Video: Starting a Small Business for Under $1,000

Starting a small business in Canada can get pretty costly. But in certain situations, with different types of businesses, you may just be able to get away with starting up for under $1,000.

The video above, titled “Starting a small business for under $1,000, will help you consider the different aspects of starting up and what is possible with just a $1,000, or more.

This video is part of the small business video series, which you can access here to learn more about starting up, building a business plan, finding funding, and more.

Starting a Small Business for Under $1,000

While this may not be applicable to just any type of business, we will go through a few ideas to determine how possible it is to start your own business and how to find some of that extra money needed to help you succeed.

The good thing is that Canada is home to thousands of entrepreneurs, with a lot of government support to assist your small business.

After helping over 10,000 small businesses over the years, Canada Startups has worked with many who have started a business with no money, or very little money.

So let’s get started and see how you can start with under a thousand bucks.

There are a few key points to consider first:

The Business Idea

Not all business ideas are simple to start with little to no money. The key to determining the possibility is to determine the needed start-up costs.

The “Must-Have” Startup Costs

The start-up costs that your business must be able to cover in order for you to launch your business. These costs are directly related to being able to launch or not.

The Need for More Money?

Starting a business requires some funds. While not always crucial, the more you have, the easier your path to success will be. There are many ways to get more.

As you get started with the idea of starting your own small business, it is important to know that nearly everything in business has a cost.

From the pens and papers, to the staplers and printers, starting a business, you will have to spend money one way or another.

This is normal and should be expected.

Now, a lot of entrepreneurs can advance their businesses by being crafty and finding new ways to utilize the tools and resources that are available via the web to get free help.

While this may not be true for every type of business, there are always ways to bootstrap your business by utilizing what is available to you – without spending any money – at least initially.

So, the first step would be to determine if your business idea is one of those that can do without the initial spend.

We will go more into that later in the video.

Next, once you’ve determined that your business can fit that specific model, it is crucial that you are aware of the must-have expenses.

These expenses are the ones that are associated with you starting the business – and expenses that you could not be successful without.

And lastly, if all fits as planned, getting access to more money is the key to a successful business launch. Nobody wants to struggle day to day, especially if your goal is to have a successful business. And with government funding options in Canada, you may just be in luck!

Now, let’s review each one of these in detail.

Do you have the right business idea?

The goal here is to determine if the business idea you have will fit into the thousand-dollar cost or less.

Now, this figure of one thousand dollars is interchangeable. While it would be amazing if you can just launch your business under that, some business industries may require you to spend more money – be it $5,000 or, $50,000, the figure can change depending on your needs and your goals.

But today, we are looking at keeping that money in your pocket and cutting your costs to under the $1,000, in order to get you to dedicate more time to your startup via the free resources made available across the web.

A few examples that can work for under $1,000

Any business idea that your “must-have” costs don’t exceed the $1,000

• at-home bakery

• snow removal business

• Photography business

• Digital marketing agency

If your must-have expenses exceed the $1,000, chances are you cannot start with under this mark.

Some examples include:

• Restaurant / Bar / Coffee Shop

• Car dealership

So, do you have the right business idea to make that work?

To ensure that you can start your business for under 1,000 dollars; it is important to note down the crucial business expenses that you cannot do without. You will do this in the next section, but let’s review some business models and see if you can, or cannot start with that figure.

For example, if you are starting a snow removal business, the tools that you need may be as simple as a few shovels, some salt to throw on the sidewalk, and a good pair of gloves to keep you warm. Sounds like an idea that is low cost, which you can start with little to no money. Even advertising online, via the many free local resources, or social media sites, can get you some free exposure.

But, if you’re looking to get a contract, removing snow from a commercial parking lot and that crucial expense is a truck, or a snow plow – the 1,000 dollar mark may be out of reach.

Or may be not? Perhaps you can rent the truck, or plow? Maybe you can use your $1,000 that you have as a downpayment or a lease payment?

If you are crafty, there may always be a way.

Another example; let’s assume you are starting a baking business – the costs involved may be some baking equipment, some yummy supplies and so on. Easily doable from home, to save on rent, or cost of purchasing commercial ovens. Sounds like it can be done for under that $1,000 mark.

There are plenty of ideas that you can start at a low cost.

The ones that you cannot start for under 1,000 dollars would be the the ones with mandatory expenses that exceed that amount – and you simply cannot cover.

