| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
Business Idea No2So think I'm ready to put this one up. Website being worked on, first client lined up for the end of this month.Introducing Lighthouse Organisers - that'll be me! 
Offering a local de-cluttering service. (my first client wants help declutting his flat and together we're going to work out what needs doing to make it look presentable ready to sell. ) An event mentoring service - got something like a family party, wedding or house move to organise. Let me help you plan this; look through your notes and give calm guidance and advice. Personal researcher - don't have time to trawl the internet looking for answers for a personal project; let me do the leg work for you. (no legal, medical or financial stuff though; before someone worries) My ideal client would be someone thinking of moving house (so I intend to get business cards in to estate agents for one thing - there is a local one who is very keen on folk 'dressing' their houses before they're put up for sale) who needs to declutter to sell it, needs help with planning the whole shebang and who could do with some research help to decide what area to move to/removal companies/council tax etc. I also intend to give my business card to the local decorator/handy man I know as I can see that I could be useful to him decluttering before a job. There are many other areas where perhaps a life changing event has happened where sympathetic decluttering help is needed like divorce or bereavement for example. That's the starting points. Website won't be up and running fully until I've got at least this first client 'done' and I have a 'case study' to put on there. What haven't I thought of. Charging is by the hour or a day rate. |
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| dpack |
public liability insurance? | ||||
| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
I did ask Tim if I needed that and he said he'd ask at work ( he works for an insurance company) but thanks for the reminder. |
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| Blacksmith |
Good idea Mrs F. Vista print are good for business cards and postcards.
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| alison |
cards or contacts with storage companies.
They may give you a kick back if you recommend clients to use them. |
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| sally_in_wales |
I would definately err on the side of caution, if you are going into people houses and helping them get rid of their stuff, it sounds sensible to have a fairly comprehensive insurance policy |
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| RichardW |
On the vista print site dont buy them the first time you open the site. fill it in save it but log out do that a few times & it will offer you a large % discount.
Justme |
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| gil |
Good tip. Another tip I heard about them is to keep going back, as their special offers change. So you can get a range of budget-price stationery, not just cards. |
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| lettucewoman |
I nearly joined these people a while ago http://www.homestagingconsultants.co.uk/ - home staging is taking off in the uk but I wonder about the downturn in house sales?? Good luck with the de cluttering - still trying to get my sister business off the ground...sounds like you are far more sassy then she is....
have you seen this mag?? http://www.homestager.com/ |
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| lettucewoman |
most de clutterers charge by the hour - usually £30 - 40. | ||||
| lettucewoman |
oh theres this as well...you probably have all these....
http://www.property-coach.co.uk/ |
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| sean |
If the market is shaky people are more likely to pay for a service aimed at maximising the price that they get. |
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
thanx for the links LW I shall study them.
Tbh decluttering is more of a eco friendly and ethical thing for me in some respects. Consumerism and materialism to my mind must be slowed down. People aren't happy even with all this stuff they've acquired. They buy things even when they've identical at home. Decluttering helps them understand exactly what they've got so they duplicate less and waste less money. Less possessions = less stress. Less to clean or trip over. Easier to find what they do need. Releasing stuff in to the secondhand market is good for the growing number of folk who are trying to reject consumerism and not buy new. Its moving it on. If you've genuinely finished with it, to me its selfish to hold on to it when someone else could benefit from it. There is often emotional stuff tied up in lots of possessions; I'm aiming to gently help them let go and see that they don't need to hold on to endless things for memories, comfort or duty. Its ok to chuck out and in doing so it gives room for (a few) new things that are more relevant to them right now. Its about living in the present as much as anything else. |
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| lettucewoman |
oh yes - that's what we're trying to do...chucked out my cowboy hat the other day and we are genuinly trying to only keep useful or beautiful things
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| marigold |
Sounds like a well-thought-out plan Good luck with it!
