is is difficult when you have lots of variable commitments that can throw your week into a cocked hat at a moment's notice.

I was self-employed for about 15 years doing the accounts for a variety of sole traders and small businesses, so it isn't as if I have no experience in the field.

slithytoveisascientist · 08/12/2023 16:45

blacksax · 08/12/2023 14:45

£6 grand a year? If only it were that easy. There really aren't all that many business ideas that you can fit in around all your other commitments that would get you £6k profit for relatively little time commitment or without an existing skill.

5 hours a week at £25 per hour

Totally doable as a self employed VA, content creator, editor, administrator etc and very few costs involved

JFDIYOLO · 08/12/2023 17:00

WFH - working for an employer or for yourself:
Online coaching in whatever subject you've identified you can help with (see my last post!) - the £99 Power Hour is definitely one of my things
Proofreading
Call/contact centre
Small cage pet boarding

Going to them - basically doing the normal things they may not have time to but you can fit in:
Decluttering services
Ironing
Gardening
Dog walking