Panic! Sole trader in debt-advice please

fabianne

Hi all
I am a sole trader-been in business for 6 years now.
These have been my problems:
Due to a pants 18 months,with staff who rented space from me leaving overnight,then a member of staff not paying for her space,then personal problems that meant I had to move house and rent privately again which was very unexpected,2 teenagers to support(their "Father" pays £15 per week via the CSA,while they eat their way through the fridge-appealed against this-didn't get anywhere)dispute with commercial landlord about his ASBO deserving,harassing flat tenants /animals above my shop( I find out recently that I have been paying their water bill for the past 2 years-only 1 meter in the premises)flood damage caused by ASBO tenants,windows being put through etc etc....I have had the business up for sale for 6 months with no luck-and also the lease is nearly up now.

Am stressed,very stressed and my debt problem has finally caught up with me through all this rotten luck.I make good money but it is all going on overheads,bills..and mainly bank charges.What Barclays owe me equals my overdraft(am chasing those charges at present and will go to Court if I have to)Meanwhile-they are merrily bouncing everything,charging me to high sky and I have letters arriving daily asking for the payments they bounced.I pay in a lot of money each week-but it gets swallowed up in charges-and leaves me nothing to pay my dd's/ s.o's with. I am trying to open another account with free banking etc-but am worried about my past recent history-can anyone recommend a sympathetic bank (if such a bank exists??)

I have been on the phone to the Business Debt line -they advised it may be best to cease trading and go freelance or work from home-the shop lease only has 4 months to go.Or to think about an IVA,which I have been reading up on.
Trouble is I would have to make £2,200 a month to break even with all the debts/outgoings I have to pay.I need my car to do freelance work and to get the kids about.I have asked my credit cards to reduce the APR-I dare not apply for a 0% card and switch as I don't think I will get one(private renter and this position I am in now)
Also-I am very proud and have put my heart and soul into my business and it will break my heart to walk away,beaten down.I work hard through the day,I reguarly work 12 hour days,I sell on eBay at night to bring in extra cash-I am exhausted as I have a physical job and am not as young as I used to be.Everything I try to do to get myself out of this awful situation is met by a brick wall.I have not buried my head in the sand,but have found it very hard to run a small business and family and deal with all this.

Can anyone offer me a glimmer of hope here? Or advice or similiar experiences to help me make my mind up please?
Many Thanks
Fabi x

PoundsLookAfterThemselves

I closed my business back in March and although it was the hardest decision. It was the right thing to do and I haven't looked back since.

Once day I will start my business again, but only when I have the right team and financial backing!!

I know you will make the right decision for you but don't think that there's no going back because you can and you might just be stronger for the lessons learnt.

lynzpower

your best bet is to do SOAs, one for home one for the business. Have a look t southern scousers sticky first time posters. then we can see what we can advise from there.

Lynz

Janey51

Hi fabianne. Sorry you are in such a situation at the moment. The tone of your post is pretty panicky as you think you are backed into a corner with your options being whittled away.
But panic not:D . You are in the right place to get help. Before long the stars will be along to pick you up and get you going again.
Don't stop posting...this place is always open and no push button switchboard to negotiate your way through:D
My husband had to give up his business after making no money at all so you are obviously a better business person then he was. Give yourself a pat on the back for that.:beer:

rog2

Hi Fabianne,
I sympathise with you - I closed my business (of 14 years), after a cr*p two years, in September, and am now awaiting my bankruptcy. It is difficult because everyone assumes that, as you run your own business you are doing ok.
But, as I am finding, there are a lot of people in similar situations, and there are solutions. You will find a lot of helpful advice on this forum and that is why you should post your SOA.
In the meantime, I am pleased to see that you are claiming back your bank charges - there is a lot of advice on the consumer action website.
Go and open another account - at a different bank, and use that whilst you are fighting your bank.
Other places for help include CCCS and CAB (links at top of page).
Good luck
Rog2

dottyanne

Hi fabianne - your situation sounds so much like the same as a close friend of mine is going through - I can only advise you not to let your heart rule your head - i know you will have put heart and soul into your business but maybe it's time to think with your head and not heart. I think it maybe wise to look for alternative employment, look at the positive's - you have a car to get you to a new job for instance and i dare say you could sell what is left in your shop?

Maybe it's the bigger person who admits defeat and goes on to bigger and better things?

dottyanne xx

BlondeHeadOn

Hi fabianne, welcome to the site. I run a business from home as a sole trader, so I don't see why you have to cease being a sole trader if you give up your business premises - just change your address with the taxman and stationery etc. Working from home has loads of advantages as well - no drive to work, flexible hours, no overheads (or very few) and you can claim tax allowances for a portion of the household bills. It might need a bit of rearranging if you have stock etc. (or rent storage somewhere close) but it can still be do-able.

That way you would not have to give up your business and the pride you have in it, and can tell people that you are doing what a lot of small businesses are doing - being flexible and open to modern ways of working!

Good luck with whatever you decide to do, and keep postiong on this site - you will get loads of help from people much more expert than I am !!

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

fabianne

Hi and thanks for all your support and posts (had tears in my eyes when I read them)
I have worked from home before and it was fine,so can keep on as a sole trader.I have a large clientele who in the main,should be fine about moving with me.My young assistant would come with me as I can do more work with her working alongside me.I can generate more £'s as my overheads will reduce.I will still have to pay the rent until the Landlord gets another tenant in here.I have expensive salon furniture that I can sell on and have all my stock and equipment to take with me.I will do a rundown of expenses tonight and post it on here,even though I feel ashamed to do it.
I feel such a failure and a fool-but would feel worst if I had frittered it away on rubbish-instead I have ploughed everything into the business-savings,used credit cards to pay urgent bills-made mistakes just to keep going after my run of bad luck.
Would an IVA be better than bankruptcy?

BlondeHeadOn

Hi again fabianne, just responding to bump this up the list again for you.

Please don't feel like a failure and a fool - running a business is a tough call, and you should be proud of what you have acheived so far - and that you have a large clientele and people who are happy to work with you. That sounds really good to me, and the main thing you have lost is your premises - but hey, they're bricks and mortar not loyal customers and goodwill, the latter are worth so much more....

rog2

fabianne wrote:

I feel such a failure and a fool-but would feel worst if I had frittered it away on rubbish-instead I have ploughed everything into the business-savings,used credit cards to pay urgent bills-made mistakes just to keep going after my run of bad luck.
Would an IVA be better than bankruptcy?

Where have you failed? You could not predict the future any more than the rest of us. At least, by confronting the situation now, you will be able to turn it around and get back on your feet.
I wish you the very best of luck.
Rog2

Jolinar

I just wanted to add my support, my OH went through something similar. In the end he packed in his business, it was hard for him to let go but in the end it was the right thing to do. He now works for someone else and has never looked back really. We both went to CCCS for help and they sorted out the whole mess for us. There is hope and I'm sure you can figure a way to get sorted. (((hugs)))