To ask for your advice in starting a business

[Strikingterrorintomyheart]

Name changed for this (actually named-changed a few times in my MN history but didn't ever feel I needed to say so until now!)

So DP and I are starting a business, hopefully launching next year, but doing the work for it now. As my username indicates, I'm terrified of failure and posting here selfishly hoping any of you who have done this successfully or unsuccessfully in the past will be kind enough to give me tips/stories/advice!

It's fairly niche so I can't say here what it is. But there are 4 or so entities in the UK doing it successfully.

It will be website based, with people making bookings to participate in an activity for enjoyment, rather than a service to provide something that people actually need. Think something like....(wracks brain)...going on a website to book a pony-trek and then turning up and doing that pony trek (it's not that, but that is a good likeness!)

I should add that I was made redundant a while ago and have been a SAHM since then, so not leaving a job to do this...

I think the biggest reason for failure is not that this business is inherently set up to fail (ie there are people booked up who are doing this) but that it will fail because I am at the helm and I will fuck it up in some way....really scared and lacking confidence!

Have to turn off the internet now as I'll get no work done but will be back on later. I would be really grateful if you could help me out with anything you've learned or any success stories where you have done this

How lovely that you came back from to me update. Good luck going forward.

Thank you Sooty! I'm just so elated that we went for it! When I think back to how scared I was and how little we had last November compared to now, I'm so happy. We have had some awful losses due to Covid 19 - 2 deaths in our close family, so this is a lot of joy against a backdrop of horror, which is a weird place to be in.

Sorry for your loss OP

Congratulations for a really successful start in these tricky times and all the very best for the future

You've come through many personal challenges, but you've made it. Congratulations on securing the funding for your new business, here's wishing you every success!

Fancy sharing the business name now OP? You've done well so we might as well have a look!

bubbleup I don't think I'm allowed to am I? Will it not get removed if I promote it on here?

Tell us what it is!

I’m guessing Alpaca trekking

Tell us! Tell us! Or at least tell us what the niche element is, surely that's allowed?

Ok, I don't mind. Do I post a link?

Congratulations op

So the website hasn't launched yet as we can't take bookings due to lockdown. But we're on social media so I can give you the links for those. Will I get into trouble and have it removed though?

I hope I don't regret this :-D

www.facebook.com/treetoprocks/

Facebook has more followers, but here is Insta:

www.instagram.com/treetoprocks/

Yep you're right, it's definitely different! What a great idea. Love the photo of your daughter doing aerobatics its given me an idea - There's a burgeoning interest in aerial silks - i think it would be amazing to do that in a setting like that, if it could be managed safely. I'm not into it, but aerial silk studios seem to be popping up all over the place near me.

Thank you Chew :-) It means so much to me that we are a Social Enterprise, so we will only draw a salary and all profits will go towards providing 4-week courses for children and young people experiencing deprivation. The amount of salary we can draw depends on how "big" we get though, so it's not like we couldn't be very comfortable if it goes well, if we have a few employees down the line etc. I can't say too much but we have contracts with one of the biggest landowners in Scotland to use their sites for a very minimal fee. We also have a large customer database of interested people already, despite not even having launched yet. Fingers crossed it goes well :-)

The great thing about is that almost all our expenses are already taken care of, as we only hire pay for sites once we have the bookings, and we already have all the equipment purchased, and have spent all the money necessary on training and licences (there were a LOT of those, given the risky nature of the activities, but they're taken care of) So although it's a "niche" idea, it's also fairly risk-free :-)

Our market isn't just general public at weekends, it's also hen/stag, after school groups like Scouting movement, corporate team-building etc.

We're on twitter too, but compared to the other two social media , I'm mortified by how few followers we have on there. I'm very new to Twitter though, so hopefully it will increase down the line!

twitter.com/treetoprocks