Starting your own business and becoming self employed is exciting, it is watching your dream turn into reality – after all!
However if money is tight your business may not make its way from the planning stage. The amount of money needed to get your business from the planning stage very much depends on what your business is.
Do you need to buy expensive equipment or can you start small, with the equipment you have? All of this information will be planned for when writing your initial business plan and by following this guide you will be able to manage the budget you have so that it’s utilised to its highest capability.
Work from home
A huge cost to new business owners is the lease and rent required for office and retail space. An alternative to this is to work from home, even if just at the beginning.
As a lot of businesses are run on the internet, as long as you have wifi you could even consider working from your kitchen table.
It is possible due to advances in telecommunications to communicate effectively with other business owners, customers etc. all over the world by conference calls and skype, not forgetting email.
Remember to tell your insurance companies that you’re running a business from home, but it will still be cheaper than renting premises.
Be a “Jack of all trades”
There are many aspects to running your own business and to do it on a budget you will need to develop the skills to undertake most of the tasks on your own.
If you are building a business that requires strong branding and a high street presence it would be more cost effective to hire the expertise of a retail design agency such as Design4Retail, this will give your business the best chance within the marketplace as a strong brand will really get your business “out there”
For other tasks such as admin, finance, cleaner, manager and salesperson you would be best placed to complete yourself. You can always call in expert help if needed. As profit margins rise some of these tasks could be outsourced.
Purchase from wholesalers
This is an easy concept in theory, but there is such a range of products and services available that finding the cheapest, but most effective products is essential to your profit margins.
If you are buying products to sell it is worth researching potential wholesalers carefully, meet with sales reps and develop negotiation skills. Often the price products are advertised at can be reduced with some savvy marketplace knowledge.
If your business offers a service, rather than sells products, you are likely to still need products and equipment. For example a cleaning company will need cleaning equipment and products.
This could take away a large chunk of your profit, so ensure costs are factored into your pricing structure as well as buy the products you use as cheaply as possible.
To conclude it is possible to start a business on a shoestring, but you may need to start small. Even retail businesses can be started from a minimum amount of stock by selling through party plan and market stalls. As profits start to roll in you can expand.
