Becki Cash, a business owner from The Plains, started working full time out of her home a little more than a year ago, buying and selling items at auctions and on eBay.
Tired of being dependent on employers for her income, Cash said she wanted the convenience and flexibility of a home-based business.
I wanted to take a stab and see if I could make it work
she said.
Cash is one of the many people around Athens and in Southeastern Ohio who have joined the growing national trend of home-based business.
In 1992, home-based businesses contributed $314 billion to the economy and employed more than 3.5 million people, who earned an average income of $40,000, according to Home-Based Business: the Hidden Economy, a study commissioned by the Small Business Administration. The report concluded that home-based business is growing in importance.
Debra McBride, a consultant with the Ohio Women's Business Center, said the Athens area has been ahead of the national home-based business trend because they have been a normal part of the economy here.
It was the only way to live down here and work she said.
McBride, who has a home-based business, said there is a surprising number of home businesses in the Athens area that are not seen.
Susan Abdella, director of the Small Business Development Center, said 188 home-based businesses, out of 700 total small businesses, worked with the SBDC from Oct. 1, 2002 to Sept. 30, 2003.
The SBDC serves Athens, Hocking, Perry, Meigs, Washington, Morgan, Monroe and Noble counties.
McBride said one of the biggest challenges she has faced in her home-based business is separating personal and business life.
It's difficult not to get caught up in doing the dishes she said.
Many people who want to start home-based businesses and who come through the SBDC have lost their jobs and are looking to do things at home, Abdella said.
Leslie Schaller, business developer for Food Ventures project, a part of Appalachian Center for Economic Networks, Inc., said that many start-up businesses are home-based for a toe in the water approach. They can start out with a supplemental income and low costs to see if their idea would work.
Many of the customers who come through Food Ventures must overcome zoning and code issues, especially for home-based farmers and food growers who live in the city, she said.
For example, customers who sell food products out of their homes can use the Food Venture center for offside processing to make sure the food meets health requirements, Schaller said.
Schaller said she has seen an increase in home-based business in Appalachia Ohio, especially businesses run by women.
They are a big piece of the overall need in an area with a high rate of poverty and unemployment, she said.
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