Here are 9 Week-End Profitable Home Based Businesses Perfect for Kids

If you have entrepreneurial, creative kids...then these 9 profitable home based businesses are just what the teacher ordered!

And even better, you can start these businesses on a shoestring budget!

1) Candle making

Like the ambiance and calming scents of candles? If you're interested in the creative craft of candle making, you can have a profitable home based business.

According to the National Candle Association, candle consumer retail sales in the United States alone is projected at over $2.3 billion, not including candle accessories.

Candles have become a must-have accessory in every home for its practical and decorative elements, and it is used by 7 out of 10 American households.

It has become a popular give away as gifts at birthdays, Christmas, and housewarmings.

Once merely a hobby of candle enthusiasts, candles are now sold in gift and specialty stores, home furnishing stores, through mail order, craft shows and through the Internet.

You could even establish a store in your garage or a spare room to sell your home-made candles. Maybe invite other crafters to sell their wares and you take a percentage of sales.

You could also sell your home based business of candles at a weekend-craft show or at home parties. You could advertise your candles at bridal shops, home and garden shows, or as part of an interior designer's display.

While candles can be made at a relatively low cost, candle making is a time-consuming process and may require some space (working in your kitchen can both be dangerous and very messy).

Some people purchase candles already made and add decorative touches such as pressed dried flowers to the outside.

Research on the kinds of candles that are being produced, and develop your own unique candle line.

Some Helpful Associations for starting candle profitable home based businesses:

National Candle Association (http://www.candles.org)

Profitable Home based business Books:

Candle Making in a Weekend: Inspirational Ideas and Practical Projects by Sue Spear (1999)

2) Grow Cut-flowers

If you or your kids have a green thumb or a knack for growing things...this is a profitable home based business worth considering.

Flowers are all around us in our lives, and kids who have some skill in the garden are well-placed to profit from people’s love for decorating tables and sideboards with beautiful fresh flowers.

Cut flowers is a huge business in many parts of the world, and you can profit from this home based business if you have a medium-sized garden with good soil, room for containers, or a near-by garden plot you could rent.

Begin by establishing your garden and plant for resale perennials like mum, carnation, orchid, evening primrose, or whatever flower type you fancy. Statice, nasturaniums, and sunflowers are also profitable sellers and easy to grow.

You are ready to find customers once your garden is overflowing with mature blossoms.

Recommended Books for profitable home based businesses:

Field Grown Cut Flowers : A Practical Guide and Sourcebook : Commercial Field Grown Fresh and Dried Cut Flower Production by Alan B. Stevens

Flowers for Sale : Growing and Marketing Cut Flowers : Backyard to Small Acreage (A Bootstrap Guide) by Lee Sturdivant, Peggy Sue McRae (Illustrator)

Profitable Home based business Associations:

Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers (http://www.ascfg.org)

American Institute of Floral Designers (http://www.aifd.org)

International Flower Bulb Centre (http://www.bulbsonline.org)

Bulb.com Association (http://www.bulb.com)

3) Handicrafts

If you are making crafts now, think about kicking your hobby into a higher gear and turn it into a profitable home based business.

With the craft craze nowadays, experts in the handcraft field estimate that the crafts industry generates almost $10 billion in annual sales.

Depending on your craft, you can sell your crafts retail, wholesale, or one-of-a-kind in fairs, bazaars, boutiques as well as mail-order catalogs, gift shops and department stores.

The challenge for many craft enthusiasts is turning their hobbies into full-blown businesses, and developing a more professional attitude toward their profitable home based business.

Finding the right price for their products has always been a difficult task, but a good rule of thumb is to always make at least twice as much as you have paid for your supplies.

Keep up-to-date with the latest trends by reading crafting magazines and try to find your own "niche" market for your crafts.

Recommended Books for profitable home based businesses in Arts and Crafts:

Arts, Crafts and More by Barbara Lyerly Goins (Editor), Karen J. Goldfluss, Doris J. Guerrette

The Complete Book of Dollmaking : A Practical Step-By-Step Guide to More Than 50 Traditional and Contemporary Techniques (Watson-Guptill Crafts) by Pamela Peake

Web Resources on home based businesses:

National Craft Association (http://www.craftassoc.com)

Crafts Report Magazine (call 1-800-777-7098 for subscription)

4) Niche Newsletter

Do you have kids who are experts at online video games, samuri swords, horses, skateboarding, etc?

Then writing a small newsletter about that interest or passion could prove to be a profitable home based business venture.

It could be a home based business newsletter about anything from silk painting to comic books.

If your kids can write at all, live in special locations (tourist areas), or have special knowledge (collecting swords, gold coins, etc), you can publish your very own newsletter and earn money from it.

And don't worry, your newsletter doesn't have to be extravagantly designed or extremely colorful, but it must be well organized and readable.

Your first step is to find a valuable topic that will sell.