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
that's bugged me all morning, sounds an awful lot to me. I'd thought of £15 per hour (purely on the basis that that's what the local handyman/decorator charges round here so thought it was a price folk were use to paying) In truth I've no idea how to price my time. My last full time job was on the minimum wage and its one of the reasons I won't go in to getting a proper job as I've no idea what is a reasonable salary for me and am slightly scared of finding out. I have rather a 'I'm lucky to be earning anything' attitude - probably not good business sense, dunno. |
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| marigold |
£15 sounds far too little to me - you've got to factor in travelling time/costs, admin-at-home time, cost of website, tax, insurance etc. What about a range of fees? Basic 2hr session = £75 (minimum charge), additional hours on the same session £30 per hour, flat fee for taking stuff to tip/charity shop, 10% discount for pensioners... that sort of thing. | ||||
| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
£75!!  that's a lot for little me (I'd feel a fraud  asking that much) oh dear I do feel quite stuck now. I've no idea how to price it now.I suppose not having earnt any money for so long you can see how its hard to come up with a figure. tbh this is a big psycological brick wall for me - my monetary worth- and I was really hoping not to go there
This first client is a friend of Tim's so we've agreed on £90 for the day. If I decide to charge more in general then clearly he got a discount for being a friend. Tim thinks its better to have a smaller fee and get clients than a larger one and not. What do you think? |
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| marigold |
Sorry, I didn't mean to make you feel stuck! But I do think it's important to be realistic about your fees and costs (having learnt the hard way doing Personal PA work at far too low an hourly rate myself). Do a quick google of "decluttering services" and see what other people are charging!! I don't want to put you off for one minute, but £90 a day doesn't sound a lot for what will be quite demanding work, especially when you undertake it for strangers.
It might take a few jobs and a bit of research to come up with your optimum level of charging, so no need to set anything in concrete yet, but don't sell yourself short .
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| marigold |
This looks as though it might be useful http://www.apdo-uk.co.uk/ (Association of Declutterers). | ||||
| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
I did look at their website before, but I wasn't looking at pricing at the time. Might be worth looking at joining them I think. Thanx But £60 an hour!! way beyond my comprehension that sort of money.
I know you didn't mean to make me stuck. But I have no idea how to be realistic about that sort of thing since I've not had to do this before. For too many reasons to go to on here, I really didn't want to have to define my monetary worth. Its something I really can't do. I want to set a price I'm comfortable with; its been suggested I look at each job and define it that way, but I'd not be able to do that. I need a simple pricing structure.
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| marigold |
Um, I don't think you are defining your monetary worth, I'd say you are setting a price at which to sell a particular set of your skills  . If you have a set of skills that are usually sold for (say) £50 an hour and you sell for £15 an hour it doesn't look good really, does it? If someone is looking for a declutterer and most people charge £40-£50-£60 an hour, the £15 an hour person is going to look too cheap to do a decent job... The only decluttering website I could find in Oxfordshire that quotes a price is £60 per hour, minimum 2 hours - initial consultation free http://www.spacioussurroundings.co.uk/fees/index.htm# .
Another way to think of it is in terms of what it's worth to the client - if you help them reclaim a whole room for use and save them moving to a bigger house, that's worth a bob or two isn't it? Or if their house sells quicker and at a better price because it doesn't look like jumble sale gone wrong, that's valuable too. Look at other declutterer's charges - http://www.cluttergone.co.uk/index.html has a clear pricing structure (towards the bottom of the services section). Have you written a business plan? Once you start to pin down your overheads (insurance, car, mobile phone, stationery, advertising, bin liners, etc) you'll get a better idea of what you need to earn to cover them assuming you work x chargeable hours a week, then add on whatever you want to earn as an hourly rate (allowing for tax and NI), plus a bit of contingency.... Keep repeating to yourself "My organisational skills are valuable and sought after" .
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| vickersdc |
I agree with Marigold - in particular 'have you got a business plan'. This is so important as it will help you decide how you are going to advertise, what your marketing strategy is (and how will you know if it's effective?), it'll list who you are marketing to and so on.
It'll also help you to work out your overheads, incomes and a whole host of other financial bits and pieces too. Don't forget your tax liability as well and NI contributions (£2.20/week class 2 if I remember rightly) - and you've 3 months from your start date to inform HMRC of your new business. On top of that you'll need to make sure that you keep enough cash back to pay the tax man at the odd times that you have to (remember that you not only pay for the previous year, but also an amount for the upcoming year too!). So, for all those reasons, it's really not as simple as just saying '£15/hour sounds good' - it just doesn't work that way!! Finally check out your Business Link - they are very good. Good luck, David. |
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| gil |
You need to think about where you are located.
From a low-wage region of Scotland, £15/hr is good money. In the south-east of England, things are probably very different. It's not so much a question of what you think your services are worth, as what they are worth to other people, and what your customers are prepared to pay (as others above have said). |
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
do I still need to do a Business Plan and tell HMRC even if I can't see this being more than a part time job, and I don't intend or need to borrow money to set it up? |
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| Northern_Lad |
You need to tell the HMRC as any money received will be classed as an income, so liable to tax and NI. | ||||
| alison |
Also you still may not have to pay tax, if you don't earn enough a year.
