Many newcomers to the business prefer the greenhouse business. Indeed, the construction of a greenhouse allows you to grow and sell a wide variety of crops. For the structure’s construction, high-quality translucent materials are often used to protect the internal area from the cold. At the same time, it becomes possible to organize high-quality artificial lighting. Unique heating systems maintain the nominal temperature. Modern greenhouses often differ in type – they are shelving and ground. But more about everything.

How to act as a beginner? What is the right way to organize your business? In this article, we will analyze the most critical steps to take:

1) Choice of specialization. Before taking any steps to prepare documents and perform other activities, it is necessary to decide on the specialization of future activities. This is very important because the number of required funds, cultivation technology, and possible profit directly depend on it.

Experts believe that the most liquid occupation is cultivating flowers in greenhouses. Greens will bring less benefit, and vegetables are in third place in ranking the most successful types of business.

At this stage, it is essential to consider several business features – climate, geography, and the characteristics of the region. Experience shows that growing vegetables in the northern areas is useless. This is because much money is spent on heating, which significantly increases the cost of production. Greens, onions, salads, and basil are more unpretentious in this respect – they can be grown in any region without much labor. As for the place for sale, it can be found without any problems.

An interesting fact is that growing lettuce in Russia is much more profitable than, for example, developing vegetable products.

2) The choice of technology. As already mentioned, the technology for growing crops can be different. In particular, the soil method is one of the most expensive. In the case of growing vegetables, it is desirable to feed and moisten the earth and fertilize it more often and constantly. At the same time, the world must be continuously nourished and moistened. If diseases appear on plants, they must be treated immediately.

One of the most profitable today is hydroponics technology when the harvest is independent of the whims of the weather. Its advantages include affordable cost and high payback. Another plus is the reduction of the vegetative cycle of vegetation. The lack of technology is the lack of naturalness in the product’s taste because the plants grow in cups with a unique composition and not in the ground. In this way, it is recommended to grow only greens because the taste of vegetables will not be the most natural (which will not contribute to high demand).

There is also a compromise option – hydroponics, along with standard methods that involve soil and peat. When compared by price, this technology will cost less than conventional soil cultivation. In this case, the costs are significantly lower, but the service is almost 25-30% more expensive.

Another critical issue is the material for the greenhouse. The structure can be built from handkerchief films or glass. Each option has advantages and disadvantages, so you need to choose yourself based on your financial capabilities and the region’s characteristics.

Heating should also be considered. In particular, peat-fired stoves and aluminum convector systems are very popular today.

3) Sales of products

After the harvest is made, it is necessary to organize its sale. At the same time, there may not be time left for this at all. Therefore, the strategy should be developed in advance. Some entrepreneurs are not engaged in retail sales and sell products in bulk to large retail outlets (for example, supermarkets). This option is very convenient because it does not require time and effort. Naturally, there are certain financial losses because you have to put up with a lower (wholesale) cost of products.

The second option is more time-consuming but at the same time more profitable. We are talking about retail sales with the involvement of distributors. In this case, you can set the retail price for the product and receive, accordingly, a more significant “fat.” Of course, there is always a risk that some products cannot be sold, so the mixed option is still optimal when one part of the products goes to wholesale and the second to retail.

4) We are looking for money for a business

One of the eternal questions is where to get the money to run your own business. The total amount needed to organize business activities directly depends on the volume of production and the technology used. If there are no significant savings, you can take a loan from a bank. A small amount will be enough to build at least two small greenhouses on your site. You can do it even easier – make greenhouses from the materials at hand (if necessary, you need to buy something). If large greenhouses are equipped, there must be security (and this is also money).

5) Important to remember

It should be borne in mind that a lot depends on the weather and the cost of energy in the greenhouse business. We must not forget about the seasonality of the company. It is much more profitable to develop a greenhouse business in areas where there are special programs to support start-up business people.

Conclusions

What can be summated? The greenhouse business can become genuinely profitable and bring a stable income. The main thing is to organize everything correctly.