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the goal is to spend more time with the family, avoid a long and costly commute, or to have more control over one's work
life, home based businesses are growing.
Many people may not realize that a tea business is a perfect
opportunity to run from home. You can run a home-based tea business without excessive pressure to sell (as is the case with
many sales and marketing schemes) and with an added benefit of
options and creativity.
 For those wishing to work from home in the tea business, an online
store may be a the perfect way to go, and is definitely a strong
starting point. More and more people are joining the Internet, and
online shopping is a preferred method for many people.
You no longer have to leave the house only to find out that the store
does not have what you are looking for, or wait in long lines if it
does. Shoppers appreciate the convenience of the online experience
as much as retailers.
If you conduct your business well, you can create a niche for
yourself (this can be something as simple as being the best-informed tea expert available), and if you provide quality
service, you can develop a very successful online business.
Further, if you sell loose teas (or a combination of loose and
prepackaged), the markup is large so you can realize profits quickly.
The start-up costs for operating a home based tea business are also
minimal, especially when compared to running a tearoom or tea bar
that requires rent (and you can write off part of your home payment
as a business expense).
 If you will be keeping inventory, you will need to stock a reasonable
amount and have enough storage space. You may also be able to work out an agreement with a wholesaler to have teas shipped
directly from the producer, which makes your storage needs even
smaller.
Developing a website will be your greatest expense if you are
running an Internet-only business. It is worth spending the money to
hire professionals who can develop an attractive site and help you
with marketing strategies to bring business to your site.
Even so, the cost of a quality website will still be lower than the cost
of starting a tearoom or retail store.
Another option to consider is hosting tea parties for both children
and adults. This side of the business is very popular, fun, and
creative. You can arrange parties to best fit your schedule and host
as many or as few as you wish.
 You can have parties in your own home or take your party "on the
road” (see our course Start
A Children's Tea Party Business™).
Another alternative is in-home tea presentations, where you host a
tea party for your adult friends. In this setting, people can sample a
variety of teas without the need or pressure to buy the tea.
You can then sell teas based on taste and demand. Your
customers will have sampled the teas before purchase, which greatly increases the rate of satisfaction.
This is also a great way to introduce people to unusual teas that
they might not ever sample otherwise. What a wonderful service to
offer!
 People like buying from those they know and as the local tea
expert, you can educate potential clients on the wonderful world of
tea.
The tea business is a growing one, with sales in the billions of
dollars each year and expanding, with sales expected to reach ten
billion by 2010.
For those looking for a unique way to work from home, a tea
business can provide the creativity and flexibility many require of a
home based business.
Copyright
© 2005-2006 by Dawnya Sasse. All rights reserved.
Lady Dawnya
Sasse is author of the world's first online tea business program entitled
Start a Tea Business. To learn more about Lady
Dawnya's seminars and CDs visit her website.
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