The “Must-Have” Startup Costs

So, the general idea to determine if you can start a business for under 1,000 dollars would be to know your startup costs.

If these crucial costs exceed the $1,000 dollars, you either have to spend more money, seek money via external sources, or you cannot start up.

The crucial startup costs we talk about are those directly associated with starting your business. In other words, these are the costs you cannot do without.

As an example; a restaurant cannot be a restaurant, without a physical location.

A limo driver cannot be a limo driver without a limo.

A bookstore cannot be a bookstore without books.

But if the needed and must-have expenses can fit into the $1,000 mark, you may have yourself a business idea that you can launch.

Keep in mind that there is a big difference however between the must-have costs, and the nice to have costs.

The must-have’s are those that you cannot do without. As mentioned previously, if you are limo driver, your must have cost is to purchase a limo. Without this limo, you cannot drive – which means you have no business model.

The nice to have costs would be things that would make your business better. These costs are not mandatory, and they are often not crucial to your success initially – but in the long run, can improve your business model.

In our example as a limo driver, the must have is the limo car, but the nice to have cost would be to have 2 limo cars; perhaps different colors, giving your customers options.

The 2nd vehicle is not necessary to start the business and you can do without it.

In many business models, low cost is the only way to go if you want to succeed early on.

The replaceable costs that most people spend a lot of money on are the initial startup costs, buying everything you assume you will need. But in most cases, it is better to buy only what you MUST HAVE, in order to keep your costs low. As you make money, you can get more of these expenses going if they are needed.

Let’s take a photography business for example.

What do you need to launch successfully?

– A camera? – maybe a used camera can do the trick?
– A few nice backdrops – or maybe one would do to start with?
– A location? Perhaps your home, or outside, or customers home could do?

You also may need to promote yourself, so your customer can find you.

With a photography business, some business owners spend up to $50,000 to start with. Having the best equipment the most unique experience for the customers, but this may not be necessary in the early stages if you are looking to just start out and keep your costs low.

You can advertise for free on many social media websites, or classified websites, finding clients to get you started. You can build a free website, promote it for free and find your first customers with absolutely no cost.

All the money you make, you can re-invest; make more, and you’re on your way.

Easier said than done, yes – but, you have to start somewhere, and the best place to start would be to determine your must-have costs, no matter what business you are in.

This way, you will know how much you truly need and if you need to seek additional funding or not.

Need more money?

The video above may have given you some insight into determining if you can start your small business under $1,000 – but in case you can’t, don’t worry, there are ways to get you the help you need.

Generally speaking, the business ideas that can start and launch for under $1,000 are often the ones that don’t require a lot of physical things – no physical location; no heavy duty expensive equipment and not a lot of staff, or inventory.

And if you are starting small, you may be able to get away with it – or at the very least, seek help from funding sources, like your bank, or the government.

That also get’s us to this point.

If you need extra money to make your business dreams come true, getting government funding is one way to go.

The government of Canada provides thousands of dollars each year to small business owners like you. These funds come from a variety of different funding options, including government grants, government loans, tax breaks, credits and so on.

The purpose is to boost the economy. By helping you start your small business, the government hopes that you will be successful, that you will create jobs, pay more taxes and with this, they are willing to help you!

The government funds many business owners and helps with their startup costs. If you are short on funds and need a bit of a push, seeking funding can be your way to get into this business, even with just that $1,000 in your pocket.

If funding is something you need to make your entrepreneurial dreams come true, working with a Canada Startups expert, and using the Funding Database, can get you the help you need.

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As we are getting to the end here, we hope you’ve figured out the type of business you want to get into and understand the needed startup costs.

If your costs align with what you had in mind, you may be able to get away with starting your business, using whatever resources you can, and being crafty about it all, in order to start your small business for under $1,000 .

If not, not to worry, there are always ways to find some extra money as mentioned.

The government of Canada has plenty of assistance options in the form of grants, and government loans, that are designed to helping small business startups find money to get into business ownership.

If you are ready to get into your business, the experts at Canada Startups are always here to help.

If you have found the above video helpful, review the other small business startup videos in the series as we will be discussing various things related to small business ownership. From determining if you are ready to be a business owner to a few ideas that you can consider, uncovering some of the costs to start up or to run the business, and seeing all that you will need to be successful; be sure to check each video start to finish and share your comments with the experts at Canada Startups if you have any further questions.

Small Business Startups and Ownership