Paracord As A Business

Many of our 550 paracord customers make and sell items as part of profitable small business endeavors, including bracelets, animal collars, leashes, halters, gun slings and similar hand-crafted products. We have numerous paracord bracelet totorials and instructions to help people learn to make such items.

It is relatively easy to establish a part-time paracord business as a profitable hobby. However, it is much more difficult to turn the hobby into a full-time business that generates enough profit to support a family. Friends and acquaintances may buy a few items a week, but if you want to develop a thriving business you need serious marketing to reach new potential custmers.

Right now, with people losing jobs because of the COVID 19 pandemic, some are looking for ways to quickly generate new revenue. A paracord business could be the answer but we urge those interested to proceed cautiously and think through a serious business plan. Here are some question to consider.

1. What items will you craft to sell? Do you have the skill and time needed? How will your products be different from competitors? Paracord bracelets are sold in many, many online and brick/mortar stores. Why would someone want to buy yours? Are you going to offer a cheaper price? Or some special feature or quality?

It is easy to find cheap bracelets and you will have a difficult time competing by price alone. More complex patterns often take much longer to produce. The cost for material is usually relatively low and so there is profit potential but be aware of the hours it may take to produce one item.

2. How will you market your items? Many people sell craft items are flee markets, farmers markets and such. Right now many of those are shut down because of social distancing requirements.

Many people sell on Etsy and other online marketplaces. That can work but be aware that it is easy for customers on Etsy to price-shop and compare deals. You will be a small fish in a huge pond facing tremendous competition.

Some people launch their own websites to sell products online. That requires more time and usually more funding up front. When a new website launches, it has no traffic – people will not know it exists and will not be able to find it even if they are interested in the products sold.

Google and Bing will eventually discover the site and begin to dive some “organic” traffic. But initially a new site will appear far down the search index. For paracord bracelets and similar popular products, there may be 1000 or more good sites ranked higher than your new site. It takes time and effort to make a website rank well for organic search.

Google and other companies allow you to pay for ads at the top of search listings. That can be an effective tool for new businesses. However, competition may be keen and the cost of advertising will affect your profit potential.

3. Many hobbyists do not worry about business licenses, accounting and other requirements. If you hope to become a serious business, you need to do what it takes to make things legal Establishing an LLC or some other legal structure protects you as the owner.

We wish you the best of luck if you launch a new venture.