Dear List Members, Many, many, thanks to all of you who responded so positively to my recent request for advice - on setting-up a "Human Sundial" business.
Most of you replied directly to myself, instead of to this Mailing List (which surprised me) - but perhaps you wanted to keep your own ideas 'private', and not have them viewed by the other members! All of your suggestions were helpful - and I must mention special thanks to the following people, for their very kind assistance. (a). Linda Reid, who offered to produce 'kits' (using mosaic). (b). David Patte, who can assist with the design of my website. (c). Martina Addiscott, giving advice on marketing to Schools. (d). Dave Andersson, who could help with 'website ranking'. (e). Anne Lennon, suggesting contacts for layout information. Based on all of your advice, I will initially be concentrating on the large 'up-market' properties within outer London suburbs - as they have big gardens, plus being owned by wealthy people who also want to possess unique features which their neighbours do not have. I shall be contacting Landscapers and Garden Designers so that they will do some of the 'marketing' of this concept for me, but I already have around twenty "expressions of interest". At 1,500 Pounds profit per sale, that could be 30,000 Pounds of (pre-tax) income - but I suppose that "I should not count my chickens"! Even at just one order per month, on average, (based on the whole of the UK, plus allowing for a lull in Autumn/Winter), it is 18,000 Pounds basic profit in a year. If I also charged for an 'installation service', there could be even more income - but I would obviously have to pay people, to do that aspect for me. Each layout should become its own advertisement, as well, plus automatically giving me further 'word-of-mouth' referral orders. If/when Linda Reid can produce her mosaic kits, it will provide a more colourful alternative to the ones being made by "Fosstone", and so I may even be able to charge more than 2,500 Pounds each. For example, some local Councils have indicated that they would be willing to pay up to 5,000 Pounds for a complete installation. Do any members of this List know people who could offer parts made in 'rustic wood', as potential clients asked me for those? They think it may look better in their garden than a stone effect, and I suppose kits in wood will be cheaper to make (plus transport). That would give me a much bigger 'profit-margin' per sale, (or I could lower the price to attract even more orders) - and Martina Addiscott also suggested wood for environmental School Gardens. All I can say, is that this Mailing List is amazingly useful - and please "watch this space", for any developments with my business! Yours sincerely, Reena Gagneja. -- --------------------------------------------------- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
