Furniture maker and repairer from a home workshop
Make bespoke tables, shelves and chairs, and repair old furniture, from a garage or shed workshop.
- £1.5k-8k
- Side hustle
- From home
Estimates for a small start in the UK, not guarantees.
Official data
6,546 UK companies in this field, 20% registered in the last 2 years
SIC 31090 “Manufacture of other furniture”. Source: Companies House, November 2026.
What it is
Building made-to-order furniture such as tables, shelves and benches, plus repairing and restoring tired wooden pieces, all from a workshop at home.
Your first three steps
- Make three or four showcase pieces and photograph them well
- Set up a simple Instagram or Facebook page and tell local groups what you offer
- Work out your hourly rate and a materials markup, then price your first commissions
Who pays
Homeowners wanting something bespoke or fixed, plus local interior designers, cafes and small shops.
How it makes money
Quoted price per commission or repair, based on materials plus your time. Selling at craft fairs and online adds extra sales.
Skills that help
- Joinery and woodworking
- Measuring and accurate cutting
- Finishing and restoration
- Quoting jobs fairly
Watch out for
- Check whether your landlord, mortgage lender or council needs to agree to a workshop at home
- Noise and dust may bother neighbours, so check local rules and consider extraction
- Public liability insurance, and cover for tools and stock in an outbuilding
- Workshop safety: machinery, dust and fire risks, so check what safety measures you need
- Furniture sold to customers may have fire safety labelling rules for upholstered items, so check before making those
Deep research report · UK
Everything you need to start: furniture maker and repairer from a home workshop
Researched with live web search for United Kingdom: real startup prices, the licences and rules, what others charge, a break-even example, how to find your first customers and a 30-day launch plan. With sources.
- Startup costs with real prices
- Licences, registration and rules
- Pricing: what others charge
- Break-even example
- Finding your first customers
- 30-day launch plan
- Risks and how to reduce them
Questions people ask
How much does it cost to start a furniture making business at home?
Startup costs are typically around £1,500 to £8,000, depending on the tools and machinery you buy, how you equip your workshop and the timber and materials you stock. Insurance and dust extraction may also need budgeting.
How much can a home furniture maker earn?
Monthly revenue is typically around £500 to £3,000, depending on how many commissions and repairs you take on, your prices and the size of each job. These are revenue estimates, not profit, and materials come out of that.
What should I check before running a woodworking workshop at home?
Check whether your landlord, mortgage lender or council needs to agree to a workshop at home, and the noise and dust impact on neighbours. Also check public liability and tool cover, workshop safety measures, and fire safety labelling rules for upholstered items.
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Photo: Joenomias on Pixabay