How To Start a Small Woodworking Business

The woodworking business has skyrocketed in recent years. It appears now, more than ever, people have an appetite for small, bespoke products created from smaller workshops. The existence of sites like Etsy has supported this trend, with sellers now able to connect with a wealth of buyers they may have otherwise missed. If you are looking to branch out and start your own woodworking business, there are a few things you will need to consider. Today we are going to tell you how to start a small woodworking business and what you will need to succeed in your new industry.

Find Your Niche

Perhaps you have been engaged in woodworking as a hobby for some time, and are now looking to branch out and create a business. Maybe you own a woodworking business and feel that it isn’t profitable enough. Whatever your circumstances, it is important for any woodworking business that they identify a niche.

There are a lot of vendors out there, and you do not want to join a long list of sellers producing the same products. If you do this, you are unlikely to stand out which will damage your chances of generating business and sales. We encourage you to complete some market research: look at what sells well and identify what isn’t widely available. Some people nowadays opt to work with reclaimed wood, whilst others create elaborate and visually striking pieces of furniture. Whatever your niche, it will help you to identify an area of the market that you can carve out for yourself.

Find The Right Space

If you are looking to start a woodworking business, you will need a space to work in. Woodworking, unfortunately, will require a workshop space to work out of it. This is unavoidable. Not only will you need a space to store current projects and stock, but woodworking tends to be messy. A lot of dust is created and you will require a number of tools which tend to take up a significant amount of space.

Not only will a workshop help for practical reasons, but it may also help you work more efficiently and focus better. To start off your workshop does not have to be huge. If you are just finding your feet in the industry, a small workshop will be sufficient. However big your workshop is, you ideally will need enough space to work in, some space to store products and tools and you will need to consider noise levels. If your workshop is in a populated area and you plan on working into the night, you will need to consider the noise of tools.

Consider Health and Safety

Whatever the size of your woodworking business, health and safety should be a consideration. There are a number of key health and size considerations which you should aim to tackle. You will be working with sharp tools and saws, so you may want to consider the appropriate PPE to protect yourself. In addition to this you need to consider wood dust, and how you are going to dispel particles from the workshop. Often overlooked, wood dust can interfere with your respiratory system and is extremely harmful if inhaled. In a woodworking workshop, wood dust is almost unavoidable. If you are sanding, sawing or working with wood, you are likely to produce wood dust. You may wish to integrate an extraction system into your workshop or explore high quality PPE options. Whatever the strategy is, it is important that you cover yourself and create a work environment that takes health and safety seriously.

Marketing

Once you have the correct space, you have covered the health and safety aspects of your business and you are happy with the subject and quality of your products, it is time to think about marketing. In this day and age, social media should form a large part of your marketing strategy. Not only can social media be used to generate new business, but it can be used as a platform to sell and promote products. Social media is a multi faceted marketing solution and one that, if you have not, you should get to grips with. Woodworking is an art, so why not show off your process? You could create mini clips as you work and post these to Tik Tok, for example.

Truthfully, there are a great number of ways you can market and promote your business. Spend some time researching your industry and look at what competitors are doing. This will give you an insight into success, and may give you ideas of what direction to take your own company in.

As is highlighted in this article, if you work with wood then you need to consider wood dust. This is a byproduct of sanding or sawing wood, and can be extremely harmful if inhaled. If your workshop is on an industrial scale, companies like Extractly offer first rate dust extraction services. For more information, visit their website.