In Part 1 of this Article Series we saw how you can start a food business with less than UGX 100,000/= and the story continues. This time we are looking at Household focused businesses.
Household Related Businesses
There are many household targeted businesses that do not require much financial muscle to start yet at the same time have the potential to become serious cash cows. Some of those I have been able to identify are listed here;
Compound Slashing: This one tends to flourish alot during the rainy seasons as a result of faster growth of grass. You can start by using a simple slasher that will cost you not more than UGX 7,000/= and be guaranteed to rake in at least UGX 3,000/= per customer with more money being earned based on size of compound or area of operation. Affluent neighborhoods tend to be willing to pay more for such services than the less affluent.
Gardening: People especially the ladies love flower gardens in their compounds for beauty. Anyone who has skills in this area and can also offer professional advice on what type of flowers to grow and how to blend them with each other will walk away smiling from face to face. This is a business you can start with brain work and a few implements which can hardly cost you more than UGX 40,000/=. For more expensive equipment, when starting, I advise that you only hire per job thereby pushing the cost to the customer.
Dry Cleaning: Not everyone can afford to take their laundry to the dry cleaner and yet they still need these services. A number of bachelors and spinsters living alone tend to have this problem. They are hardly at home and never want to hire full time maids but would want to have a walk in handy person to do the washing say once a day. Interestingly they tend to pay handsomely since they usually have more disposable income. The capital to start this is your strength and washing skills. Otherwise the customer gives you the basin, water and drying line where to hang the clothes.
Car Washing: Washing bays are becoming too scary for some car owners because lately they are associated with networks of thieves that make copies of car keys and use them to rob the cars after trailing the owner. Unfortunately, for many, they have no choice but to continue using these washing bays. The few that can spare time always wash the cars from their homes. However, if you have the goodwill, identifying a neighborhood of affluent car owners could come in handy for you to start a door to door home based car washing business. Investment required is Sponges, a few brushes, soap and a hose pipe, all costing less than UGX 50,000/=. Water is likely to be provided by the customer.
Garbage Disposal: Before I moved to my own premises, I used to spend UGX 5,000/= per week on garbage disposal. This is a decent sum to whoever offers such services considering that my service provider was a young man that lived in the neighborhood. With just his hands and a hired bicycle, he would collect the rubbish and dispose of it once a week. He definitely didn’t need even more than UGX 20,000/= to start this business.
Home Tutoring: Many parents are busy either looking for money, advancing careers or catching up with various social networks that when it comes to catering for the academic demands of their children at home, they fall short. Children usually have homework or need to revise in order to understand better what they are taught at school. Not many parents have the time nor desire to go through all this. Hence, anyone that can convince them that he/she can fill such a gap will make money comfortably most especially if your results speak for themselves.
Plumbing: Are you a skilled plumber? Take it from me that the mushrooming construction business is a big opportunity for you. Before you complain about not having money to buy equipment, there is an option of renting per job that you do. The most basic of jobs can easily fetch you not less than UGX 50,000/= in income and yet the actual financial investment is much less. I had a job done for me in the bathroom of laying the pipework for a Shower and Sink. The plumber walked away with UGX 120,000/= as professional fees.
Fetching Water: The coverage of piped water services is still wanting in Uganda. Many suburbs of major towns do lack piped water and homes have to resort to fetching water from different water sources. I once lived in such a neighborhood and in a month, I spent not less than UGX 80,000/= paying the man who used a bicycle to fetch the water. My quick guesstimate of that man’s income from only my neighborhood was not less than UGX 400,000/= monthly. You can start off with a second hand bicycle which will cost you not more than UGX 50,000/=. The jerrycans could cost you an additional UGX 20,000/=.
Shopping Services: There is nothing as tiring as having to shop daily from the open market or supermarket. In some cases you are forced to suspend important activities to rush to the market before it gets late in order to ensure that there is food at home. If you position yourself as a Professional Shopper, it is likely that some individuals will take on your services. Another target for such services are the expatriate community. In the cases I have seen, the customer gives you money upfront to go do the shopping. Your investment? Time and Product knowledge.
Dog Training: Dogs are becoming a standard feature in many homes either as mere pets or an addition to the security team. These dogs tend to be of more value to their owners when trained. If you can offer such services, you stand to benefit alot from the elite who tend to have such tastes.
Veterinary Services: Numerous homes tend to have animals as pets or engage in some form of urban agriculture. One of the most common is the Chicken, goat or cow rearing. As someone with Veterinary skills, you simply need to make yourself available to help families whose animals are succumbing to disease and you make clean money. The level of investment required is largely your skills since the customer is always ready to pay for any medicines over and above your professional services.
Do you have any ideas that need to be captured in this Household category?
Let us now review businesses in the General Category as shared in Part 3 of this article.
James Wire is a Small Business and Technology Consultant based in Kampala, Uganda
Follow @wirejames on Twitter
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