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How To Start A Doormat Business: What You Need To Know To Get Started

If you’re wondering how to start a doormat business, you’ve come to the right place! We pride ourselves on helping people (just like you) turn their hobbies into a profitable side hustle or small business!

By all accounts, setting up a doormat business is quick and easy. All you need to get started are a few plain doormats, an eye for design, and a good niche idea. Then, it all comes down to how you market yourself and your service!

We’ve crunched the numbers to find out exactly how profitable this side hustle is, what the upfront costs are and where you should be selling your products.

Jump To:

How To Make Custom Doormats:

Do You Need A Cricut Machine To Make Doormats?

No, you don’t need a cricut machine to make doormats. While it certainly makes the process quicker and easier, the same result can be achieved using craft paper, tape, paint and an exacto knife!

With A Cricut:

By far the easiest way to manufacture custom doormats is by using a Cricut machine. There are a million and one tutorials on youtube that can walk you through the process… but really, it can be summarized in five easy steps. There’s really no need to overcomplicate things!

  1. Design your doormat using Cricut’s Design Space & print onto freezer paper (note: you can also use Cricut’s smart iron on if you wish)
  2. Place the stencil onto your doormat, and use flat head push pins to keep it in place
  3. On a high heat, use an iron or a circuit EasyPress to adhere the baking paper to the doormat
  4. Using outdoor acrylic paint, paint on your stencil
  5. Clean up the edges and seal if needed

If you’re looking for a more in-depth tutorial on how to make custom doormats with a Cricut, we found Sweet Red Poppy’s article to be extremely informative!

Without A Cricut:

Making doormats without a Cricut follows relatively the same steps, although instead of printing your stencil on the Cricut machine, you’ll need to make one by hand.

This can be done one of two ways: either by drawing one out on a sheet of cardstock or freezer paper or by printing one using your everyday inkjet printer.

Once you’ve got your design sorted, simply cut it out using scissors or an Exacto knife! The Exacto knife will allow you to get into every little nook and cranny, so if you’ve got a particularly detailed design this is certainly the easier of the two options.

Hint: Make sure to use a cutting or scrapbooking mat when using an Exacto knife. Otherwise, you might mark or scuff the surface underneath your paper!

Tools You’ll Need

Plain Coir Doormats

If you’ve spent any time at all researching how to make doormats, you’ve probably heard about Ikea’s Trampa doormat.

For those of you who don’t have an ikea store near you, or whose local stores have sold out (which unfortunately happens often 😡) , we’ve found a pretty good dupe on amazon at a similar price point.

Paper or Cardstock

In order to make a stencil for your doormat, you’ll be needing some paper.

If you’re using a cricut machine, we recommend using either freezer paper or smart iron on.

If however, you’re cutting out your stencil by hand everyday white paper will do! For larger designs, you might want to use card stock or freezer paper instead.

It’s important to note that you should skip the ironing step if using white paper or card stock!

Paint

The best kind of paint to use on doormats is outdoor acrylic paint. It’s less likely to fade or wash away when exposed to the elements than craft paint and comes in a wide variety of colors.

Look for a brand that doesn’t require a waterproof sealant of varnish. These will hold up best outdoors and will save you time sealing your doormat.

When you’re first starting out, it’s best to stick to just one or two colors! Not only will this reduce your upfront costs hugely, but it will also force you to get creative with your designs/stencils.

A Cricut or Exacto Knife

You’ll need these to make your stencil!

Paintbrush

While any paintbrush will work, you ideally want something hard-bristled and angled. The cheapest place to find these sorts of brushes is in the painting aisle at your local hardware store!

How to sell your custom doormats

Check out the competition

Before you start any business, it’s always a good idea to scope out your competition. Spend some time scrolling through etsy or facebook marketplace to see what other sellers are offering.

Take note of how much they’re selling their goods for, what kind of designs sell best, and what sort of customization options they’re offering. You’ll need to price yourself competitively (but not TOO competitively), if you want to beat out your competition.

Pricing your goods too low will lead people to believe your products are cheaply made while pricing them too high will put buyers off.

If you notice the same sorts of products popping up all over the place, you might find it hard to beat out larger, more established sellers.

Pick a niche

In order to stand out from the crowd, you’ll need to find an underserved audience. The unfortunate truth is that you’re unlikely to break into the market selling the same options and designs as everyone else.

Perhaps you can sell doormats geared towards star wars fans, football fanatics or dungeons, and dragons players. Maybe you’re great at drawing dogs, cats, or self-portraits. It’s important to play to your strengths!

Take inspiration for your niche from your everyday life. If you’re an avid gardener, boxer, or gymnast, perhaps you can sell doormats to other people with the same interests or hobbies.

This tactic works especially well if you’ve already established yourself in this community.

Floor Mat Business Ideas

Still struggling to come up with a niche idea? We’ve got some prompts to help get your creative juices flowing.

  • D shaped doormat’s painted to resemble rainbows or sunrises
  • Planet and space-themed mats
  • Man Cave/ She Shed doormats
  • Doormats for car lovers
  • Ball-shaped floor mats (basketballs, softballs, baseballs etc)
  • Witchy/Gothic doormats
  • Ouija Board Doormats
  • Custom Pet Doormats

As you can see, the options really are endless. You simply need to pick a niche- and stick to it!

Brand yourself

Once you’ve chosen a niche, it’s time to think about how you’re going to market your services. Spend some time coming up with a small range of designs that fall within your chosen category! Take pictures of your doormats in different locations/settings, and start posting them online. Don’t be lazy- using stock images in place of your own products is a bad look!

Depending on where you want to sell your goods, it might also be a good idea to create a logo and a few business cards. It will give you something to hand out to friends and family, and makes your business look and feel more professional.

