Do you have a hobby? Have you ever thought of making your hobby into a backyard business?
A backyard business could be an expansion of a hobby you are already engaged in. Or it could be a completely new venture you’re jumping into feet first.
And why not try to make an income from a hobby or passion you already love to do. Maybe you need some ideas on what type of business to venture into. Therefore, I share 23 of the most popular rural and homestead business ideas I see in the world today in hopes that one of them will set a spark for a new idea in you.
You can use these ideas to create a business from hobbies you currently have or maybe something you’ve always wanted to do.
But before I give you the ideas I have, there are some little details you must consider before starting into any new venture.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. This means that, at no additional cost to you, I may get a commission if you click the link and make a purchase. Thanks for your support in this way.
First of all, before you can make money with your homestead business ideas, you have to spend money.
First of all, be prepared to make some investments. Understand that with any types of small business at home, there will be start up costs to any of these ventures. You must invest in your backyard business before you can make money.
For example, beekeeping is a costly venture to start up no matter how much equipment you make or borrow from others. You have to consider the fact that you’ll have to spend some money to purchase beekeeping equipment and the bees themselves.
As a result, here are really no “freebees” when it comes to any venture you want to start. Either from scratch or from a hobby.
Furthermore, do your homework, make a plan and budget out expenses to guarantee this new venture is one you can handle financially.
And Consider your space and time involved before you Create a Business from Hobbies.
Do you have enough space or room on your land or in your home for what you want to venture into? If you live in town, do you have room for small animals or even a garden?
Also ask yourself if you have the time needed to commit to reaching your goals with this venture. Decide how much time is needed for the commitment to succeed.
The worst problem with any venture is that the owner can get overwhelmed. So start slow, take one stepping stone at a time, and drive your start up in a way that will work for you and your customers.
Hence, all while following the rules.
Therefore, consider licensing and rules on certain products you want to sell in your backyard business.
And depending on the product, there are rules about licensing before selling certain products. The most common are perishable food items, such as dairy and meats.
Each state is different, so check with your State USDA offices for any information regarding rules and licensing.
There may also be community commercial kitchens available for you to use to make your products. For a small fee, you can produce batches of your products in these kitchens if you are need of a certified commercial kitchen. If you don’t already have your own certified commercial kitchens, check with your local Extension Office to help you find one in your area.
If you have questions about what you might need, please ask them before you start. Honing down licensing and following rules at the start of building your backyard business can greatly help keep you from having to back track and find trouble when you’re trying to find success.
Most Importantly, Find a Mentor to help you.
That mentor is important. If you’re starting something brand new to eventually net some homestead income, don’t do it alone. You need a mentor!
So, what is a mentor? A mentor is someone who is experienced in the same venture as you who is willing to help you get started and answer questions. And you can find a mentor easily in just 3 easy steps!
I have learned many many things from my mentors. As a result, I believe that the mentorship relationship is one of the main strengths to any new backyard business venture.
Finally, developing a backyard business will NOT be easy!
Another tip to keep in mind is this: Don’t go into any backyard business venture thinking it will be easy to make money. None of the following homestead business ideas will be easy. Most new business owners who go into business thinking it will be easy ultimately fail.
There really are no easy ways to make money on a farm or homestead. The 23 ways to make money off your land and in your backyard I’m about to reveal takes a lot of time and investment. I repeat…It will not be easy and you have a lot of learning to do.
Consequently, you will be expected to follow your plan and stay in control of finances. In addition, you’ll need to learn to make some tough decisions.
And there will be good days and bad days. Probably there will be days you will want to quit. Don’t quit unless you absolutely can’t find a way out of the darkness.
But, the main thing to remember is that if you love what you do, there will be more good days than bad. So, love what you do and learn so much that you want to keep the knowledge flowing. Learn to make helping others the key to your business venture.
From there, the customers will roll in and the money will flow. You won’t even know what hit you.
Now to the good stuff! What kind of business should you start up? Here are 23 backyard business ideas just for you to consider right in your own back yard:
First of all, Let’s Start With The Animals
1. Meat Goats for 4-H projects: Do you raise goats and love helping kids? Sell your best goat kids for 4-H projects! A good price to start out at is whatever market price is in your area.
In addition, market price helps you establish that customer base you need to succeed. You can also sell young goat kids off the farm for meat if you have interested customers.
