How to Start an At-Home Cookie Business

If people compliment you on your delicious cookies and you love baking, perhaps you can turn that passion into a lucrative home based cookie business.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. First, check your local laws about food safety and regulations. When you are cooking a product at home that will be served or sold to the public, there are strict guidelines you need to learn and follow to maintain the safety of your product. Start with the Board of Health and explain what you want to do. Be prepared to answer who you are going to sell to, and how you will get the product to your customers.

2. You might want to look into taking a food safety class to learn all the specifics of keeping food from spoiling and keeping your kitchen clean. It may be required for you to become certified as a food safety expert so you'll know all the rules for food refrigeration, surface cleaning, etcetera, that will keep your ingredients and product safe to eat. It may even be necessary to get your kitchen inspected before you start making product. Again, check with town hall and your local board of health.

3. Often you will need to register with local government in order to have a home-based business - sometimes known as Doing Business As. You'll need a name for your business and you'll most likely need to pay a fee.

4. Get a tax id number for your business so you'll be ready to report your profit at tax time. Contact your local IRS field office, call the IRS business and specialty tax hotline, or apply online at the IRS web site.

5. Start baking and start marketing! Get the word out to family and friends and visit businesses that might buy your product with samples in hand. The rise of the local food movement may help a business like yours. Don't overlook farmer's markets as a way to sell more product. Good luck!

[scarletdreamer]

on 5/28/2009 Thanks for the tips! Glad you included the legal information, it's very good to know about.