A quick question, who has a wicker basket at home ? In today’s world people are always looking to make some extra money to pay those bills and also to put towards holidays, birthdays and Christmas, and at the same time they want a bit of sparkle in their lives and in the lives of people around them. But selling things like books and CD’s etc, just does not turn you on, you are the more hands on person and like to make things to sell.

So lets go back to my question at the start of this article. How many of you have a wicker basket at home ? Now I need you to cast your thoughts back in time. What was in that wicker basket ? Chances are it was full of things like, food, smelly items, items that made you feel good when you opened it up. Yes we are talking about wicker hampers filled with cute and wonderful things.

If you have an eye for detail and like packaging items up then why not start a wicker hamper business and sell your items on sites such as eBay and etsy ? You can fill the wicker baskets with things like :

• Skin Care and Cosmetics
• Sweets
• Chocolates
• Food
• Baby Items

In fact the list is endless and they can cost very little to ultra expensive so all budgets and tastes are catered for. As well as filling the baskets with items you will need to present them in the correct way. It is no good just putting a few boxes into the basket and expecting it to sell, you need to decorate the basket and when finished wrap it carefully in see through foil and put bows and ribbons on it. Then it needs to be placed into a box and carefully packed. If you really want a wow factor have a nice big box and put the wicker hamper

in it and then fill it with helium balloons. The idea being that when the client opens it the balloons will spill out, making them go wow.

But while we have talked about wicker baskets, you need to think out side the box. Take a look around you and think what else could I make into a hamper :

• Rucksacks
• Baby Cot
• Hat

Again the list is endless, you just need to work out your target market and what will go into the item. But as you start out, start off with the wicker basket idea, and as you get into the business, then you can branch out into other hamper ideas.