Starting a business is an exciting venture and opens up opportunities and the chance to be your own boss.

There is much to consider when setting out, including funding, staffing, strategies, sales, marketing and financial forecasts.

You will need a business plan

You’ll need a business plan if you want to secure investment or a loan from a bank or other financial institutions.

A business plan helps you to:

• Decide what form your business will take – Limited Company, sole trader or partnership, etc
• Clarify your business idea
• Be aware of potential problems
• Set out your goals
• Measure your progress

Experienced professional advice can be invaluable in creating an effective business plan, both in terms of the financial elements, but also in creating highly detailed and sophisticated plans that will give you an edge over your competitors.

Register the business

If you want to trade as a Limited Company or a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) (or certain other less common legal structures) you will need to register with Companies House.

Funding

Whether through bank loans, finance companies, venture capital investors, angel investors or even online crowdfunding, there are various ways to fund a business. Your professional adviser can help with this.

Staffing

When taking on staff, employers should be aware of legal minimums including the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) as well as being aware of different tax rates and pension contributions rules. Getting any of this wrong can affect staff and cause major problems for the business.

Taxation

There will be various taxes you will need to pay. For a limited company, this includes Corporation Tax, Employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs), VAT and Business Rates.

This is one of a series of articles on business start-ups.

Thinking of setting up your own business? Contact us today.