You need to keep all receipts and set up simple accounts, to be submitted once a year. |
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
I thought there was a threshold above which you needed to tell them and below you didn't? |
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| alison |
There is, but you need to keep the records to prove it. | ||||
| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
that's what we thought. We're going to speak to Tim's accountant. |
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| CityChick |
I'm in a simillar position (looking to start up soon, no intention to borrow money etc). I've done a business plan and its just for me. I've found it invaluable to help me really think through everything, especially marketing and finances. |
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| vickersdc |
You may not have to pay Class 2 NI contributions if you make less than £4,000 (approx) per annum - but you still need to tell them and ask specifically for an exemption certificate.
HMRC (despite what people may have thought in the past about the IR) are actually very helpful - give them a ring, it's worth it. As for the business plan - do you _need_ one - probably not if you're just going to do this once in a blue moon, but any more seriously than that you'll need one. How will you know how successful you are? How will you know how to market your services? What will you say in your advertising? How will you know if you're finances are on-track? How will you know if there is even a market for your services? As for success, please don't confuse turnover with profitability - you could have an enormous turnover, yet still be losing money! As others have mentioned, keep all receipts, invoices and orders. Get yourself a cash book and jot all income and expenses in it. You need to keep business records for 7 years, so have a proper filing system! David. |
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| chateau-carman |
re printingi have for the last few years now used an internet based printers www.solopress.com they will send you a sample packthey give you numerous options, and the quality of their work is second to none they can also deliver within 48 hours for instance at the moment they are offering 10000 double sided full gloss a6 as per your design inc of delivery for £145 i hope this is of use to some of you regards mem |
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| vanessa |
Good luck with your venture. Pricing is always going to be difficult; to a great extent I agree with your OH, better to be a little cheap and get customers than to over-price and get no-one ... but there's "cheap" and there's "value for money". You need to aim for the second option
So, I'd suggest you find out what your opposition is charging, then undercut by a small-but-noticeable margin.
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| vickersdc |
There are huge problems with this method of getting sales! Firstly, your charges have no relation to your costs, and secondly (for example), if someone offered to fit you a new bathroom for £99, someone else would do it for £95, then someone else would come in at £49.99 and so it goes on. Fact is, none of the above prices mean that they're making a profit! Turnover is NOT the same as profit
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| marigold |
Mrs F, there's an article about decluttering the May Prima magazine and it mentions decluttering workshops - it seems to me that with your MC skills you'd be great at running workshops and it would be another "outlet" for your business. The article just covers the usual decluttering messages, but I'd be happy to copy it and send it to you if you are interested and don't want to buy the magazine. | ||||
| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
ooh, I'm in town tomorrow so I'll go and peer in that mag; thanx ( my mum always gets it failing that)
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
mag got; that's for the tip Marigold. I think there is some sense in me having a (small) collection of such articles. I've also got the 2 BBC life laundry books which I got from the bookshop.
More to give me different tactics as much as anything else. It'd be naive of me to assume that my way of doing things would work for everyone. |
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| sally_in_wales |
What about you coming up with a basic tick box questionnaire for prospective clients, it lets you assess some of their mindset about decluttering and might help you select an approach. For example, you could ask them; 'does most of your clutter represent; a) items of sentimental value that I find hard to let go of b) things that I feel may come in useful c) items that represent impulse buys that never got fully used that would tell you a lot about how to approach helping the client, plus you might be able to forsee 'problem areas' in advance |
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| snozzer |
I see from the opening post you want to put business cards into the estate agents offices. I would go that step further and put them on a commission for referrals. That would appeal to their lust for coin, as well as helping them shift houses quicker. | ||||
| Calli |
What would happen if you send an item to the charity shop which later ends up breaking records at Sotheby's?