Set up a dedicated Facebook page where you can post pictures of new designs, and invite all your friends and co-workers to join.

You might even want to set up a website to market your products!

The more effort you put into your small business, the more sales you’re likely to make. After all, if you don’t have an online presence, how do you expect your customers to find you?

Related Reading: 8 Free Digital Marketing Tools

Time required

You should be able to make your first doormat in about an hour (give or take).

If you are reusing the same stencil, every subsequent doormat should only take you 15-20 minutes.

What are the upfront costs?

To start, you will be looking at approximately $32: $10 for a doormat, $2 for card stock, $5 for paint, and $15 for a paintbrush.

After outlaying your start-up costs, each doormat should cost you no more than $12-$15.

How much money can you make selling custom doormats?

Custom doormats sell for an average of $20-$30 on Facebook Marketplace, meaning you are likely to make a profit of between $3 and $19 per doormat (depending on the cost of your materials).

This does not include the price of shipping, handling or packaging however, so it’s important to take this into account when calculating your profit margin.

This is why it is extremely important to pass on the cost of shipping to your customer if it is required. As, even a $10 postage fee would eat into your profit margin significantly.

How many sales do I need to break even?

You would need to sell between 2 & 11 doormats to make back your start-up costs, depending on the price of your materials and sale price.

Where to sell your custom door mats

Online:

Etsy

Etsy is a great platform for selling homemade goods- it’s their bread and butter. You’ll find hundreds (if not thousands) of other entrepreneurs selling their circuit crafts here. For some, it proves to be extremely lucrative… however, it’s an extremely competitive market.

It can take a while to gain traction on etsy, and you really need to know your way around SEO to succeed. It’s a steep learning curve for sure, but certainly worth the time if you’re committed to selling handmade crafts online!

Related Reading: How to Promote Your Etsy Business

Facebook Marketplace

Most of you likely already have a Facebook account. Heck, some of you might have even used Facebook Marketplace before!

Facebook marketplace is arguably THE EASIEST way to sell your handmade goods… for a few reasons:

  • The competition is much lower, as you are only servicing your immediate area
  • You don’t need to spend time signing up for a new service, or learning how to navigate a new interface
  • Facebook does a fantastic job of recommending your products to people who live nearby. You don’t need to spend money running ads.
  • You don’t need to know anything about SEO, you just need to set a price and upload a photo

There are some downsides to selling items on Facebook marketplace however. Namely, a lot of the transactions are likely to happen face to face.

If you’re anything like me, this might make you a little bit uncomfortable!

Where possible, you should organise to meet prospective buyers in a well lit, public setting. Never give anybody your personal/work address, and CERTAINLY never invite them into your home.

Your Own Website

Setting up an online storefront isn’t for everybody, it takes a lot of time, patience and effort to establish. It’s not something you’re going to set up overnight, or even even within a week. But this steep learning curve is exactly what makes selling your products online such a good idea.

Etsy is oversaturated with these sorts of products… but if I were to hazard a guess, I’d say less than 50% of those sellers are running their own online stores.

With so much less competition, you’re far more likely to make a sale!

Nowadays, you don’t even need to hire a web developer to set up your site. Platforms like Wix and Squarespace make it super easy to design basic landing pages yourself!

In person:

Craft Markets

Craft and farmers markets are the perfect place to sell homemade goods! The kind of people that frequent these kinds of events are usually looking for something fun and quirky to give as gifts to their friends and family members.

The really cool thing about setting up shop at this kind of market is that you can offer customisation options to your customers. Offer to print different phrases or names on your doormats for an additional fee! Simply bring your cricut machine along on the day, or offer a delivery service!

Plant Nurseries and Gift Shops

Plant nurseries and other mom and pop shops are a great way to get handmade products into a shop front. They don’t take up a lot of floor space, and they’re the sort of item that pairs well with home and yardwares!

While it’s unlikely you’ll see your products on the shelf at target in the early days, hometown businesses are often more than happy to help out other local entrepreneurs!

If you’re looking to service this kind of market, make sure you offer up a wholesale/trade discount. Otherwise, you might be hard-pressed to make a sale. Resellers need to make a profit too!

Shopping Parties

Perhaps you’re old enough to remember Tupperware parties, or perhaps you’re not. Regardless, getting a group of your friends together for a “shopping party” is a fantastic way to sell home-made goods.

While admittedly it can be awkward to sell anything to people you know- they’re also the most likely to give you honest feedback. It’s a great way to get your name out there, and build up your client base.

If you market your services right, your Aunt Sally might just think of you next time she’s buying a gift for her daughter’s dance teacher!

Last-minute advice

So… where do you go from here?

The first step in starting any small business is to perfect your craft. Before selling your first doormat, make sure to do some product testing! Ensure your doormats hold up well outdoors, and can withstand heavy foot traffic. Put a few out in the rain, drag your muddy feet across them, and let your dog have a good sniff- it’s all part of the process!

Trust me, nothing will kill your small business quicker than a faulty product!

Other frequently asked questions

Is a doormat business profitable?

Yes, doormat businesses can be extremely profitable. Provided the shipping costs are paid by the receiver, you can make a profit of 70% – 200% on each mat.

How much does it cost to ship a doormat?

On average, it costs about $15 to ship a doormat nationally. International shipping costs vary significantly, however it is not unreasonable to expect costs to exceed $30-40 depending on the weight and size of the package.

About The Author

Madie W. is a 27 year old freelance Web Developer/Digital Marketer.
When she’s not writing articles here, working her day job or running her Home Building Website, she loves writing, cooking and crafting!
Want to get in touch? You can find her on Pinterest!

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