Credit Crunch Spurs Bedroom Start-Ups

The current economic climate sucks, that’s for sure. While some of us are thinking of slitting our wrists, others are taking advantage in this uncertain time to become their own boss. In fact, it seems there are about 16% more businesses being run from home than last year - around 2.5 million - accounting for over half (53%) of the 4.7 million small and medium-sized enterprises in our Little Island. And most of them aren’t even asking for credit card details to see their wives naked!

It seems home-based businesses are also bucking the trend when it comes to confidence in their prospects during the financial crisis. They are buoyantly optimistic about beating the adverse economic conditions, with 72% optimistically planning to win new customers over the next 6 months, two thirds (66%) planning to increase turnover and more than half (58%) developing new products and services (source: BT 2008 Home Business Survey). All that work sounds positively exhausting!

It probably comes as no surprise that the greatest concentration of home businesses in the UK is in London, the East of England and the South East - probably because commuting in these areas is like trudging through hell in an astronaut’s spacesuit whilst chewing a Bhut Jolokia. London also leads the way with the greatest number of home business start-ups over the last year, followed by Leicester, Nottingham, Bristol and Coventry.

There has even been an increase in spare time start-ups, with a third of people (33%) running a home business in their free time. This thriving 5pm to 9am economy offers would-be entrepreneurs a low-risk route to starting their own business - should you want to opt out of sleeping. But let’s look on the bright side: the freedom to make your own decisions is an overwhelming reason to go alone, closely followed by the benefits of a better work/life balance. Let us not forget the fact that you’ve managed to shake the boss...

If you decide to go alone, the use of technology is a critical factor in the start up and growth of a home business. Home business owners should view their spending on technology as a valuable return on investment as it helps to keep costs low and sales and productivity high, giving you the ability to compete and grow. More home business means more dynamism in the economy, less traffic on the roads and tighter social cohesion as parents stay home to run a business and the household. What are you waiting for?

# Disclaimer: I accept no responsibility for bankruptcy, divorce, or your children looking for foster parents who have time to play...