This is the one where I need a little seed money.

Posted August 23rd, 2010 by Mike Lawson

I’m sure I’m not the only one that dreams of working for himself.  What follows is a list of businesses that I’d like to run on my own.  All that’s missing is a bit of seed money.

LAUNDROMAT/COFFEE SHOP – I even have a name for this one.  The Lint Trap.  If you’ve done your laundry at a laundromat, then you know why this business would be successful.  The Lint Trap would be a clean, modern, comfortable laundromat with a full coffee bar and pastry shop.  Free wi-fi.  Come sit in our comfortable chairs and relax while you do your laundry.

And forget your quarters!  All of our machines take Lint Trap Credits.  You buy credits at the counter using cash, debit or credit.  And the machines will all have card readers on them.

And if you don’t want to do your laundry, it’s no biggie.  We’d still be a super hip place to hang.  Open mic nights.  Community meeting space.  Everything you want in a locally owned coffee spot.

CLEANING SERVICE – I know this is a bizzarro dream to have…but I want to clean your house.

Mike’s Maids will come in and do your annual top-to-bottom just in time for the guests that you have coming over.  Or for a smaller fee we’ll arrange weekly or monthly cleanings for you.

How are we different from other cleaning services?  Well, I’m not sure about that yet…give me some time to think up our unique angle.

ONLINE BOOK SELLER – I did this for a small time, and I really wouldn’t mind going back to it.  I want to sell books online.  I buy enough of them, so it only makes sense to try selling some of them using Amazon’s Associate thingy.

I made a bit of money, but I’d like to really get serious about it.  Like start going to used book stores searching for good deals on books that I knew I could make more for.

BLOGGING – Okay…impossible dream.  Wouldn’t it be awesome if I could somehow get paid to blog.  And I’m not talking about blogging for some company.  I think it would be awesome if I could write stories about my silly life or insipid articles about what kinds of businesses I’d like to run…and get paid for it.

What about you? If you could start a company, what would you start?