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Post by crystalmorningstar on Sept 27, 2005 11:06:01 GMT -5
Hello! I'm a single stay-at-home homeschooling mom who wants to make money from home. I saw an ad in the local paper for worm growers and visited the website. They say they buy worms and potential part-time income is $30,000. I'm waiting for an email reply from them to see if to be one of their growers one HAS to buy their super bins and start-up kits, etc. If I can start cheaper and have a buyer already, I'll give the worm bussiness an immediate try. Gardners here in Montana are closing up shop, so local compost sales will have to wait.
Anyway, sounds like the perfect job for me, no worries about gas prices to get to work (closest jobs are one hour away), no worries about daycare cutting into income, and I'll be able to keep my kids in the country where the air is fresh and there are constructive things to do. Is $30,000 plus unrealistic? Do people really pay $8 per pound for red worms in Indiana? I'll be off to the library to get the books reccomended here asap.
Any insights are greatly appreciated.
Crystal
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Post by tt on Sept 27, 2005 12:50:27 GMT -5
Hello! I'm a single stay-at-home homeschooling mom who wants to make money from home. I saw an ad in the local paper for worm growers and visited the website. They say they buy worms and potential part-time income is $30,000. I'm waiting for an email reply from them to see if to be one of their growers one HAS to buy their super bins and start-up kits, etc. If I can start cheaper and have a buyer already, I'll give the worm bussiness an immediate try. Gardners here in Montana are closing up shop, so local compost sales will have to wait. Anyway, sounds like the perfect job for me, no worries about gas prices to get to work (closest jobs are one hour away), no worries about daycare cutting into income, and I'll be able to keep my kids in the country where the air is fresh and there are constructive things to do. Is $30,000 plus unrealistic? Do people really pay $8 per pound for red worms in Indiana? I'll be off to the library to get the books reccomended here asap. Any insights are greatly appreciated. Crystal I would be very careful and start out slow unless you have someone near you that can help. Raising worms is not a get rich quick idea. It is a lot of work and marketing and getting your worms out there for sale . It is not an easy job. To make 30,000 per year your selling a lot of worms down there. that is almost 4,000 lbs per year. It take a while to build up your worms and it takes a while to sell that many worms. |
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Post by redhen on Sept 27, 2005 13:06:51 GMT -5
I agree strongly with the previous post. That is a lot of worms to grow, market and sell. I have met many growers and am one myself. It is a labor intensive business. There are a lot of scams out there, run by unscrupulous folks ready to help you part with your money. Do a web search typing in "worm buy back scams" and see what you get. These kind of scams are bad for the whole industry and I hate to see anyone get unknowingly caught up. I am not saying that this is a scam, I just hope you research very well before getting involved.
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Post by crystalmorningstar on Sept 27, 2005 17:17:54 GMT -5
Thank you both! I truly appreciate it. I wasn't looking to get rich quick and would have been ecstatic just to get half that, lol. I did do a search on buy back scams and they are indeed a reality. Good to know, glad I had at least enough smarts to question it. The only email reply I got back said "did you get one of our brochures yet?". So, I emailed again point blank: do you buy from those who haven't purchased your products. No response thus far.
I did plan on one bin to start to see if I have the touch for worms, it just would have been more comforting knowing there's a definate buyer. Oh, well. Slow and steady wins the race, eh?
Off to do more research!
Thanks again,
Crystal
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JudyA
New Member
Posts: 41
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Post by JudyA on Sept 28, 2005 8:26:07 GMT -5
Get your one bin going and you will find rewards ahead of the $$$$ for your homeschooling and growing projects.
I now live where I could compost outside. I REALLY don't need worms, except I NEED them. The therapy of having them is good for me.
It makes a conversation stopper and ice breaker that never ends in the surprises. My husband has even begun to brag about my worms and he doesn't claim them for himself either.
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Post by Jay Blair on Sept 28, 2005 20:40:19 GMT -5
crystalmorningstar,
Please avoid any worm selling contracts claiming to buy back worms and you can make a fortune.
