All businesses / Handmade and craft

Fingerprint: capital · hours · speed to income · margin · ceiling. The dashed line is mid-scale.

Start a handmade and craft: the real numbers

Own production sold online and at markets. Below is what it actually costs, how long before money arrives, and the part most guides leave out.

Startup capital

€500–€4,000

Hours / week

10–35

First income

~6 wks

Net margin

60%

Saturation

high

Realistic ceiling

€400–€2,000

What nobody usually tells you

You start with almost nothing and learn by selling. But production time doesn't scale and the real margin, counting hours, is almost always lower than it looks.

The route, in five steps

  1. Work out your hourly cost: almost nobody does, almost everybody loses
  2. Sell at markets before selling online: you learn faster
  3. Photograph well, it's half the price
  4. Make few variants, not a catalogue
  5. Raise prices: underpriced handmade doesn't sell more

What you'll need to buy

These are the categories every handmade and craft pays for in the first month. We break down what each one actually costs at this size on the tools page.

materialstoolssales platformpackaging

Does it hold up for you?

These numbers are the average case. Whether this business clears your target depends on your capital, your hours and how long you can wait — put them in and see.

Run my numbers → See the tool stack