Start an online daily living and mobility aids store

Older people, people recovering from injury or surgery, family carers, and small care settings buying consumables.

You buy at trade price and sell at a mark-up. Repeat orders for consumables such as dressings and continence-related items help build steady monthly sales.

• Clear, careful customer service
• Basic website and product listing skills
• Patience and sensitivity with people dealing with health problems
• Organising stock and orders

• Many products count as medical devices, so check with the MHRA and your suppliers that items are correctly marked and compliant for sale in the UK
• Check whether any product you plan to sell counts as a medicine, as those have separate rules and generally need a pharmacy
• Do not give medical advice; point customers to their GP, nurse or occupational therapist
• Public liability and product liability insurance, plus distance-selling and returns rules to check
• Stock tied up in slow-selling items, so start small

Startup costs are typically around £1,000 to £5,000, depending on your website, how much stock you hold and whether suppliers send orders direct. These are estimates, so start small to avoid tying money up in slow-selling items.

Monthly revenue is typically around £800 to £4,000, depending on your range, pricing and how many customers you reach. This is revenue before stock, delivery, platform fees, insurance and other costs.

Check with the MHRA and your suppliers that products are correctly marked and compliant for sale in the UK, whether any item counts as a medicine, insurance, and distance-selling and returns rules. Do not give medical advice.