Online restaurant furniture dealer

New restaurant, bar and cafe owners, hospitality managers refreshing a dining room, and designers or contractors fitting out venues.

You earn the margin between wholesale and your selling price on each order, plus fees for custom finishes, sourcing help or delivery coordination on larger jobs.

• Sales and quoting
• Knowing commercial-grade furniture
• Organizing orders and deliveries

• Sales tax registration and resale certificate rules, check with your state's tax agency
• Freight damage, lead times and returns policies, get these in writing from suppliers
• Commercial fire-safety and upholstery standards that some venues must meet, check local requirements
• General liability and product liability insurance
• Check city or county rules on running a business from home

Startup costs are typically around $1,000 to $5,000, depending on how you set up your store or quoting service. Manufacturers or wholesalers ship straight to your customer, so you hold little or no stock.

Monthly revenue is typically around $2,000 to $10,000, depending on how many restaurants, bars and cafes you win and the size of each order. These are estimates of revenue, not profit, and many start at around 10 hours a week.

Check sales tax registration and resale certificate rules with your state's tax agency. Also check commercial fire-safety and upholstery standards some venues must meet, city or county rules on home businesses, and get freight and returns terms from suppliers in writing.