I emailed this bookstore asking if they were hiring. I noticed they lacked presence on social media and their website wasn’t well made and offered my graphic design services as I’m a recent graphic design graduate. The owner said she didn’t have the budget to hire but was retiring soon and asked if i’d be interested in taking over. I know nothing about owning a business but this seems like a good opportunity so I’m trying to figure out what to do.
The opportunity to run a business is daunting, but as someone who recently hopped into a business I had no knowledge about or the industry, it’s tight. I don’t make a lot of money, but I do ok and I love working for myself and I love the opportunity to grow the business.
The pro’s are the flexibility to make a space you want to work in. You’re free to be creative and problem solve to grow the business.
The cons are things like keeping up with the finances, you probably have a store front that needs to be managed, can you devote yourself to be there for the good of the business even when you’d rather be somewhere else, and do all of that extra work for not extra money. You only earn what the business can afford to pay you after all the other things are paid first. These are sacrifices that need to be made and stresses that need to be managed, but well worth it if it works out.
All that said get a look at the financial records, talk to an accountant, if they’re open to you working in the business for a few months before committing to the idea just so you can get a feel of the state of the business without relying on them to be honest with you.