From Passion to Profession: Hobbies Turned Into Businesses After 60
If you’ve played it safe during your professional life, retirement can be a great time to pick up those passion projects that always got sidelined; whether it’s an idea you had for a business, a new product you’d like to develop, or offering that service that seems to be missing from the market.
The accidental business
New businesses often begin in small ways like through a hobby: stained glass artwork, handweaving baskets over a glass of wine with friends, woodworking at the local men’s shed or even decorating birthday cakes. Friends and family admire your new skill, word of mouth gets out, and slowly, everyone wants that special and unique gift for their loved one. You might agree to one or two commissions for friends or old colleagues. Without meaning to, you’re running a business – and it has potential.
Even if you’ve never considered running a business, retirement might be a good time to try it. Retirees bring a secret ingredient to a side hustle that goes beyond passion, curiosity or interest: they bring a lifetime of experience and skills to the table, as well as more free time.
Getting Started
The key to taking a hobby and turning it into a thriving business is to start small. Rather than spending money on new tools, packaging or education, work with what tools you have to create a prototype service or product. Utilise free online software like Canva for your graphic design, start a social media account to promote your wares and lean into your network of friends and families for assistance, feedback and support. This low-risk approach allows you to test the waters with your product before you invest money and, if you’re doing custom orders, the chance to see if you can manage the workload.
Check out the competition
Have a look around at others operating a similar business in your area. If you consider taking your niche hobby – say baking and selling gluten-free cakes – is there a cake maker you admire on social media? Or is there someone in your local surroundings providing a similar product you can learn from? Consider joining an online community forum where you can learn about pricing, how to troubleshoot common problems facing the industry, and how to deliver great customer service.
Hobbies you can monetise
If you’re keen to make your hobby into a side hustle, but not sure where to start, consider what you’re good at. Know your way around a pickle, relish or preserve? Start an artisanal chutney company. Love painting? See if there’s a market for your artwork. Enjoy gardening? Consider being a green thumb. Speak another language? Become a tutor. Enjoy pets and walking? Combine the two and start a dog walking business. These might seem like small endeavours, but they can all become lucrative side hustles.
Of course, passion projects are more about personal fulfilment than money, and not all hobbies need to be monetised. However, it’s the ideas that we love, the activities we enjoy and the projects we pour our heart into that can often become the most successful.
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