Using a Company to Save Tax

Friday I received the book Using a Company to Save Tax. I’m almost done as it is a short book but it is packed with information. If you are thinking about going into business, it is worth the investment (£23.95) as it will help you determine the most tax advantageous structure for your business. I [...]

Branding, trademarking, & URL’s

At first I thought this would be a relatively easy exercise. Pick a name, register the URL, trademark as appropriate. However, I’ve realized you need to think more broadly and that many names are already taken on the internet or as company names. Taking into consideration that we are part of a franchise means we [...]

Business Gateway

Today I finished the third of three workshops that help you with starting a business. I attended business planning, marketing and financial forecasting workshops through the Business Gateway. I have some business background in each of these areas, but not as it relates to starting your own business. The benefit to me was the reality check [...]

Foot Research

I’m learning the importance of doing personal ‘foot’ research. I hear from everyone – “location, location, location.” A friend who owns a cafe spent one year looking for the right location before opening. When I saksed him what was the critical piece of learning to pass on and he said – ‘find the right location.’
I [...]

Forecasts

Every entrepreneur thinks their product or service is the best thing on the market. “Of course it will be a success!” or ”We’ll be more competitive than any other business in the area!” I’ve finished a business plan and have now turned my attention to forecasting. I need to add up all the expenses by month, [...]

Local resources

As we start the journey of opening a business, I have found some local resources very helpful – some that I had to do the ‘digging’ to find (and then analyze) and another that has been proactive in their help. I started by looking for research on the arts & craft retail market in Scotland. [...]

Proverbs 21:5

“The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.”
I’ve been preparing a business plan, researching costs, assessing the market for locations, and gathering resources. I know that LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION is the commonly heard mantra and any overlooked factor can be disasterous. However, a proper business plan -what that is [...]

Essential reading

I’ve been doing some essential reading lately. First I read Freedom of Simplicity by Richard Foster. This was to challenge my heart about the power of money & possessions in my life. I believe it is essential that we wrestle with theses and not naively walk into entrepreneurial endeavours as if we are immune to [...]