Starting a Small Business to Supplement Your Retirement Benefits - Here's How

Whether you are approaching retirement or you have made the sensible choice of thinking about it before you reach the end of employment, it's never too late to entertain the thought of setting up a business for when you retire. There are plenty of people that do this and for good reason, if you're one that's used to being on the go all the time retirement can feel quite slow and you might find yourself getting bored.

Another hugely beneficial reason to set up a business for when you retire is to add to your pension, sure you might be getting a workplace pension but why not make that number bigger by having an income as well? The best thing is you can do whatever you want, so if you've ever dreamed of having a little cake shop or an online marketing agency then the world is your oyster. Here we take a look at some of the steps you need to take to start a small business.

This might seem obvious, but people spend years working out what they would like to do for their career, let alone what they would like to do when they retire. Now, some of you may have the answer on the tip of your tongue and know exactly what you want to do and if that's the case then brilliant! However, if you're in the camp that the majority of nearing-retirees are in then it's time to do some thinking. What are your skills and do you want to continue using them after you fully retire or would you like to do something slightly different? Remember this is your opportunity to own your own company and it won't be the same as your previous place of work, so you could use your skill-set in a slightly different way. There are also options to run a business from the comfort of your sofa, more people than ever are working from home these days and if that's something that interests you then there are hundreds of businesses you can start. Especially if you have worked in technology or have online marketing skills, running a business from your house has never been easier.

Some of you already have this in place but for those of you that don't, this is an important step to getting your business up and running. Make sure you plan out every aspect of what you want your company to do, from budget planning to online eCommerce. Making sure you have a clear and concise business plan will help you reach your goals and raise the income you're getting. There's no point in starting a business if it's going to end up taking money from your pension pot to help it survive, the best way to prevent this is by being prepared.

This is the goal of every business but if you want to retire and relax then this is pretty important, you don't want to be making decisions and getting heavily involved every day. This step is difficult and I wouldn't expect full autonomy from any business so always expect to have to work sometimes, but if you can make it so you have as little involvement as possible then you'll most probably enjoy your retirement better. That being said some of you might want the challenge of getting into the nitty-gritty details of a company and if that's the case then you will probably grow your business faster with the expertise you have from your previous career.

Your company is for you and no one else, if you're starting a company then it should be for the benefit of you and for the longevity of your retirement. The whole point of life is for you to now have fun and if that's not the case then you've probably started a company for a different reason. If you're in the small category of people who genuinely enjoyed their career then there is no reason why you can't carry that on, the only difference is that you will be your own boss and take home 100% of the profits. If you, like many, didn't enjoy your career then the world is your oyster, start anything you like, and have fun!

When it comes to retiring we will either be thoroughly ready for it or we won't want to at all, there never really seems to be a middle ground. Take both of these situations and run with them, if you're ready to retire you can now do whatever you want and if you aren't ready then no worries, just start a new company and you'll continue to work. Make sure you chose the right thing and enjoy what you do, we only get to officially retire once!