2. Meat Goats for commercial use: Sell kids or adult goats for custom grazing! This is a huge market that just keeps growing and has expanded into cities. It is a great business because it gets those goats off your feed bill. The company or person pays you to have them graze the area.
3. Meat Chickens: Cornish Cross Broilers are hardy meat birds that can be finished in about eight weeks.
4. In addition, Laying Chickens: Sell your eggs from the laying hens. Check around for egg prices in your area.
5. And Chicks: Hatch some chicks in the spring to sell for laying hens or meat. If you are hatching them yourself, you’ll need an incubator plus a jump start pen for when they are hatched.
6. Dairy Goats for Milk/Products: Delicious, calcium-rich milk from dairy goats is in high demand! And so is goat milk soaps and lotions.
7. Mini Cattle – Is all the rage right now! Raise your own beef and/or milk products.
8. Wool or Hair Sheep: Raise some sheep and shear them for wool. You can sell the wool or knit cool projects with it. Or, you might be interested in hair sheep for meat.
9. Beekeeping: This could be a way to have fresh honey to sell or make honey products to sell also! Like with any venture, there is start up costs involved. Check out my beginning beekeeping equipment list.
10. Fish: If you don’t have a pond, you can establish freshwater fish in tanks.
11. Dogs: Love dogs? Pick a breed and raise some puppies.
Create a Business from Hobbies in the Garden
12. Start transplants in your house and then sell them before planting time.
13. Or, Collect heirloom seeds at the end of the season, package them up, and sell them.
14. Grow herbs in your garden and then harvest, dry, and sell.
15. Sell fresh produce direct from your home or a local Farmer’s Market.
16. And harvest your berries and make delicious jellies to sell.
17. Provide a “U-Pick” service, by letting people come to your gardens to pick their own produce. Create a business from hobbies you love to do!
And Here’s a List of Homestead Business Ideas for Other Products and Services as a Backyard Business
18. First of all, Photography: Create a beautiful outdoor studio and use your talent to take pictures.
19. Bake yummy items such as cookies, cakes, and breads to sell. Open a home-based bakery.
20. Offer how-to type classes on whatever you’re passionate about. You will be surprised at how many others share the same drive.
21. Making crafts or jewelry out of things such as feathers, insects, etc scattered around your land. I’ll be you can find something beautiful!
22. Also, do you have an extra house or building you can make into living quarters for a bed and breakfast?
23. Finally, Offer your land as a location for agritourism. There are always people looking for a farm to visit. Create a business from hobbies that stems from travel and education. Teach others to love and enjoy rural living.
Finally, Create a Business from Hobbies that You Love!
Why not? There’s nothing wrong with supporting yourself and your family the way you want to by starting up a backyard business. Create a business from hobbies you love that you’re already doing.
Make it easy and choose homestead business ideas that you are passionate about! Because your new backyard business will be your life. You will live it. And breathe it.
And you’ll be miserable if you don’t love working your backyard business. I hope this list of homestead business ideas gives you at least one idea you can take away and analyze. What is the next step for you to create a business from hobbies? Are you now inspired to turn your passion into a backyard business?
Whatever your dreams may be, always remember to live your passion.
Let your passion be your drive and you will go far.
~Much Love~
Can you think of some good homestead business ideas? Are you inspired to create a business from hobbies right away? What other backyard business ideas can you think of? Let me know in the comments or on Facebook and Twitter!
23 Backyard Business Ideas for You to Create From Hobbies | Veeboard
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Maria
Tuesday 24th of April 2018
Thanks for sharing your post. I read your article and gain a lot of about backyard gardening. I'm new to homesteading and have no idea regarding backyard business. I have 1 Acre space in my backyard house. Give me some tips how I can use it and get profit from it.
Mindy Young
Friday 27th of April 2018
Hey, Maria! I suggest you start with what you're passionate about. For example...Gardening. You only have 1 acre so try out vertical garden and use varieties that are going to continue to produce through the season. For example...tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers. You can sell these for several months, find your customer base and provide them with the best you can. Selling and marketing highly depends on the product you sell. You can definitely do this in a small space. I plan to write more content on selling and turning each hobby into a business as I have done with several of my hobbies over the years. If you want animals, chickens are easy to keep in a small space. Again, I can write so much on this topic...stay tuned for more content! Are you on my email list so you can be notified when I write these? Thanks for stopping by!
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