We are moving. Kinda.

[WereBear]

My partner has a chronic illness, we don't have much money, and what money we do have we are trying to start a business with. Our third floor apartment always has been too small and inaccessible for what is now two people with challenging conditions.

All of these conflicting processes had head-on collisions recently, and I made a unilateral decision. There is an even tinier first floor apartment opening up. I'm renting that. Too.

I am making myself a business loan to do it, with the theory that if we each have a studio to work in, we can make things to sell. This has been the key element in our business plans which has been missing. Our frugal practice of converting the living space into a studio space and trying to get stuff done before we have to convert it back again so we can live in it has been burning up all our energies. We have not had any to put into productive work.

We are both giddy and excited about the possibilities, so this seems to be releasing good energy already.

Yes, we could take the same money we will be spending on two-place rent to go somewhere else that is bigger. But this would:

• increase our moving expenses; this idea makes that minimal because we are buying a few new pieces for the new place which will be delivered free... and not moving much else
• It is very disruptive for Partner to have to pack up everything; this way, he doesn't change much of anything at first
• we are not moving into a bigger place which would also have extra expenses for heat, driveway plowing, and the like - our present place includes all that
• we are not buying, which is a whole other universe of expense
• we do not lose the geographic advantages of closeness to work, nice neighbors, adjacent park, etc that have kept us in place for so long already
• it is cheaper than renting commercial space for business purposes, and we have no travel between the two spaces this way
• we get two kitchens; one of them will be used as a commercial kitchen to prepare herbal supplements for cats, a key part of our business plan
• last but far from least; this is going to not distress our four cats; who are also a large factor in the difficulties of getting a new place to rent

We've been living in each other's laps for so long that this dual apartment setup might work out better than a larger, but still shared, space.

 

[toothless]

i like your plans,i think it will work well.
what are you planning on making/selling if you dont mind me asking?
have you checked into the possibility of any business start up grants available? i know you can get that in the UK and to my knowledge you dont pay them back.

 

[Keigan]

Great commute!

 

[Judge]

Have you researched all the legal aspects of being authorized to commercially manufacture a pet product within a building presumably zoned only for habitational purposes? In essence, does your existing lease, municipality and insurer allow for such a thing?

Use of a kitchen in your home for commercial purposes is generally considered quite an elevated exposure to fire and other perils depending on the product created.

IMO from a commercial insurance perspective, I doubt any insurer would view cooking/creating pet products in an apartment kitchen as an operation "incidental to the premises". As for your landlord, that's up to them depending on any number of issues which may equally involve their liability concerns regarding zoning laws and their obligations as a lessor.

I was a commercial insurance underwriter for many years. I just see some serious issues you want be certain to have the right answers to before any real outlay of your investment capital. As with any business venture, proceed with great caution, being prepared to be as transparent about your plans as is necessary to concerned parties.

 

[AustinTheAspie]

What a coincidence. I'm helping my grandma move today!

 

[WereBear]

Thank you @Judge , who is well named

Because we are making cat herbal nutritional supplements, in small batches, we are within all health codes. There won't be any employees or unusual cooking going on. If we were "cooking" for people it would be different.

We did research this with our lawyers and a veterinary college.

Essentially, it is considered no different than if I had a sewing room where I made cat toys stuffed with catnip. Which are often torn apart and the herbs eaten.

@toothless , we are doing simple remedies for stress, upset tummy, and and so forth. We also do make different herbal blends, stuffed in bags for cats to play with, as seen here:

Way of Cats Shop

but we can only ship within the US.

 

[Southern Discomfort]

Make sure you avoid rush hour.

 

[Judge]

Essentially, it is considered no different than if I had a sewing room where I made cat toys stuffed with catnip. Which are often torn apart and the herbs eaten.

Strictly working with dry herbs? Excellent. Doesn't sound like anything beyond being incidental to the occupancy IMO. As long as you aren't stocking large amounts of combustibles or heating things up on a stove on the premises you should be fine.

Good luck with your new venture.

 

[Full Steam]

That sounds great. If you want to know about digital marketing I can point you in the right direction as that's what my business does.

 

[Jusdifferent]

UGHHhhh moving's tough any way you dice it. Good luck to you, though <3

 

[WereBear]

That sounds great. If you want to know about digital marketing I can point you in the right direction as that's what my business does.

Thanks! I have been running the cat blog for almost ten years now and I also do social marketing for my day job. It's really helped keep me up to date.

I think we have gotten as far as we can on word of mouth, though. That's part of taking our business to the next level: we are going to pay for marketing now. Our first attempts using Facebook have been promising.

 

[Judge]

Thanks! I have been running the cat blog for almost ten years now and I also do social marketing for my day job. It's really helped keep me up to date.

I think we have gotten as far as we can on word of mouth, though. That's part of taking our business to the next level: we are going to pay for marketing now. Our first attempts using Facebook have been promising.

Keep us informed of your progress. Your experience is so important to those of us fed up with having to deal with others just to make a living. We are talented and can be industrious. We just have to have a plan...as do you.

 

[WereBear]

This is one of the reasons why I am sharing; while we took a business course and the instructor assured us we had the "entrepreneur personality" and we have gotten good feedback, there's always that blurry middle period where you are not sure and no one can tell you what to do.