Testing the idea and the location

Before spending a single euro, prove that people are willing to pay you. An idea you like is not the same as a business that works.

Questions you must be able to answer

• Who is your customer? Age, neighbourhood, how much they spend. “Everybody” is not an answer.
• Why will they choose you and not the place next door? Price, quality, opening hours, service, language, speciality.
• How much competition is there in your area? Are they full or empty?
• Can you do the work? If you can’t cut hair, cook or repair, you will depend on employees from day one.

How to test it for free or almost free

1. Work in the sector first, even for a few months. You learn the real numbers with someone else’s money.
2. Count the competition’s customers: sit opposite at different times and count how many people go in.
3. Ask your people and strangers: would they pay? How much? How often?
4. Start small: cutting hair at people’s homes, selling at markets or on Instagram, doing repairs for people you know. If nobody pays when it is small, they won’t when it is big either.

The location is almost everything

In a street business, the premises decides a large part of your sales. Look at how many people walk past, whether there is parking, whether it can be seen from afar and which businesses are next door. A cheap premises on a dead street usually ends up very expensive.