By far, saving money and making money are two of the best topics for newsletters.

So why not have your son add the twist in his newsletter about how to get the best price when buying collectible swords or how to earn money reselling comic books?

There must be something in your idea that will get people to want to buy your newsletter...like helping them improve their lives or learning something new or useful.

You want a sea of hungry fish ready and wanting what you have to say!

Subjects related to owning a pet is really popular.

Web Resources for profitable home bases businesses:

Newsletters and Electronic Publishers Association (http://www.newsletters.org)

Newsletters Only (http://www.newslettersonly.com)

Books:

Publishing Newsletters by Howard P. Hudson (1998) Here are some profitable home based businesses for pet lovers...

5) Party Planner

If you love having kids parties and enjoy planning for parties, being a party planner can be an extremely profitable home based businesses for you.

And who better knows what kids will like at birthday parties than kids themselves?!

You and your kids can give busy parents help by planning the parties and arranging the cake and entertainment, etc., or doing the entertainment yourself.

You can develop theme parties, from Power Rangers, 102 Dalmatians, Black Beauty horses, Teletubbies, Pirates Treasure, and many more.

You can also offer theme menus and sell all the "fixings" for the parties (related to popular children’s characters or themes) in bags that can be ordered from you in advance containing all the decorations, favors, and even game ideas.

You could call it "Birthday Favors in a Box"!

Books on home based businesses in event planning:

The Birthday Party Business : How to Make a Living As a Children's Entertainer by Bruce Fife(Editor)

Life of the Party : A Guide to Building Your Party Plan Business (Fifty-Minute Series) by Betty Bowes

Web Resources on home based business supplies:

The Party Works (http://www.thepartyworks.com)

6) Baking

Have you ever been told that you have a recipe that people would line up to get if they could?

My son Tony makes THE BEST guacomole I've ever eaten! And home-made cherry pie from our own cherry trees!

Or has anyone ever told you that you should be selling those cupcakes or cheesecake you make?

There are a number of success stories about people who have launched successful home based businesses by cooking at home and then marketing to local people first.

You may specialize in on just one well-tried and tested food product; or you may innovate on a product that you created yourself and which has never been marketed before.

Having perfected the recipe you then turn to packaging and marketing.

Word of mouth on a good product may start to get restaurants or bakeries interested in acquiring your culinary masterpieces.

Then you progress to selling them statewide and worldwide on the internet...

Now you're on your way to a profitable home based businesses!

For more information on profitable home based businesses relating to food:

Freelance Foodcrafting : How to Become Profitably Self-Employed in Your Own Creative Cooking Business by Janet Sho

7) Cake Decorator

Not only can you bake that cake - but decorate it too!

A beautifully decorated cake is often the centerpiece of special occasions such as weddings, first communions, birthdays, graduations, anniversaries, holidays and other special events.

It is the cake decorator's task to transform the cake into a special centerpiece of these occasions.

You must therefore have the skills and artistic flair to decorate cakes, as well as the tools and equipment to help you create and design the cake.

Anyone who celebrates an occasion is your potential customer. To get started, get in touch with such as wedding coordinators, bakeries and party organizers who may be able to include your home based business of cakes in their own services.

Other potential customers include brides and grooms, parents, individuals, and local businesses throwing parties.

Resources for profitable home based businesses of cake decorating:

"The Essential Guide to Cake Decorating (Essential Cookbook)"

8) Cooking Instructor

Wouldn't kids like it if they took a cooking class given by a teen?

If you or your kids are an excellent cook and love to share your love for cooking to others, consider giving cooking lessons.

You could team up with your kids and set up shop in your own kitchen, or offer classes in other location, giving lessons on general cooking techniques or a specialized cuisine such as Italian, vegetarian, desserts, etc.

You must be very knowledgeable about your specialty, and creative in food presentations.

A good sense of humor goes a long way too!

Ramsey puts a cooking instructor's potential income from $30 to $75 per hour.

However, most instructors charge by the class, with the "fee depending on the amount of time, the cost of the classroom and ingredients, and the size of the class."

Resources for home based businesses in the food industry:

"How to Start a Home-Based Catering Business (How to Start a Home-Based Catering Business, 3rd Ed)" by Denise Vivaldo

9) Musician

One of the most beautiful wedding music I've ever heard was performed by a threesome (ages 11, 13, & 14) of violinists.

If you can sing or play a musical instrument, you can jumpstart your musical career on weekends by either playing solo or with a group.

Your gigs can include parties, graduations, religious ceremonies, and even weddings.

To get started, monitor the classified ad section of your local newspaper for ads asking to book musicians or to replace members.

Ramsey puts the potential home based business earnings of a new musician to about $5,000 to $15,000 a year working part-time.

Not bad money for your 13 to 18 year old?!

I've listed 9 ideas to get you started, but remember, there are many more profitable home based businesses for YOUR millionaire kids!