Plan B

[pjt]

Been on the bench for the whole of this year and starting to think I might want to pull the trigger on a new plan B. I have a property company (BTL) as my current side income but seriously investigating expanding this with some sort of self storage business. The amount of automation you can get in this area these days makes it a vaklid side business but with a much better ROI than BTL. Biggest issue I'm hitting is getting suitable land which may be the shhow stopper on the idea at least in the short term.

Would be interested in hearing what the rest of you have your fingers into. Especially things that are actually paying off.

[northernladuk]

I've got a potentially lucrative gig providing quality and valuable content to CUK to keep the forum busy and relevant. Although I must say working B2B is right pain in the arse. I heard payment cycles can be very long much longer that via an agent but Admin hasn't responded to a single sent invoice in 15 years. I'm sure he's just a bit busy so when he does I'll be rolling in it.

[vetran]

I've got a potentially lucrative gig providing quality and valuable content to CUK to keep the forum busy and relevant. Although I must say working B2B is right pain in the arse. I heard payment cycles can be very long much longer that via an agent but Admin hasn't responded to a single sent invoice in 15 years. I'm sure he's just a bit busy so when he does I'll be rolling in it.

I heard Admin had concerns with the quality of contributions!

[northernladuk]

I heard Admin had concerns with the quality of contributions!

He does. He keeps ringning me in a bit of a froth about about it and we'll chat for awhile. I'll give him a load of advice about who's the root of the problem but he never seems to take my ideas on board and ends the calls saying I just don't get it or something. Very strange.

[jamesbrown]

My Plan B is offering Plan B ideas to washed up contractors. It'll cost you, though, and the ideas are a bit crap.

[WTFH]

My Plan B is offering Plan B ideas to washed up contractors. It'll cost you, though, and the ideas are a bit crap.

Does your Plan B involve setting up an internet discussion forum for a bunch of washed up contractors?

Crap idea, it will never work.

[ladymuck]

Of all the self storage places I've used over the years, there's been no automation at all. How would I get in and out of my unit when I have to change NLUK's nappies?

[jamesbrown]

Does your Plan B involve setting up an internet discussion forum for a bunch of washed up contractors?

Crap idea, it will never work.

My ideas aren't that crap. They do feature a preponderance of circus activities and clown outfits, though.

OTOH, if the OP expects actual ideas, courtg9000 probably has some.

[courtg9000]

My ideas aren't that crap. They do feature a preponderance of circus activities and clown outfits, though.

OTOH, if the OP expects actual ideas, courtg9000 probably has some.

jamesbrown Thanks for calling me in.

There is probably a lot out there. The OP needs available land for his preferred plan. That's going to be his biggest setback in this country, especially at a price point that is sweet.

I have been actively out of the markets for a while (its been a long time since I had over £1,000,000,000 worth available every month!) but I do have a look every so often and stuff is out there, quite a bit of it too. Currently I personally know of some good opportunities (not very many though) from between about £10k and about £20 million. A few years ago with a bit more information I would have been better placed to point the OP or others in an actual direction suited individually to them. There are some problems for most contractors though and I have seen these a lot. The biggest ones are:

1) The shift in mindset from "bum on seat" to "the buck stops with me".
2) The commitment of a large chunk of capital and the risk of further very expensive calls on personal capital/guarantees against primary personal assets etc.
3) The lack of ability to actually sell. 99.99% of contractors can only sell themselves in an interview and would have difficulty selling say a life insurance policy or back hoe loader. Most couldn't sell me a pint of ale!
4) Poor knowledge of how to do marketing. Its as if marketing doesn't matter when actually its just as important as the sale if you want to succeed.

Remember also setting up a business from scratch is VERY VERY high risk.
You can mitigate the risk by buying something already established. If you have a good slant on the market you can do some tilting but this method lowers the risk substantially compared to starting from scratch.
You do not have to reinvent the wheel to make money.

I retired very young (usual health disclaimer) through having no choice.
I have heard of a lot of permies at my age (late 40's) or similar or older doing things these days such as retraining as teachers or civil servants usually because they have no choice to get out before being kicked out or have been kicked out especially from big4 or smaller big4 competitors.
Retraining could be low capital risk.

These are very some general thoughts on the OP request and other comments.

[vetran]

Of all the self storage places I've used over the years, there's been no automation at all. How would I get in and out of my unit when I have to change NLUK's nappies?

That is a courageous plan B!