starting a business, need help.

danelliott

Hi all, im sorry if this is in the wrong place, its just that im trying to find some help.

myself and a friend are starting a business in the north-west (liverpool) after leaving a company which we both worked for due to lack of progression. I say lack of progression, but i got to assistant manager and he got to manager its just that when we got to these positions everything kinda halted, now we have come up with a new idea.

we have clients who we have written contracts off, and we have staff ready to go, but we are missing financial backing, neither of us are in a situation where we can fund the project, we can get funding but we are having much difficaulties writting business plans, finding out all the legal ins and outs, as everywhere wants money up front and seeing as we need the information to get the money we cant get any of this done.

now the business is more than capable of a net annual turnover of more than 1.5million in its first 12 months alone. so i am looking for help from someone proffesional who may be able to assist us in finding or even help with the building of a business plan and the legal side of things.

The business is direct selling as we both have extensive experience in this field.


I would really appreciate any help that anyone can give my, i will even consider and arrangement where by i can pay for your services once all is done and a loan or other financial help is secured.

Many thanks for taking the time to read this post.

dan

Emmzi

1. contact the chamber of commerce in your town
2. find out where your local business enterprise centre is (council should know)

investigate these before you pay for advice

if stuck, ask your bank, the business lending manager will know where they are

rule of thumb, don't pay for advice unless you know enough to know what you are buying. there are probably free advisers this route to get you started.

pelirocco

danelliott wrote: »

Hi all, im sorry if this is in the wrong place, its just that im trying to find some help.

myself and a friend are starting a business in the north-west (liverpool) after leaving a company which we both worked for due to lack of progression. I say lack of progression, but i got to assistant manager and he got to manager its just that when we got to these positions everything kinda halted, now we have come up with a new idea.

we have clients who we have written contracts off, and we have staff ready to go, but we are missing financial backing, neither of us are in a situation where we can fund the project, we can get funding but we are having much difficaulties writting business plans, finding out all the legal ins and outs, as everywhere wants money up front and seeing as we need the information to get the money we cant get any of this done.

now the business is more than capable of a net annual turnover of more than 1.5million in its first 12 months alone. so i am looking for help from someone proffesional who may be able to assist us in finding or even help with the building of a business plan and the legal side of things.

The business is direct selling as we both have extensive experience in this field.


I would really appreciate any help that anyone can give my, i will even consider and arrangement where by i can pay for your services once all is done and a loan or other financial help is secured.

Many thanks for taking the time to read this post.

dan

How did you come by this figure , and what is your understanding of ''nett'

Its a very high figure for the first year of trading , and if by nett you are referring to profit , then I am sorry I dont think you have your figures right .

Rather then concentrating on the turnover , you need to work on your costings , any business can have a high turnover , the secret is in not spending more then the business earns

Cashflow or lack of is the one of the main reasons behind business failures , you need to know how much money you will need to pay all costs until you start receiving payment for your services , plus you need to factor in any start up costs

danelliott

Net as in total income made by company, before any paments out are made.

the company is a direct sales company, myself and my collegue have clients already waiting for us to take them on, and the figure i gave is correct.

initial start up costs are very low, running costs are minimal, tunover is massive

patman99

If you already have clients waiting for you to get going, and you can prove it, then your bank should look favourably on this.
As for a business plan, you need to start by saying who you are, what your market is, who your competitors are, your expected outgoings, how much you expect to make and of course, a growth prediction over the next 5 years or so.
You made-it to assistant manager in your last job so you obviously know a thing or too about sales.

danelliott

ok, total yearly income for 1st year is estimated at around £1.6m, there is wages to be paid out at an estimated £374000, ive not taken into account premises, stationary etc yet but icant see 250k being less than enough to get by o in the 1st year.

in my existing contract there is no limitations as to being able to trade in the same areas ect, but there is in mycontract for my new business

Happy_Girl_2

What about cost of sales? How much will it cost to buy the goods/services you will be selling, and getting the goods/servies to the customer (postage/courier if that applies)

TBH, I think you sound like somebody who has this great idea of making loads of money, gets all the trappings in place first, only then do they start trading and realise their projections were way off the scale

I would imagine your bank will tell you that at this stage you do not need staff, and you should only take them on when there is money in the bank to pay them. Does your £374k salary cost inclde Employers NI? If not, add another 12% to that figure

You do need to ask, if it is so easy to make all that money in the first year alone, why aren't loads of people doing it already?

Calm down, save up 6 months salary each and start trading small and build up slowly. Otherwise you are heading for a fall, and it is likely the fall will cost you enormously if you are not careful

I knew someone with similar grandoise ideas. They recruited staff, leased offices, leased themselves a porsche etc etc. Started trading and within a month they were bankrupt with unemployed staff, and their house repossessed. Don't make the same mistake!

Emmzi

found a link. try these guys

http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/home?domain=www.businesslink.co.uk&target=http://www.businesslink.co.uk/

property.advert

You really need a business plan. "I can't see" is just where you are, an idea but no idea if you see what I mean. Your current skills are in working and managing the business not owning and developing a business. You obviously know nothing about accountancy, preparation of cashflows and building a business plan.

The fact that you have no cash makes it impossible to invest in you. Why have you no money ? It is like asking someone for a mortgage when there is no house as security. Do you see that ?

You will need cash and significantly more than you can guess. As advised, spend time saving. Use that time to work with professionals on your business plan. Develop a relationship at your bank and work with them in your transition to owners.

Just ask yourself this question. How do you buy stock when you have nothing in the bank ?

Savvy_Sue

has anyone mentioned Businesslink? You should get some guidance there for your business plan, possibly even a mentor, but no-one will write it for you.

And please, get the distinction between NET and GROSS clear in your mind, I can't believe someone could have 'extensive' experience in sales without knowing the difference! The difference is your PROFIT ...

buissiness_help

Hi I am sorry for latching onto this thread but I do not know how to create a new one.

I am wanting to be a self employed babysitter/ nanny. I am a new mum and the nursery I worked for is closing and have been asked to look after one of the child who I previously cared for, in their own home with my wee boy.

How do I contact Inland revenue.... set-up my buissness, i'd rather be self employed than employed by the family?