Hello!

I am a new member and just want to introduce myself. I stumbled on this site several weeks ago and have found myself visiting more and more frequently as of late. As an aspiring entrepreneur seeking ways to connect with like-minded people, this site and its forums seem to be just what I`ve been looking for.
I look forward to making positive contributions to all discussions and learning much from all of you as well!
I look forward to making positive contributions to all discussions and learning much from all of you as well!
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My biggest aspiration is (and always has been) to start my own business. Not just to buy a job, but to create a profitable and scalable business that will allow me to achieve all my long-term personal goals. I`ve researched many different industries and opportunities over the years, but none have met even my most basic requirements. A few weeks ago, however, I read an article on the personal concierge/errand services industry that really piqued my interest. I see a lot of potential within a field that seems to be in its infancy right now. So much so that I`ve begun writing a business plan for what I hope will be a startup I can launch in the next month or two. Good industry-specific information has been hard to come by so far, so I`m hoping my fellow SuN members can fill in some of the blanks for me as I go.
The entrepreneurial bug is incurable!
Craig, I share your view that most businesses must eventually look for ways to expand and compete on an international level. The US just isn`t the dominant economic force that it once was and that isn`t going to change for the better any time soon. For me personally, though, (and assuming your last question was not rhetorical) I believe the local and regional market areas available to me at this time will afford me a substantial base of potential clients.
I`m curious what others plying their trade in the personal services fields think about this, though. Have any of you reached (or even nearing) the saturation point within your own local/regional markets? If so, which of your service offerings have most helped you achieve that level of success? I am considering focusing on a single type of service rather than the range of services offered by most concierge/errand services. I`d love to know what is working well for the rest of you.
Feel free to share any ideas or ask any questions.
Good luck!
More recently and while at home managing the sale of my house, I saw firsthand how difficult it would have been to coordinate and manage all those personal tasks during a 9-5 workday. That event is what actually created the "aha" moment that lead me to begin researching this field. From what I`ve learned to this point, it`s a great match for my core skill sets.
I`m still new to posting, so let me know if I`m chewing up too much of the scenery..
Regards,
VZela
I`m at the point now where I`m trying to determine (1) if there is a large enough market for the service I can offer and (2) what potential clients would pay for that service. If the answers to either of those questions wouldn`t allow me to grow a profitable and scalable business, I`ll scrap the concept and go back to the entrepreneurial drawing board.
Thanks for poking holes, Craig. This is exactly what I was hoping for when I joined SuN!
Honestly, though, I`m looking for a complete change of venue and am fortunate to have the resources to develop this new concept as slowly as I need to. I know there`s a big chance I could fail, but it`s a calculated risk I can afford to take right now. At the very least, I know whatever I learn from this will help subsequent ventures be more successful.