Businesses you can start with US$10, hmmm? The amount seems too tight, right? Still, I thought it would be an interesting discussion to explore the available options. Can you start a business with just US$10? If so, which businesses can you start with the amount? That is the focus of this article today. There will be some underlying assumptions to consider. For example, these are businesses you can start without needing anything else. As in, the US$10 goes straight to the core of what you are offering. It might sound silly but things do start small.

FMCG Repackaging Into Smaller Packs (Or Quantities)

There are several fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG). These can be foodstuffs such as groceries and fruits and vegetables. The idea here is to use the US$10 to source any of those that you find strategic. For example, it could tomatoes, vegetables or whatever. You then repackage into smaller quantities. You then price the smaller quantities in such a way that you will get a margin. Once the initial stock is sold out you repeat the process. If you keep at it for a while, your order quantities will grow. Seems like a long stretch but it is doable.

Cooked And Baked Foods

For baking, I am using muffins because I have a rough appreciation of them. I have a buddy of mine who recently started doing muffins. From the costing he gave him, US$10 is more than enough to get your first batch of muffins out. This batch can be sold out on the same day. This, of course, has the underlying assumption that everything else is there e.g. oven, electricity, and so on. You can also explore other baked foods; so long you can source what is needed within US$10. The same goes for cooked foods as well. The idea is to look at what you are good at i.e. cooking or baking. Then consider if it is something you can commercialize. Then you assess if it is possible to source enough ingredients for US$10 to prepare something to sell. If that is possible, you then repeat the process which will see you scaling over time.

Freelancing

Here I am looking at someone who has a specialized skillset. You could be or have what it takes to be a tutor, consultant, and so on. For example, you have landscaping skills or you are an accountant. For the former, you can start offering your services for things as basic as grass cutting. As an accountant, you can explore offering services where you do small businesses’ tax returns, for example. I just cited these two examples to show that there are countless freelancing approaches. Anyone can be a freelancer. You will then have to morph these approaches into a business offering. The US$10 you will use for things like creating an online presence e.g. WhatsApp Business account, and other social media platforms. Once the word is out you can start anticipating prospective clients calling you.

Publishing Ebooks

I did an article on how you make money from publishing books on Amazon Kindle. I mentioned it is free i.e. there are no upfront costs. You can write your books, sign up on Amazon Kindle, publish your books, and start earning your royalties without paying anything. The only cost you will incur is having to be online i.e. data. Otherwise, you can even explore options where you will not need to pay anything for data. For example, you can go to places e.g. university campuses where you can access free Wi-Fi. The bottom line is, for US$10 you can start your business of writing and publishing ebooks on Amazon Kindle.

This might all seem like a stretch but I can guarantee you this works. It might not be something for you but you might know someone out there who needs this. Often time some people make excuses for not being able to start a business because they have no capital. There is no shortage of business ideas that one can pursue. At times it is just that many people are not patient enough to start small and scale over time. They are not ready to handle the demanding level of discipline required to start small. As you can see from all the business ideas I shared, you will need to reinvest every cent you make back into the business. If you do not do so you will remain in one position – you have to be disciplined and frugal.