If you are starting a business for the first time, you may forget to include all of the little
supply needs in your start up budget. You will want to look at the things that you will
need for a project or just overall. You will find that there are tons of reasons for you to
want to consider the little things. Things like not having a clock in a rental space could
mean all the difference when trying to rent out an office. You will want to make sure that
you are prepared for even the smallest things. Even if your place looks good, but you
don’t have anything that you need like a paper clip or a pen to write in appointments, then
what is the use of having a beautiful space? The small things count!
Office supplies are a need for any business. Whether you spend lots of time in the office
or not, you need pens, paper, stamps, paperclips, tape, envelopes, pencils, and sticky
notes if you wish to run a successful business. You will have to learn to budget for even
the small items. If you use lots of a certain item (pens, for example), it may be most
beneficial to buy these items in bulk. Also, take advantage of the catalogs that offer
discount rates for a order over a certain amount so that you can be prepared for future
use, and also get a discount and save a lot of money.
There are some supplies that you will need in the office more than others, and you will
want to make sure that you don’t overlook anything. For example, will you have
employees? If so, will they be required to wear uniforms? You will most likely want to
provide these uniforms to ensure that everyone’s dress is the same, but this means you
must be prepared for future employees who may be of many shapes and sizes. For those
who work in food service, you might want to remind yourself about the sanitary supplies
like gloves, hairnets, or hats.
Also, don’t forget those supplies that you need to keep your business and the building
functional. Your bathroom must be stocked with toilet paper, for example, even if the
only ones who use it are employees. Don’t forget the cleaning supplies to get the place
clean and stay clean and think about trashcans for every room.
Before you give your business plan a thoughtful budget, you will want to make sure that
you set aside some money for you to get those miscellaneous items that you’ll need.
Also, think about all those little things that you will forget. Make sure that on the second
day that you’ll have plenty of money for you to get all those things that you might have
missed. You will also want to think about setting more money aside so that you can have
some profit at the end of your first month if you don’t end up spending all of the money.
You should also think about purchasing some items a little bit at a time so that you can
help get your business up and running.