In a new series of blog posts, we aim to take you from the initial concept of becoming your own boss and starting your own business right through the business start up process and into running your own business, finally winding up with a discussion of when is best to retire and the process of reselling your franchise.
Deciding to take the big leap from going from paid employment to becoming your own boss and being self employed is a huge step; one which should not be made lightly.Entrepreneur is a big word to use, however it describes quite a substantial section of the UK population who run their own business. According to a report recently published by the Dept. for Business, Innovation and Skills, there are currently 4.8 million private sector enterprises across the UK, employing 22.8 million people. 99.9% of these enterprises are classed as Small to Medium sized Enterprises (SME’s) and account for an annual turnover of just under £1,600 billion.
So why should you become part of the growing group of small business owners across the UK?
Here are a number of reasons why:
- You earn your own income
- You decide how to run your business
- You can be proud of your own success
- The flexibility to work how and when you want to suit your lifestyle
- Running your own business offers you a new challenge
- You can’t get fired
A large percentage of young people in the UK dream of starting their own business, however few ever begin to realise this dream. When you look into the amount of support offered by the UK government along with the amount of start up financing initiatives available from financial institutions, starting your own business doesn’t seem as daunting as it may have before.
Some useful resources for small business entrepreneurs include the government’s Business Link website, which is a very valuable resource including everything you need to know about securing financing, support initiatives as well as healthy tips and advice on starting and running your own business. Your local chamber of commerce should also provide you with support and advice on starting your own business.In the coming weeks, we will list great resources for securing start up financing as well as other outlets and institutions which offer support to small business owners.Next post in this series will be on choosing between a franchise and business opportunity.