The Rise of the Homepreneur

Mary Geisenhoff
Staff Writer

The world is changing rapidly due to technology. Business practices from 20 years ago no longer work. The Internet has made striking changes in the way business is conducted, and this transformation continues. This virtual shift has resulted in more and more business doing business online, and foregoing the traditional “brick and mortar”office space.

Because the Internet enables companies to reach consumers worldwide, it has encouraged the formation of many small businesses. To support the creation of small businesses, the British prime minister has recently initiated a “Start-up Britain” campaign. According to Prime Minister David Cameron, "We need to see a country where new businesses are starting up on every street, in every town; where entrepreneurs are everywhere. It appears that small businesses are indeed on the rise. According to the FSB (Federation of Small Business), there are now 4.8 million small businesses in the UK, up from 4 million in 2003.

Many of these new entrepreneurs will probably operate, at least partially with virtual offices. Working from a virtual office has been termed Homepreneuring, Remote Working, Teleworking, Virtual Office, and Elancing. Whatever you call it, there are definite advantages from working out of a virtual office. It saves the cost of renting of an office, cuts or eliminates commute time, and allows workers to flexibility in their work schedule.

If you are considering starting your own home business, or homepreneuring, you should start with a solid business plan and research other companies that offer similar products or services. The Start Up Britain campaign has many resources available for the Homepreneur. Other things to consider are whether you want your home residence address the one that is on Public Record. Many landlords or communities will not allow you to have this as your official place of business. If you will be receiving and sending packages, you probably want a service that does this for you from a registered business address.