If I wanted a house clearance/de-cluttering service I would want to see some proof of qualification with regard to collectables / antiques experience. |
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
that's an interesting point. I'm not assuming any knowledge of that nature. I don't think that should stop anyone using my service. My role is to help tidy up and organise in essence. I'm not a house clearance company aiming to sell things on. I've not offered to take things myself to charity shops (although some declutters do) It would be completely wrong for me to persuade anyone to part with anything they didn't want to. At the end of the day the item is theirs to make a decision on either way. I work in a charity bookshop. People donate things all the time knowing that it will be used to fund the charities work. There is always a 'risk' therefore that folk will give in things of value. The job I did yesterday was a bachelor flat that the owner hadn't got to grips with in a domesticated sense  . It was more papers and clothing (and dust) everywhere than anything else. He wants to sell but can't get an estate agent round as there were rooms you couldn't get in to. That's more the thing I'm aiming to sort out. I think if there was any sense that I was walking in to a place where there were lots of things of real value then I'd probably not take that sort of job on and suggest they get in experts (most people know if there are items of that nature in their homes I think)
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| marigold |
How did it go yesterday Julie? | ||||
| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
yesterday involved going from this
and those photos were taken by him a week or two before I arrived and the reality was much worse as the paperwork in particular had had time to breed further. The dining table was piled high and underneath it was as bad when I arrived. The room hadn't been cleaned in 6months so thick with dust. To this 
We also tackled a bedroom that was much worse (2 full bin bags of clothes got out of that plus a large carrier of dvds/videos) a tiny kitchen with out of date food and crockery he never uses, and a study which we didn't finish but he's got a clear idea of how to tackle now. Bag tally was about 5-6 bin bags of rubbish, all recycling recepticles full to bursting plus a trip to the tip planned. The clothes binbags and about 3 carriers of unwanted books. |
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
I was finding photos as you typed that. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Client thought it a very productive day and at the end of it he was really looking at things in a new light. The lounge in particular was a room he just didn't use; it was a pure dumping ground. But tidied up and cleared he could see that actually it was a nice space and apart from going to buy a lightshade (think the whole flat shared one between all the rooms ) its perfectly presentable as it is. Underneath the clutter were some basically nice things.
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| marigold |
Excellent before and after photos for your advertising!! Well done both of you . It's a lovely feeling to bring order out of chaos isn't it?
P.S. Just a thought - if he's selling, he might consider getting rid of the round table in the window to give more impression of space... |
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
we discussed the table. He was given it and yes its too big (and only has one chair with it ) but since it might well be perfect for his new place (who knows) then unless a bargain comes his way his money might be better spent on the few decorating niggles he needs to do in other rooms, some outside maintenance and definitely light shades. There isn't a garage to bung it in either.
We've come up with a report between us which I'm going to type up and send him which sets out an action plan of things he needs to do to each room to get it really saleable (its on a good commuter route in to London so its more about presentation to help a sale go through) |
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
there was a sense of being a 5ft 4", 45 year old blonde 'Round-Tu-It' 
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| vanessa |
I agree about the table - it makes the room look small and doesn't look pretty either! Hasn't he got a friend or family member he could "dump" it on until he moves?
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| marigold |
Or, if the legs come off, shove it under his bed???
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| marigold |
. Well, I think he got an absolute bargain for £90 (if I remember your proposed fee correctly). Has it given you food for thought about how you'll approach future assignments?
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
yes! I was thinking about that on the train home a) It took longer than he thought - we didn't finish -but I felt we'd worked hard in the time given and I always felt it was too much to do in one day. I should be more realistic about how long something will take but that will come with experience and as he lives a way away I was relying on photos to assess the job rather than being there in person. b) picking the easiest room to tackle first worked well as there was a good result achieved quickly which spurred him on to other rooms. c) the downside to this was that the worst room; the study, wasn't finished but in some ways I'd still tackle things that way round as that room was the one he was most sensitive about in terms of the things it contained. It was the area that he had doubts I'd know what I was doing in. We still cleared 2 bin bags of rubbish out of it, filled the shredder and about 4 carriers of cardboard. He knows how to work through that room and what it needs and was openly saying at the end that a lot of it really did have to go. In phone calls he'd been most reluctant to part with anything in there and I felt I'd have to tred carefully. d) I was cold and should have taken a cardi and although black jeans look neat they show up the dust too much. I was filthy by the time I got home. e) I am going to charge more I think; he had a bargain; but he is a friend so we'll say he had a discount. We worked from about 10am til about 5pm with only a short lunch break. |
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| Frewen |
I am in awe  Well done you 
BTW I just put a load of decluttered stuff on e-bay - do I get a prize?
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
ooh yes! I'm sure you do!
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| marigold |
Indeed you do - I never get further than thinking about putting stuff on eBay! 
Good thoughts Julie - especially e) !!! The Prima article mentions charges of £30-35 per hour. I think it's reasonable to compare decluttering rates with what a counsellor or life coach would charge. |
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| vanessa |
I agree with the pricing ... you're working damned hard, physically, for the whole time you're "on site" - you're earning it! |