Sham Martinez always wanted to be an entrepreneur.

As someone with a range of disabilities that affect every aspect of her life, it made perfect sense to be her own boss so she could work to her own schedule.

After brainstorming ideas with her family in Perth, the 18-year-old decided to start her own natural beauty products business.

"We as a family had to find something that I liked and worked for me," she said. 

"I have a great sense of smell and I love good beauty products as I find that a lot of products on the market very hard to use."

'Inclusive' beauty products

Sham is blind, hearing impaired and has spinocerebellar ataxia, so she felt perfectly placed to create a range of products that were more accessible for those with disabilities.

"My products are brailed, and we are currently working on inclusive QR codes that will assist many people."

Ms Martinez said the best part of owning her own business was being able to work at her own pace and the hours that suit her needs.

"The achievement I feel by being able to have my own business is huge," she said.

She is not alone, with recent data from the University of Technology Sydney suggesting people with disabilities have a much higher rate of self-employment or entrepreneurship (13.1 per cent) compared to the Australian average (9.2 per cent).

It means people like Ms Martinez are 43 per cent more likely to be self-employed than non-disabled Australians.

Technology provides crucial support

Ms Martinez uses a use a range of assistive technology to help her achieve her business goals, while her family and support workers also provide crucial support.

"Running a small business requires constant work and I require help with a lot of the paperwork and online parts of my business due to my disabilities," she said.

"I have the OrCam Myeye, which helps me by reading recipes and labels out loud. I use a Phonak FM system with my Cochlear implants to help me hear and communicate with my support team and clients.

"I also use talking scales, and a talking thermometer to help me measure out my ingredients."

Ms Martinez works closely with her support workers and family to make her products and attend markets and other events to promote her business.

Her disabilities can make it challenging to sell and interact with clients.

"The difficulties I face are background noise, fatigue and vision impairment, which means I find markets difficult," she said.

"However, I've gotten the opportunity to attend bespoke events, and corporate days where I've done well."

'Do your homework'

Small Business Development Corporation spokesperson David Eaton said his main tip for anyone starting their own business was to do thorough research.

"Understand what owning a business is like by speaking to existing business owners in your field, reading case studies, and accessing support and advice offered by the Small Business Development Corporation (SBDC)," he said.

"Spend some time assessing your business idea, and is there demand for it?"

Mr Eaton said business ownership was a learning curve, so he advised people to invest in themselves, access support and remember that failure is nothing to be ashamed of, as long as they learned from it.

"Take some time to assess your skills in the areas of financial management, marketing and sales, leadership, project management, time management, problem solving and people skills like communication, negotiation, and networking.," he said.

Mr Eaton said budding entrepreneurs do not need to be an expert on everything at the start, because they could tap into others for skills and advice.

"However, knowing what your strengths and weaknesses are and committing to ongoing learning and development is a key to success in our fast-evolving business environment for both new and established small businesses," he said.

Sham was recently awarded Rotary's Shine on Award for her continued work in creating accessible products, her volunteer work at Guide Dogs WA and Kites Toy library at Visibility.

She also received the Ida Lloyd Fellowship Award for Inclusion.

"That award is for young people under the age of 30 with low vision to facilitate their social and independent living skills and assists their positive inclusion in the participation of their community," she said.

She hopes to use those accolades as a springboard to continue her business development and community work.