Registering self-employed to use cash and carry...

Bradley_1984

Im really sorry if this is in the wrong place but I would like some advice.

Basically I wanted to know if its possible to register self-employed with the intention of buying a burger van and then registering with a cash and carry to buy supplies.

What would happen if I never bought the van, and just used the cash and carry?

I would never make any money as I just want it for personal use, not to sell on or anything, I know about Certificate of Small Earnings and could use this to stem the NI Contributions. I already work full time so pay tax and NI already.

Is this possible?

schneckster

Five little words to make this plan seem like a very bad idea...

"Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs"!!!

They would take a very dim view of you registering as self employed with no intention of actually engaging in any business. You would be required to fill in a self assessment every year and, when they see you haven't made any money, may decide they need to investigate your books, which of course, not actually being in business, you won't have. Even when you are doing everything above board and properly, that is a lot of stress you don't want as they can backdate tax arrears and, in extreme cases, issue fines and convictions depending on what they find.

Hope this helps,

Schneckster

paulwf

Of course it will vary by wholesalers...I know some are much more lenient than others...but registering as self employed doesn't really count for much. Here's an example of what Booker require:

Some examples of documentation that we accept are :-
Utility bill for business premises
Business invoice
VAT registration (if applicable)
Bank statement
Charity registration number

They require 2 forms of business ID and one personal ID. If you are genuinely starting up you will probably have a business bank account and enough other paperwork to prove you are legit. I don't think a letter from HMRC showing you are self employed will work (although I may be wrong as I don't work for them).

Where wholesalers are competitive is on large catering sized packs especially on items that aren't designed to be retailed on their own...huge tubs of herbs, packets of baking ingredients, frozen bakery items etc. If you just want normal groceries then TBH supermarket prices can often be cheaper if you are prepared to wait then bulk buy the BOGOF and other offers. Most people also know someone who works for a supermarket and has a staff discount card to save even more. You should see profit margins from wholesalers...a lot is only 20-30% under shop rrp so easily wiped out when supermarkets have an offer.

Horace

Why bother setting up a fake business..just use your normal supermarket and buy BOGOFs..some supermarkets (I think Sainsburys do) sell some catering packs of food (eg. massive tins of baked beans). If you want great cheap food shop in Lidl or Aldi (its what some of the local shopkeepers do..I have seen their trollies piled high with particular goods which they then sell in their own shops).

It is actually cheaper to use a supermarket than a cash and carry. Us business types have VAT to pay, we need to buy in bulk because we use more. To set up a fake business sounds dodgy to me and fraudulent.

Bradley_1984

It was just a thought, think ill give this one a miss!

krustylicious

Just to underline to those who have never been to a cash n carry such as Brookers (makro doesn't really count), it isn't some magical place where it is cheaper than the supermarket - it isn't.

The likes of tesco/asda buy direct from manufactors and thus don't even need a cash n carry and also have massive economies of scale which cash and carrys can't even hope to compete with .

I worked this out when I was in a cash and carry when I was 13 to 14 and with my parents and saw that the price differential wasn't great and in somes the same price as supermarkets.

paulwf

I was in Bookers today and then went into Sainsburys on the way home to pick up a few bits and do some price comparison. Bookers is cheaper on some items if you are prepared to bulk buy (and especially on catering packs not intended for retail as I mentioned above) however they didn't have anything like basics/essentials/value lines. My average weekly shop would work out much more expensive in Bookers as we get a mix of value and branded lines. Of course you could shop around just like people go to several different supermarkets but I don't think it would be worth the hassle of going self employed.

Bradley_1984

TBH it wasnt for general shopping on a weekyl basis, more the bulk buy items when bbq season arrives! Or stuff that we could keep in our pantry...that sort of item!! Alternatively, the mother and mother-in-law could have shared the cost on some items making it more worthwhile if I only wanted a smaller quantity. Like I said, no great loss, just a thought!

krustylicious

Bradley_1984 wrote: »

TBH it wasnt for general shopping on a weekyl basis, more the bulk buy items when bbq season arrives! Or stuff that we could keep in our pantry...that sort of item!! Alternatively, the mother and mother-in-law could have shared the cost on some items making it more worthwhile if I only wanted a smaller quantity. Like I said, no great loss, just a thought!

If you were looking at that type of thing.. Look at bogoffs etc as others have said .

Horace

Bradley_1984 wrote: »

TBH it wasnt for general shopping on a weekyl basis, more the bulk buy items when bbq season arrives! Or stuff that we could keep in our pantry...that sort of item!! Alternatively, the mother and mother-in-law could have shared the cost on some items making it more worthwhile if I only wanted a smaller quantity. Like I said, no great loss, just a thought!

Use your local butcher for BBQ items - his meat is likely to be far better quality than what you get in the supermarket and they sell meat in bulk for BBQs too...also they are cheaper than the supermarket.