Your result
Your answers: you have over $500 to start; you have under 5 h a week; you aim for a first milestone within 4 weeks; you want as little contact as possible; you prefer working at home, behind your screen; you have space to store items; you like hunting for deals; you need a predictable path.
No. 1
Buy below market price and resell, six niches to choose from.
Niche suggested for your budget.
See the Reselling · Tools & job-site gear businessPack 1 from $37 CAD (about US$27) · One-time payment · 14-day guarantee
Educational content, no guaranteed income.
No. 2
Create designs that sell with no inventory and no cash up front.
See the Print on Demand businessPack 1 from $24 CAD (about US$18) · One-time payment · 14-day guarantee
It fits better on: what you like doing (22-point gap), time (7-point gap) and timing (5-point gap).
Print on Demand does better on: contact (14-point gap) and location (5-point gap).
On the other aspects, they are tied.
| Aspect | Reselling · Tools & job-site gear | Print on Demand |
|---|---|---|
| Starting budget | CA$100–300Good fit12/12 | CA$0–50Good fit12/12 |
| Time per week | 4–8 hPartial7/14 | 5–10 hWatch out0/14 |
| First milestone (estimate) | 1–3 wkGood fit10/10 | 4–10 wkPartial5/10 |
| Contact with people | Answering customersWatch out0/14 | Almost noneGood fit14/14 |
| Online or in the field | Outings + onlinePartial5/10 | 100% onlineGood fit10/10 |
| Stock and shipping | Stock at home, shippingGood fit8/8 | The printer shipsGood fit8/8 |
| What you do day to day | Hunting for dealsGood fit22/22 | Creating designsWatch out0/22 |
| Demand and risk | Medium · cash in stockPartial5/10 | MediumPartial5/10 |
| Score | 69/100 | 54/100 |
You must tie up capital in stock, and a badly assessed item stays unsold.
Budget: CA$100–300.
Competition is enormous: a generic design does not sell, however well presented.
Budget: CA$0–50 (Printify free plan, US$0.20 per Etsy listing).
Each aspect is worth points: what you like doing 22, time 14, contact 14, budget 12, timing 10, location 10, risk 10, stock 8. “Good fit” earns all of the aspect’s points, “Partial” half, “Watch out” 0.
The score measures how well your answers match what the business demands: it is not a chance of success nor an income forecast.