Describe A Small Business You Want To Start: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

What business would it be?
When do you want to start it?
Why have you not started it yet?

33 unique answers with expert feedback

Show all 33 answers

Cue 1:What business would it be?

Begin by clearly stating the type of small business you want to start, such as a café, online store, or tutoring service.
Explain what makes this business unique or appealing to you, and how it relates to your interests or skills.

Example

I would like to start a small café that specializes in serving traditional Indian snacks and beverages. I have always been passionate about cooking and sharing my family recipes, and I believe that a cozy café would be a great way to connect with my community while promoting our rich culinary heritage.

Cue 2:When do you want to start it?

Mention a specific timeline for when you plan to launch the business, such as in the next few months or after completing your studies.
Discuss any preparations or steps you need to take before starting, which can help clarify your timeline.

Example

I hope to start my café within the next six months. I am currently working on developing a business plan and saving some money to invest in the initial setup. I also want to take a short course on business management to ensure I have the necessary skills to run it successfully.

Cue 3:Why have you not started it yet?

Be honest about the reasons for the delay, such as financial constraints, lack of experience, or personal commitments.
Emphasize your determination to overcome these challenges and your commitment to starting the business in the future.

Example

I haven't started my café yet mainly due to financial constraints. I want to ensure I have enough funds to create a welcoming environment and offer quality products. Additionally, I am currently focused on my studies, which takes up a lot of my time. However, I am determined to overcome these challenges and make my dream a reality.

Conclusion

Example

In conclusion, starting a small café is a dream of mine that I am passionate about. While I face some challenges, I am committed to preparing myself and taking the necessary steps to launch it in the near future. I believe that with hard work and dedication, I can turn this dream into a successful business.

Following this structure will ensure you cover all the essential points while providing a clear and engaging response to the cue card topic.

Tips to answer this Cue Card

1: Vague Business Ideas

Being unclear about the business idea can confuse the listener. It's important to provide specific details about what the business is and how it operates.

Tip

Clearly outline the business concept, including its purpose and target market, to make your answer more engaging and informative.

2: Lack of Timeline

Not mentioning when you plan to start the business can make your response seem incomplete. A timeline adds depth to your answer.

Tip

Include a specific timeframe for when you want to start the business, and explain any steps you plan to take to reach that goal.

Ignoring Challenges

Failing to address why you haven't started the business yet can make your answer seem unrealistic. Acknowledging challenges shows thoughtfulness.

Tip

Discuss any obstacles you face and how you plan to overcome them, which demonstrates your commitment and planning skills.

IELTS Cue Cards asked last week

Reported by Leap students who gave IELTS

Describe your favourite food at a traditional festival or a special event in your country

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7.5

Pitampura Test Centre, New Delhi

Answer

I like to taste different types of cuisine. Here I would like to talk about my favorite dish at my traditional festival of Onam which is Sadya. Sadya is popular in my city. We are experimenting these cuisines on Onam festival day. Onam is a famous festival in my city. All family members get together in my home and we make a delicious Sadya. There are many ingredients includes that Sadya. Moreover, we make a big feast that day as well as we create a lot of memories together and we wear that day the traditional dress called Sari and men wear the Dhotis. That festival is really important to us because the whole day we are conducting different kinds of games at our homes and all the family members came together. It's a memorable day in my life. This is the festival. We are making the Sambar and Aviyal. These all the kinds of foods are making with the vegetables.

Talk about a toy you liked in your childhood

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 8

Sector 34 Test Centre, Chandigarh

Answer

The toy which I liked in my childhood was a panda doll, which makes me pleasant and makes me more blush. The pandas are the most beautiful creatures of the world, which looks gigantic and has pooshy cheeks and they are like stars in the clouds and they dream in me. Furthermore, these have been given by my father. My father is a very very beautiful artistic person, who makes me think of that. Every day you will face every difficulties and make you suffer and move forward. Pandas are always seen in Japanese countries. It is my lifelong dream to visit a Japanese country and click a photo with the original pandas, which makes sounds better.

