[JSMC]

shappy chic ? what is that LOL. we will be needing some photos of yer handy work

[mark m]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/COUNTRY-PINE-TABLE-4-CHAIRS-FARROW-BALL-SHABBY-CHIC-/190502159697?pt=UK_Home_Garden_DiningRoomFurniture_SM&hash=item2c5ad04551

[Ian101]

armed robbery used to be ideal way in liverpool in 80's but they seem to be very serious about it these days 

[LWC]

JSMC you still on msn mate?

[A & J Owen Window Cleaning]

why dont you do carpet cleaning thats a good indoor winter bonus .or house clearances theres a load of houses that need it especially round here 

[christopher b]

maintenance and windows for me, both suffered through winter, just could not get the vans out at times.
then vat rise with everything else and people just locked down and I lost some jobs. everyone has been hit recently no matter how small or big they are.
things looking up though just got to ride it out.

[mci services]

why dont you do carpet cleaning thats a good indoor winter bonus .or house clearances theres a load of houses that need it especially round here 

I think you are under estimating how bad it was up here you could not park up here for weeks, you could drive main routes and onto estates but once you got there there was three foot of snow piled up everywhere and cars abandoned everywhere, my mrs is a domestic cleaner and the only way she could work was me to drive her there and then pick her up again, almost every road was single track only. we never had bins emptied for 5 weeks. I know a wheelie bin cleaner that if it had lasted one more week he was out of business and he has half a dozen vans and at least double that employees 

[Crystal-clear]

i wonder how much would my kawa gt550 and spare engine be worth to scrap quite a heavy bike.

[supernova77]

This year I am determined to save up at least 6 weeks money through the good summer months so that when the snow starts I can just take the time off and not worry about it!

Andy

[windiewasher]

Scrap metALS are a great business.you can make serious money without commuting too much time.also scrap cars and car spares is a great way to make money on ebay.bought a door lockset for my van 150 quid from a breakers  .

[A & J Owen Window Cleaning]

Thinks are obviously hard out there with all the cuts etc.
Winter was bad but we even so we only lost 6 complete days - we did something on all the others.
We do work in light to moderate rain, and only stop if its cold if the water is literally freezing. Working in moderately bad weather all year round seems to be the way forward.  Don't want to be late to customers anyway because they all seem to want more from you at the moment - if you're late it's an excuse to get rid! Very few customers object if we work in the rain and if they do we just avoid them when the weathers not bad. Makes hardly any different wfp anyway.

[Dave Anderson]

JSMC....yeah bad again here in Holland and I suppose for Cozy over in Germany too.

We seem to get the same bad weather as scotland (perhaps less ) But I have been thinking about running my business from a quad just like Kevin...with this you could clear snow, lay grit in the deeper snow times...then getting to work would always be a option..

So many possibilities...ok you need to re-think your working but how much have you lost during the last 2 winters?...I know how much they cost me financially and headwise!

Cheers
Dave.

[Klean07]

Heres a good side liner in the winter. How about if you go around to every house in your street offering a defrost their car service? £5 A time you'd soon have a few bob in your back pocket, Just a thought.

[VSP Home Care]

You could always look into being a rep for a utility company.  Hard work building a customer base mind but can there is money to be had whilst giving your customers a saving.  It's worth a thought, don't expect to retire anytime soon though and try not to listen to all the bull they feed you.

I joined one about 10 years back, got about 6 customers and gave up trying.  It's VERY frustrating work, mainly convincing people that you can save them money.

I can only comment on one company utility warehouse, they have a large array of loss leading services that are designed to hook the customer in.  I can honestly say that it's not a rip off in any way, im still a customer myself after 10 years. 

The fact is this, the company and you as a rep, only really earn money from the customers gas and electric usage.  All the other things the customer uses like phone, mobile, internet, loyalty card etc earn you bugger all    But they do save the customer lots of money, which in tern keeps them happy and makes them stay with you.  You earn a percentage of their gas and electric usage as long as they stay a customer.

They operate the business with a "tiered marketing strategy" and if you have any brains you'll think Pyramid scheme.  Most people do, but there's a fundamental difference between the two.  A pyramid scheme has no product and thus is a con that will eventually crash leaving many people skint and a few very rich and on the run 

I still have my site but can't be arsed recruting customers or reps these days as I got very fed up trying    But I can tell you that it works for some people, just don't expect to get rich quickly or at all.

The fact that you have a captive audience "your customers" is a very good start.  That's half the problem solved, the other is getting their business    Once you've got them it's very unlikely you'll lose them trust me.

It cost me money to become a rep, about £250 I think, but I'm fairly sure it's no longer that much, in fact there are ways to become a rep for nothing I think.  As a customer you can refer others and make money from it, but I don't think you're allowed to recruit other reps.

Have a read www.energywise.co.uk  and see what you think, I'll honestly answer any questions you might have.  They key to success is basically to get about 20 customers, then 5 reps and get them to find 20 each and so on blah blah, once you've set them off hopfully they will continue to replicate and your half way to global domination 

Good luck 

[VSP Home Care]

Another option for you might be lawn care, we will be offering this service to our customers based on the following thoughts.  WFP done correctly sometimes leads to customers moving to an 8wk clean, rather than mis them out we will drop by and cut the grass every other month rather than the windows.

I agree there's not as much money to be made, but a well kept lawn will probably need cutting more than once a month in the summer months unlike the wfp windows.

£300 buys you a fairly tidy mower and I do lurv the smell of freshly cut grass    Why have sparkling windows and a shabby lawn 

Or offer a discount spray tanning service to your better looking customers 

[mileslake]

I have a friend who has mown lawns for over 25 yrs. He mows them weekly (except in droughts when he goes to 2 weekly)

He works from mid March till the second week in November.   Then he normally goes on holiday till the end of Feb. Goes to India, Nepal, Thailand etc.

[JSMC]

utility warehouse i cleana shop and guy is one of the main agents for this. He is always at me to sign up but i am very sceptical of it all. also dont wanna ge tmy custys into something that could then result in bad blood between us

[VSP Home Care]

Thats a good attitude to have mate, I can speak as a rep and as a customer and I've not had cause to complain in 10 years.

Your best bet is to sign up yourself first as a customer then you'll be able to see what's on offer.  One of the recent hooks is the loyalty card thing.  That is super handy especially if your self employed, every time you fill up with fuel for instance.  First you can put it through the books as your business expenditure, but secondly a percentage of what you spend on fuel also comes off next months utility bill.

I spent ages trying to convince my own brother when I started out, then gave up.  10 years on he's sat on my sofa telling me how him and my mum are switching to this new company and how he's been saving money with this card thing.........

I was not impressed 

My missis also nearly exploded trying to keep her mouth shut until he left 

[Tom White]

I've a friend whose starting to supply wild food to posh restaurants and I'm starting to work for him in April; just whenever I want to.

He's going to train me up, and it's the knowledge I'm after since I've an interest in this sort of thing; and this guy knows his stuff.

[Blue Frog Systems]

Here's my wifes motor... thought i'd show it with talk of UW ... it works !!