Is now a bad time to start a business?

Flashdaisy

Hi all

Firstly, please excuse me if I've put this in the wrong section, I wasn't sure where to put it lol.

Right, my OH is a subcontractor electrician who is currently having problems getting paid by the company he is working for. It has been many weeks since he has been paid. In my opinion rather than keep working 12 hours a day uncertain of whether he will ever be paid for it or not, I think he should bang some flyers out (I have even offered to do the legwork on his behalf :rotfl:), and try and get some self-employed work. He is fully qualified and registered with the necessary governing bodies to be able to do this BTW.

He says that now isn't a good time to start a business, what with the "credit crunch", but I think that although you might not get an incredible volume of work at the moment, people always need electricians, don't they?

We have 2 young children and I am a stay at home mum, so obviously we don't have another income and it's important to me that we get things a bit sorted asap.

Any advice/opinions/suggestions would be much appreciated. Cheers

Uniscots97

There's never a good time to start a business but as long as you've thought it through and spoken to Business Gateway, CAB etc so you know all the legalities then why not? Many people get put off getting electricians because of the extortionate prices. Where I stay one startted up and offered cheap prices for OAP's etc for weekend work. It worked for him and let him build up a customer base and a good reputation until he was ready to quit his day job.

pinkshoes

I think it's a great idea!! The flyer idea is great too, as lots of people like to support local businesses. I would certainly use an electrician that lived locally.

Perhaps he can set up a web page too, then send out flyers with contact details, along with a we page link so people can see what he can do for them

Can you get him a book on starting up his own business, so he can read into what he needs to do i.e tax returns etc...

t_r

part p registered sparks are always going to be in demand

Flashdaisy

Thank you all so much for your nice positive replies, you have cheered me up no end. He has come home from work early today, so we have just sat and designed a flyer, which I am going to get printed tomorrow, and then start to distribute. His work have told him today they have no money so won't be paying anyone for at least another 4 weeks (he hasn't been paid for 6 weeks so this is rather worrying). If we're going to face uncertainty about his money then he might as well be working for himself than grafting 12 hour days for someone else.

BTW, does anyone know if he has any rights to be paid or will he have to write off the money owed to him?

Willman_Rodders

There is never a right time to launch a business. A couple of pointers:

1. From being the worker you become the boss, the secretary, the finance director/book keeper, the marketing director, and the worker! You will need all those person's skills to be successful.

2. marketing should take up a sizeable amount to his/your time. Build this time into your prices, together with ongoing training costs etc

3. Flyers may work; they often don't. Printers will tell you they do - but when you talk to small business people they too frequently say they don't. You can poor a lot of hard earned money, and waste alot of your time, distributing flyers for no benefit.

4. Word of mouth marketing works - but can take time to build a reputation.

5. Beware of falling into the 'I'm cheaper then the opposition' mindset; a common mistake is to make yourself cheaper than the opposition. Instead, go the other way and increase your fees - you will be surprised how many people want quality and will pay for it.

6. Work smarter; i.e. don't spend hours distributing leaflets but find someone who can introduce business to you (As a will writer I have a number of financial advisers who contantly introduce business to me; they recommend my services - it took one approach from me to each of them for an ongoing supply of referrals.)

7. Don't expect the money to rush in; make sure you have sufficient financial resources to last.

8. Team up with plumbers, trades people, and other electricians. Established electricians will have peak times when demand outstripes their supply; agree to handle their surplus - for a small fee. Plumbers plumb (they are not 'sparkys) - they occassionally need electricians and if they can find one they can trust they'll recommend your husband.

9. Seek as much advice as you can find. Be prepared to disregard most of it.

10. Make sure the whole family are in on the action; share the challenges -to identify the options and solutions.

11. Stand back to think outside the box.

12. Disregard the credit crunch; it will drag you down. Instead believe, and plan.

But, I just wonder, does your husband believe? Or is it you who is pushing him? He has to believe, and 'want'. Without the 'want' the business will fail.

HTH.

Rod

Lorne

I started my own business 3 years ago and it was one of the best decisions I ever made. I think that if you plan, prepare and do it properly you can take on the challenge head on and make a success of it. Could you start slowly, weekends or part time?

My advice is before doing anything go to the business gateway, they do excellent start up courses and you get sessions with a business advisor who makes you sit down and do the maths. My business would certainly not be doing as well as it is if it wasn't for their guidance and support, they helped with everything from marketing, web design through to tax.

Good luck with your decisions.

Savvy_Sue

MOVING THREADS FOR BETTER RESPONSES

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martindow

Yes give it a try. I would agree that flyers have a very poor return. as has been said, success will depend on a lot of investment in time and energy.

I would add that if you are starting a business go into it gently and be sure you don't over extend yourself. The OP has the advantage that he is selling his skill and does not need to hold a lot of stock. If someone is contemplating retailing something, buy small amounts of stock and see how it goes. I quite often stop people from buying too much from me - it is very easy to get very enthusiastic and buy lots of everything. Btw I did exactly this when I started up and still have some of the original stock ten years later!

braithers_2

Running a business is an hard job, but in the long-run plan everything well and you should be fine, like others said, even in the hard times that are creeping up on us, if people have problems with their electrics, your husband will find work.

It might be worth getting onto non-profit housing organisations, as they often break work up into small tenders, and are often up for grabs!

vivatifosi

You could always look for a halfway house, such as a company that hires out subcontractors. If your husband does commercial work you could also try contacting the types of companies that would use him and see whether they would have an interest in using him. These are the sort of things you can find out before dipping your toe in the water.

Also, there are parts of the building industry that are less vulnerable to issues such as the credit crunch. For example, he could speak to the local housing associations, schools etc to see who they use. While households may not get their electrics sorted when they should because other things are a priority, they have to. Generally a good port when there's a property storm.