When you start a green work-at-home business there may be some hurdles that you would not have thought of at the beginning of your endeavor. In fact, one of the most common misconceptions is related to how much supplies, shipping and advertising will cost. Here are a few things to consider when starting a green work-at-home business.

Expenses

One of the best ways for a new green work-at-home business owner to figure out their expenses is to imagine that they have their first customer either online or standing in front of them. Consider how much each item they are purchasing will cost and what goes into that item. For example, if you start a hydroponic kits business your customers will need the storage container with precut net pot holes, net pots, growing media, air stone, aquarium air pump, nutrients and instructions. You will need to consider how much each of these will cost you per unit with the unit being the full kit. If you are shipping the kit you will need to consider the expense for shipping the kit and for any other special expense.

Breaking Down the Costs

If you’re selling a kit whether it is a soy candle kit, a hydroponic kit, a laundry kits or some other type of kit you will need to break down the cost. For example if you went to the store and purchased everything you needed for a soy candle kit you already know that you will have a leftover amounts. In other words you need to consider how many candles a block of soy wax will make, how many bags of wicks you will need to make that many candles and how many jars you will need. Often times this means buying in bulk which means you will need to break down the costs furthered city you know exactly how much you are spending for each unit. This will also tell you how much you need to budget to purchase new supplies.

Retail Cost

The retail cost of an item is your expenses plus how much you would like to make in profit. This number will need to be worked with and perfected over time. Many new green business owners tend to stick to a set rule to determine the retail price. In general it is the price that it costs to create or put together a unit of product plus 10% to 20%. This may or may not be a figure that works well for you and will need to be determined by your consumers. The trick is to avoid undercutting yourself while still making a profit.