Hi Linux_Monk, firstly I will say there is no definitive guide to starting a hosting company nor is it a get rich scheme (despite popular belief) the down to earth bit out of the way I’d do something like the following however remember to adapt it to your strengths, I myself am a programmer as such it was a logical progression.
Firstly design build and setup your website, be it on a shared hosting provider or dedicated, vps or reseller but at this point use the site as an a follow up rather than a market place. This will then allow you to hand out flyers and approach local business, not for a sale but to introduce yourself, your company and more importantly to test interest. As such low overheads are a good suggestion at this point.
During this time or beforehand do your research into whether you will use a reseller, dedicated, vps, or co-location and the subsequent costs (work out your prices and packages, have them on the site) if you think that you can drum up enough interest within the first 6 months to cover your overheads then I would proceed, more a recommendation than a rule of thumb.
After that the progression is in your hands, bridge to advertising in forums and approach your local market as much as possible, offering value added services such as SSL, Domains and Webdesign can also help in the local market, more so the third but that depends on your strengths, a.k.a are you a designer.
None the less this isn’t a definitive guide and most of us here could go on for hours but it is a good start point.
Hope that helps
