Stone workshop: cut and fit marble worktops

Homeowners, interior designers, kitchen and bathroom firms, builders, and hotels, restaurants or shops.

Priced per project based on stone cost plus fabrication and fitting. You earn a margin on the slab and on your labour, with extra for edges, cut-outs and polishing.

• Stone cutting and polishing
• Templating and accurate measuring
• Quoting and costing jobs
• Managing customers and suppliers

• Dust and silica: check HSE rules on controlling respirable dust, water suppression, extraction and health checks
• Check planning use class and the lease terms for a workshop unit, plus noise and waste rules
• Public liability insurance, and employer's liability once you take on staff
• Heavy slabs: check lifting equipment, manual handling training and workshop safety
• Slab breakage and wrong measurements can be expensive, so check payment terms and deposits

Estimates suggest startup costs are typically around £25,000 to £80,000, depending on the unit, saw, polishing kit, extraction and lifting equipment you choose. Monthly revenue is typically estimated at around £6,000 to £25,000, depending on the jobs you win.

Check HSE rules on respirable silica dust, including water suppression, extraction and health checks. Also check the planning use class and lease terms for the unit, noise and waste rules, lifting safety, and public liability insurance, plus employer's liability once you hire staff.

You need stone cutting and polishing, accurate templating and measuring, and quoting and costing skills, plus the ability to manage customers and suppliers. Estimates suggest you should expect at least around 35 hours a week.