Making money from hire services

Hire out scaffolding to small decorating firms and home d.i.y. enthusiasts.
Many people need this type of service to carry out exterior painting and maintenance work. Offer a free advice and delivery service. Advertise in local newspapers and yellow pages.

Buy and rent out decorating tools and equipment to d.i.y. decorators and small businesses.
Items for hire should include steam wallpaper strippers, folding stepladders and planks, paste tables, paint sprayers and small scaffolding platforms. Advertise in the local press classified ad section.

Start a barbecue hire service.
A lot of people who would like to have a barbecue, perhaps for a special function or party, don`t always have the skills or equipment to deal with a lot of people. With a good quality mobile barbecue, and a suitable chef`s outfit, you could hire yourself out and ensure the party is a huge success. Your services could also include supplying a selection of mouth-watering barbecue food products.

Start a picture hire business.
Attractive but inexpensive pictures could be hired out for an annual fee or a membership subscription to a picture hire club. Renters could be given the option to change the picture up to three or four times during the year for a small extra delivery charge. Build up a large customer base until the business is self-financing.

Start a business collecting, making and hiring out props and costumes.
Anything suitable for film and theatrical productions. Props might include replica firearms, old fashioned lamps, telephones, pictures, vases, plaster busts, statuettes, clocks, reproduction furniture etc., A wide range of costumes could also be made available. Advertise in the trade magazines for theatre and film.

Start a special effects service renting out smoke, fog, wind and rain machines.
Other possibilities might include masks, wigs, fake human parts and breakapart props for film and theatre productions. An operator may be required to use some machines for safety. This service could be run seperately or in conjunction with the props and costume hire business. Advertise in the same magazines.

Rent out digital video disks and cd music disks.
Here is a service which can be run from home as a mail order club, or from a small shop. As dvd disks become more popular they could eventually replace video tapes as a means of providing entertainment for hire. They need less storage space, they are more robust and make an ideal mail order product because of their light weight. Obtaining stock is the main hurdle to overcome in the beginning, but once established the business will become self-financing.

Start a business that hires out computers to small businesses.
You would have to include a maintenance contract to make it an attractive proposition. A short training course for employees, in the use of selected software, might also be included in your services. Obviously a good knowledge of computers is required, and how to repair them if they develop a fault. As business increases, extra staff can be taken on to cope with any technical problems, leaving you to take care of customer relations.

Start your own skip hire service.
To get established, if you think you can find a regular supply of customers, arrange a contract with a skip hire firm to supply an agreed amount of skips per month to addresses you specify. Contacts with regular users of skips such as small building firms will be an advantage in making skip hire arrangements in advance. Your profits will come from suitable discounts and any extra charges passed on to your customers.

Set up a bouncy castle hire business.
With a reasonable investment you could set up this fun business that is relatively easy to run and very popular with children, especially in the summer. You will need a large van as well as essential insurance that covers you for public liability. Advertise in the local press and Yellow Pages.

Start or help run a business that hires out small rowing boats in popular riverside areas.
Regular visitors and many tourists love to relax on a summer day, floating along on the river. And it`s surprising how much they will pay for this privilege. To start up a business like this on your own will almost certainly require permission and permits, so contact the local authorities to check how to proceed. A boathouse to store the boats will be required, but first check for any existing buildings that can easily be converted to suit your needs. This business is mainly seasonal so take this into consideration when deciding whether it`s worth your time and investment. Advertising is generally just a matter of placing a few good signs in the right place near where your service is run.

Supply and rent out re-conditioned pool tables.
Hire out to pubs, clubs, holiday parks, colleges and recreation centres. The tables could be purchased secondhand from various sources, re-covered and painted where required. They could then be rented out on a six-monthly or annual contract. Contact prospective customers direct and advertise in the Yellow Pages.

Set up a secretarial services agency.
Hire out qualified secretaries on a temporary basis as well as offering a typing service. This could include specialised letters such as legal documents, debt collection letters etc., for which there are ready-made templates available. Plus, a service for preparing correctly formatted manuscripts for authors, typesetting services for direct mail letters and other publicity material, and any number of other general activities that a secretary or typist is called on to do. Advertise your services to local businesses through direct mail and Yellow Pages.

Start your own sunbed hire business.
There`s plenty of competition, but with effective advertising you can build and create more business. You`ll need at least three or four sunbeds to start with to make it worth while, plus a van to collect and deliver to customers` homes. Advertise your service through local newspapers and Yellow Pages.

Start your own tool or plant hire business.
From light industrial equipment, such as electric and pneaumatic drills, jigsaws, bandsaws, compressors, spray equipment, right up to heavier gear such as cranes and excavation equipment. The tool and plant hire business can be as flexible as you want it to be. There`s plenty of money to be made, but starting small and ploughing your profits back into the business for further expansion would be the safest route. The alternative is to make a fair-sized capital investment in heavy machinery. An option only worth considering if you have the contacts ready to pass their business your way.

Start a business hiring out wedding clothes.
This would include wedding gowns, bridesmaid dresses, top hat and tails for the groom and best man, and kilts, for tose who prefer the tartan touch. Advertise in the Yellow Pages and appropriate magazines.

Hire out marquee tents for special occasions and events.
If you can afford to invest in a sizeable marquee tent, you should soon be able to recoup your investment by hiring it out for special functions. Make sure that your vehicle is large enough to carry the size of tent you aquire, as delivery and collection will be part of your service. Advertise in the Yellow Pages.

Start a business that hires out ski-ing equipment.
I`m not suggesting you go and set up business in some far off snow-covered mountainous country. Though this is one possibility. Another is hiring out water ski-ing equipment and jet skis at a popular seaside or lakeside resort. Adventurous holidaymakers love this type of thing. There are other exciting leisure options also. How about hiring out dune buggies or quad bikes? If you`re first in line to discover an area of beach or countryside that has not taken advantage of these simple but lucrative business ideas, then why not be the one to make it work? Obviously, these kind of businesses require a certain amount of capital to get started, and they can be seasonal, but the rewards can be high enough to make it worthwhile.

Start a business that hires out canoes.
Again, this is one for the popular tourist resorts. You could set up this business wherever there`s a suitably large, but safe river or lake. Being an experienced canoeist is almost obligatory, as many people will also require some tuition. If you don`t have the experience then you`ll need to hire someone who does, to make this business viable.

Hire out keep fit equipment.
Items such as exercise bikes, rowing machines and home gymnasiums can be hired out for a specified period, to cater for people who would prefer to work out at home rather than go to a gym.

back to index