Acorn Designers

Motivational Speaker
If you have a particularly inspiring story or are just amazing on stage, you can make a lot of money touring the speaker circuit. Conferences shell out thousands of pounds for 1-hour long sessions.
Motivational speakers come in all shapes and sizes but typically focus on areas including business, lifestyle and fitness. To get started as a motivational speaker you’ll need to decide on the niche you wish to speak about and build up base topics, speeches and presentations (that can be amended to event/client’s specific needs).
Next, you’ll want to build up a portfolio of public speaking work, ideally which includes professional photography and videography of speaking at events (you can build up this portfolio by offering your services for free initially).
You’ll also want to set up a professional website and list yourself with speaker agencies (such as the JLA). The motivational and public speaking circuit is competitive; it’s all about connections and exposure, networking and getting good visibility through speaker platforms to drive business.

Tattoo Artist
The cool thing about this industry is you can generally rent a space in a tattoo parlour, meaning you don’t need to shell out £££ for your own site and you can make use of their brand.
Tattooing is an art form, to get started you’ll require many years of education or tutoring and a good setup of tattoo machine (ink pen) and inks. You’ll also need to have a good understanding of the health and safety involved and make sure relevant insurance is in place.
Marketing a tattooing business largely relies on word of mouth marketing from previous clients but you can also use visual platforms like Instagram to build a following and gain more clients.

Nutritionist
Eating healthy has never been more difficult, as the working week has increased more and more people are struggling to find time to shop, cook or acquire the knowledge needed to help them keep a healthy level of nutrition (just look at the enormous increase in obesity in the UK to see the impact of poor nutirition).
Nutritionists work with individuals to devise meal/nutritional plans so they can lead healthy lives. The dieting and nutrition industry is big business with a growing demand for nutritionists as a service.
To get started, you’ll need an office client can visit, be a certified nutritionist, have basic plans for nutrition that can be adapted to each client and a business website/phone number. To market your nutrition business, you can advertise your services through local publications, partner with local gyms and trying leafletting busy urban areas.
You can also expand revenue by providing a healthy meal service, so clients don’t have to worry about purchasing healthy food/finding the time to cook it. Alternatively, you can partner with other organisations to provide this service and take a commission.

Architect
Architect firms are paid on a project by project basis. This means that they typically keep a very small core team onboard at any one time (avoiding paying for excess salaries when projects are not underway). This model has lead to the industry heavily relying on contractors (freelance architects) to come and work on a project by project basis.
To start you’ll need a degree level qualification in architecture and have specialised in one of the key aspects involved (3d building render, drawing, site inspection, material assessment). Typically, as a service-based business you’ll been paid on an hourly basis and in some cases you may have retainers for longer term projects. You can market yourself by creating a list of local and national architecture firms, emailing them your portfolio and a list of the services you can offer.
You can also choose to work directly with a client by offering your services on freelancer sites such as Upwork to work with small home and business owners owners on individual projects varying in scale (full houses, conservatories, office refurbishment…).

Painter/Decorator
Painting and decorating are essential services most homeowners, renters and business owners will require at multiple points throughout their lifetimes. Although very time consuming (as its all labour) it’s a very simple business idea and is typically quite well paid although competitive market (due to the low barriers to entry).
To get going you need paint brushes, sheets, rollers and basic decorating materials. You’ll also need a reliable form of transport to easily reach homes and businesses. Additionally, it’s advisable to look at tradesman insurance and other forms of business insurance to ensure your protected in case of doing damage/harm to a property, yourself or a client (i.e. leaving a paint brush around as a trip hazard can be costly).
With painting and decorating it’s very simple to reach new clients, by listing yourself on sites like Checkatrade, myBuilder and rated people (sites are paid via commission on each job or through a listing fee). To get work (request for quotes) through these platforms it’s advisable to build up a number of good reviews, as positive feedback and price are the major factors potential clients will use to decide when hiring a painter or decorator.

Accountant
As the saying goes there are two things you can always rely on “death and taxes”. The latter is usually the bane of most people’s existence and is of major importance to business.
Almost all small businesses are required to pay business taxes, to this end they must consistently record financial dealings, submit annual abbreviated accounts (self-assessment for freelancers), corporate tax returns, file/pay VAT bills and manage many other financial reporting/tax obligations.
The majority of small businesses can’t afford to have an accountant in-house so turn to local accountants or small accounting firms to help make sure their filing is correct and their tax is as efficient as possible.
To start an accounting business, you’ll need to have basic accounting qualifications (College or University) and be registered with the Institute of Financial accountants. The setup cost for an accountant is minimal as it’s serviced-based. In essence you’ll need a place to work from (home or small office), a good filing system, accounting software, a decent computer and security software to protect client private financial data.
Local accountants can earn anywhere between £50,000 and £150,000 a year. The beauty of this business is that every business needs an accountant. For marketing you can send letters to other local businesses, attend networking events and join local business groups (i.e. British Chambers of Commerce) to meet new accounting clients. You can also work remotely for companies who are not in your local area.