Describe a time you were in a place where you didn't know the local language

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 6.5

Whitefield Test Center, Bengaluru

Answer

As India is a very large country full of diversity, so there are many places which have their own language and speak their native language. The place which I visited and I didn't know about their language was Leladakh, which is about 300 km away from my hometown and it is a very good place as it consists of different kind of trees, animals and have many scenic views and I visited over there last year in summers as it was the best time to visit because it has many, it was cold over there and we had summers in our area so it was the best time to visit over there and I went over there with my whole family.

Describe a time when your friend damaged something you owned

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7

Begumpet Test Centre, Hyderabad

Answer

When I was a kid, I had a little pencil box which had these four buttons which gave the pencil box an operative use. When you press the button, the box would open up. When you press the second button, a little part of it would slide out. Basically it was just a little electronical and a fun thing to have and I owned it when I was in 6th. One day after break, I was standing and talking there with one of my friends and another friend of mine was running through the hallway and accidentally she pushed my shoulder and my pencil box hit the ground and it broke into multiple pieces to the point that it was not functional anymore.

Describe a book you recently read

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7.5

CBD Belapur Test Centre, Navi Mumbai

Answer

It Ends With Us is a book I read recently. It's by the author Colleen Hoare. It's mainly a story about two teenagers, Atlas and Lily, and how they just handle their life going through high school, adolescence, and just domestic violence at home. Both of them come from very, very different families. However, they have one common determining factor between them, which is domestic violence. The abuse that they've seen their moms go through is just insane, and they connect through that on a different level. They're actually in the same high school, but they never speak to each other until Atlas actually crashes into an empty house next to Lily's villa. When Atlas is homeless and he doesn't have anywhere to go, he just comes and breaks into the house next to Lily's, and Lily helps him with all the daily necessities like clothes and food, medicines and stuff. Furthermore, their friendship blossoms into love, but it doesn't really fructify as Atlas has to leave. This book really gave me a lot of knowledge about domestic abuse and how to deal with it.

All Answers

Here are all the answers by real-users practicing speaking for IELTS Cue Cards on our IELTS Prep App.

Band 5-6

The business I would like to start will be Xerox shop. I know it's silly but still because near my college usually people tell in universities or near colleges there will be more number of Xerox shops but one day when I really wanted a Xerox I didn't find one and I was so surprised because I think this is because in our college itself we have a Xerox shop but unfortunately on that day the shop was closed. So I got an idea that why don't I start a Xerox shop near by here and it would be beneficial for most of the students but I didn't start because I didn't have time to do so because I was in my mid semesters with lot of ethnic assignments and other things like studies, IAS and external things but myself and my friends I have an idea to start a Xerox shop. I don't think so that will happen but still at some bottom of my heart there is a thing like I have to start this business.

Band 5

I want to, I would like to start my business in a homemaker, homemaker business. I started the business in cafes, to opening a cafe because cooking is my profession, passion and I find that it is one of my interest thing, one of my interest to, one of my interest in cook and because I don't have much idea how to start my business, so firstly I find, I find that I started the entrepreneurship in a same field, then I started, then I started a small business, also that cooking, cooking is my passion, so I was thought that I will open the mini cafe where the, where the aesthetics look found, where the people feel so relaxed and relieved, when the people stay there, they will love to eat food and they feel relaxed, so therefore people, therefore people come again and again, again and again and they are likely to visit this place, the cafe was like very aesthetic look, so people, people would prefer the small, people would, people would prefer the visit again and again and

Band 6.5

The business that I want to start is called Healthify Me. This is a business idea that I have had during my college days from my first years as well. So I have started preparing for this business during my college internships which is a summer internship which we get during the month of May. However, I could not start it yet because of my college work pressure that can sometimes be very overwhelming and the business that I want to start is about nutritionally packed small meals. It is those kinds of meals that are quite convenient for mothers who are working. These kinds of foods can be prepared quite easily with the help of minimum ingredients. This business is something that I feel can be useful for people who have very less amount of time but want to provide good nutrition to their family. So this is the business idea that I have had since a long time but I have given more thought to this idea during my college days as and when possible. During my leisure time, I try to think more about its advertisement and advancement and how I could start it in the future. However, due to the overbearing pressure of college and work pressure during my internships, during my projects and assignments, I have not been able to put it into practice but I do plan to do so during my college internship. I think that could be a very good and a helpful thing for several people and I think once I am a graduate student.

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