Home-based timber frame components agent

Small builders, joiners, carpenters and self-build customers who want one contact for framing timber, or who are too small to get good trade terms elsewhere.

Either a commission from the supplier on each order, or a margin between your trade price and the price you quote the customer. Repeat trade from builders brings steadier income.

• Reading plans and cut lists
• Knowing timber grades and sizes
• Selling and building trade relationships
• Careful quoting and record keeping

• Check that your supplier's structural timber is graded and marked to the right standard for its use
• If you bring timber into the UK or place it on the market, check the timber legality due diligence rules
• Do not give structural design advice unless qualified. Point customers to an engineer or the designer for calculations
• Make sure your agreement says who is responsible for wrong or damaged deliveries
• Product liability and professional indemnity insurance, as well as public liability, are worth asking a broker about
• Check whether running this from home needs permission from your landlord or mortgage lender

Estimates suggest startup costs are typically around £500 to £3,000, depending on your home office set-up, insurance and how you find customers. You hold no stock, because your mill or merchant supplies and delivers each order.

Estimated monthly revenue is typically around £500 to £4,000, depending on how many builders and self-builders you win and the size of their orders. Revenue is not profit, so check your margins with your supplier. Estimates start from about 10 hours a week.

Check that your supplier's structural timber is graded and marked to the right standard for its use, and check the timber legality due diligence rules. Do not give structural design advice unless qualified. Ask a broker about insurance, and check your agreement covers wrong or damaged deliveries.