Introduction

October is the first month where I am seriously trying to monetize my passion for crocheting. I have to go through a lot of bureaucracy, and I neither have stock nor any experience or contacts related to this.

One-Time Costs for Starting a Business

Country-Specific Costs

When starting a business, there are one-time costs that you only need to pay once a year, which in my case include:

• Business tax: 50,000 Ft (approximately $138)
• Chamber of Commerce membership fee: 5,000 Ft (approximately $14)
• Environmental fee (I’ll find out the amount when I start shipping packages, but the registration process needs to start now)
• Local government shipping fee: 3,000 Ft (approximately $9)
• An invoicing program connected to the tax authorities: 17200 Forint (approximately 49$)

Other One-Time Costs

I pay yearly for my website’s domain name:

• 1,200 Forint ($4)

I also include my stuffing material as I bought 20 kg at once from a wholesaler at a very reasonable price and good quality. It will certainly last for this year.

• Cost: Around $70

Monthly Fixed Costs

There are monthly fees that need to be paid regardless of sales:

• Web hosting fee: 1,400 Ft/month ($4)
• Tax: 50,000 Ft/month ($138)

What I Am Not Accounting For

As I start producing products, I will calculate their material costs individually. What I am not including but should:

• My own time. It’s scarce, but I manage it as I see fit, mainly planning to work late at night or while waiting for my kids during their practice sessions.
• Existing tools. These are also not cheap. I use high-quality crochet hooks as non-ergonomic ones quickly make my hands ache and lead to tendonitis, so it’s crucial to work with tools that can be used in the long run.

That’s it for the costs. Of course, managing all of this also takes a lot of time, but as mentioned, I currently do not consider my own time as a cost.

What to Expect in the Future

Expenses will obviously increase, and sales will start in October since I have no crocheting stock at hand. Cheer for me, and wish me luck!

I will update the blog post continuously, as new expenses or earnings arise.

In summary, where I am at the moment:

my expenses to start my business and sell crochet: 426$.

I’ll put a counter here. The first one shows my expenses, the second one my income, the third one how my profits are, when is it worth it to start crocheting