It just doesn't happen that way. While their are successful large scale growers, they grew their businesses over time, not with large monetary investments out front.
Weather you want to sell bait or grow into a medium to large size commercial operation do so with as minimal financial investments as possible.
High dollar contract buy back deals as you describe are most often ponzi schemes. If they buy back some of your worms if you succeed in cultivating enough and meeting their buy back criteria its only to provide them with worms to eventually bilk another buyer.
google search the following:
Greg Bradly, worm buy back schemes, B and B Worm Farms, Arizona Attorney Generals Office litigation against B and B worm farms and you can read of the most infamous of the buy back scams in recent years.
Please if you are considering approaching worm farming commercially, allow us to help you evaluate your local markets, personal capabilities and show you options to choose the best path for your goals.
Especially with our current economy, 30k is best kept in your own hands while you consider your options and evaluate your own business plan.
A friend in Texas was approached by one of those "give me $15000 and I will make you rich" guy. Instead she invests $150 in equipment and worms from a reputable dealer and tripled the return on her investment the first two years and now uses her worms to supply her plant nursery and packages bait for a few customers. Five years later she didn't make a large cash out lay and she quit her job at the convenience store where she worked.
So please before tossing out your cash come and talk with our group here. We have either heard the stories of the buyback burned ones or were one of them.
The most recent variant of the buyback ponzi is "grower co-ops" that actually fed off the the fresh victims of the buybacks stuck with tons of worms and no buyer.
Be very careful.
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Post by crystalmorningstar on Sept 29, 2005 1:10:12 GMT -5
So far my teen daughter's first comment is "ewww, gross. They'll smell!" lol. Toddler just wants to play in the bin. Email reply to question about buying from those who don't buy their products: "No, that would not be fair to our growers". Not surprised. I'm still excited about learning new things and possibly creating a market in my area. Just the challenge I needed at this point in my life and at a start-up price I can afford  Definately will be spending time here. I'm not the type to post alot, but I'll be reading ;D |
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JudyA
New Member
Posts: 41
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Post by JudyA on Sept 29, 2005 7:20:05 GMT -5
Start making friends with your local gardener people. Our local 'bitty' healthfood store stocks a bag of worm castings. Maybe yours would like some from the neighborhood. And bait shops. Make friends in those businesses and let them know you're around. Show them the quality of your stock. Gardens are going quiet for the winter, but green thumbs like to have healthy houseplants too.
You can begin marketing the worms and byproducts as they are multiplying. The winter season usually has less demand for things outdoor, but is a good time for you to be laying the foundation for spring and summer needs.
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Post by crystalmorningstar on Sept 29, 2005 11:36:49 GMT -5
Thank you JudyA! The gardner who lives down the road and takes loads to the farmer's market has answered all my questions on his squash so I was going to ask him all about the growers in the area and if one could sell castings at the farmer's market come spring. My roomate happens to be friends with the people who own the health food store. Cool to know one does sell bags of castings-thank you! No problem finding bait shops near hotels, I could probably even leave some bait to sell at the local saloon. (saloon is the only regularly opened bussiness in town and we do live on the Jefferson River). Haven't seen bait there yet. Just to start something all my own, even if it takes six months to begin moving, is a boon to my soul. For the first time in my life I have faith in me and no one around to shoot my ideas down. Ya'll's support is wonderful as well. making lists, taking notes, and enjoying the dreaming phase of this venture |
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Post by jwalker on Feb 8, 2006 15:05:00 GMT -5
you sound as though you have thought this out pretty well  .I live in Vermont and I am planning on doing the same thing currently have reds for the smaller fish European night crawlers fir the larger fish . wish you well in your Enterprise i have 2'x 6'x2' bins made from hemlock |
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Post by priswell on May 14, 2007 20:12:12 GMT -5
Everyone else has given you good advice. Just want to say hello from one homeschooler to another.
We homeschooled our son from K-12, and he is now living on his own 8+ hours away from home. Happy he's self sufficient, sad he's so far away.
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