[chupowei]

is anyone thinking of starting their own business?

[TRD Rs200]

its not as easy as it seems

[chupowei]

its not as easy as it seems

maybe its easier than u think?

i like ur taste in cars btw

im jealous of ur list haha

[TheNewGirl]

Having been doing the accounting for a small business for the last couple of years, I think I finally fully grasp what's involved financially and from a leadership stand point in running a business. I've seriously considered it, but not until my child's much older as business owners loose a lot of the benifits and protections that 'employees' get through the government (only this year did they become eligable for limited access to EI for example for things like parental leave).

[dhari]

^ ive been thinking about starting my own accounting/financial services business. i think the hardest part is for people to trust you. u cant buy a good reputation.

[TheNewGirl]

^ ive been thinking about starting my own accounting/financial services business. i think the hardest part is for people to trust you. u cant buy a good reputation.

Yeah this is the kind of business model I was looking at and since it involves dealing with financial services you'd have to be particularly selective. Also your insurance costs would likely be very high given the damage you would need to be assured for should an employee be negligent while working in your service.

[TRD Rs200]

maybe its easier than u think?

i like ur taste in cars btw

im jealous of ur list haha

thx, haha, I have started my own business in import and export and a entertainment business. its not as easy as it seems, really. there are so much to consider, there are so much to calculate, sometimes I think back and I think that I should just get a job~ haha. But then, when the hard works pays off, its all worth it.

[dhari]

Yeah this is the kind of business model I was looking at and since it involves dealing with financial services you'd have to be particularly selective. Also your insurance costs would likely be very high given the damage you would need to be assured for should an employee be negligent while working in your service.

indeed! i think the best thing for me is to get a few more years of accounting experience under my belt in order for people to have confidence in my abilities.

PS. sorry for thread jacking!!!
i do think it is hard to start a business but if you have a great idea and the motivation, determination, and ability to work hard, then you are likely to succeed. also, make sure the business that you start interests you, otherwise you will find it hard to make sacrifices for it to survive and ultimately be a success.

[chupowei]

how old is everyone here?

[dhari]

23ish

[jackmeister]

has any one of you ever though of buying out an existing business? it saves you all the trouble of going through starting a business and already have established relationships up and downstream.

[realG]

yeah thinking about opening up a brothel

[dhari]

has any one of you ever though of buying out an existing business? it saves you all the trouble of going through starting a business and already have established relationships up and downstream.

way less hassle for sure but id always have doubts about why they are selling their business.

[chupowei]

has any one of you ever though of buying out an existing business? it saves you all the trouble of going through starting a business and already have established relationships up and downstream.

dhari is right!

if the business is selling....doesnt it either mean that
1. running out of business
2. over-priced since u are buying a successful business

i mean...who would want to sell a growing business?

[bcrdukes]

^
It could be that the owner is getting tired and/or nearing retirement. Not all businesses that are being sold are necessarily bad.

[lowside67]

dhari is right!

if the business is selling....doesnt it either mean that
1. running out of business
2. over-priced since u are buying a successful business

i mean...who would want to sell a growing business?
The concept of valuing a business is relatively simple. The price of a business is a function of two things, 1) its assets (what it owns) and 2) its revenue & profit (the money coming in on an ongoing basis). If a business is correctly valued according to the model, then it is worth $x because it takes $y in each year. However, if you can think of a way where you can increase $y, then clearly the business is worth more than $x which the previous owner is asking. On that basis, you should be able to buy the business at a "discount" to the true value of the business simply because the person selling was not maximizing the efficiency of the business.

[henry604]

So where would you start in terms of starting a business? In terms of legality? I mean do you go to a lawyer and say "Hey i want to be incorporated." Where do you register your business as an official "Business"

[glovebox]

^ ive been thinking about starting my own accounting/financial services business. i think the hardest part is for people to trust you. u cant buy a good reputation.

Agreed that people have to trust you. But I believe that word of mouth also plays a huge factor in building your reputation. If you do well for one client, word will spread and keep spreading. You have to have a large social circle to be successful in this kind of business.


So where would you start in terms of starting a business? In terms of legality? I mean do you go to a lawyer and say "Hey i want to be incorporated." Where do you register your business as an official "Business"

First you should determine whether you want to incorporate provincially (assuming BC) or federally. There are different reasons why you would want one over the either.

You can either:

a) Consult a lawyer and have him/her prepare and file all the incorporation documents. He'll help you do a company name search (helps secure your name), file articles of incorporation, etc. Usually this will range from $300-$1K depending on the lawyer you go to and the service you require.

b) There are also many other companies that help you incorporate. One would be Business Development of Canada (BDC). (Cheaper than lawyers)

or

c) You can prepare and file your own incorporation documents. http://www.fin.gov.bc.ca/registries/corppg/forms/reg50.pdf


If you have NO experience with this such has never even seen what is in an incorporation document, I would probably recommend consulting a lawyer.

[goo3]

dhari is right!

if the business is selling....doesnt it either mean that
1. running out of business
2. over-priced since u are buying a successful business

i mean...who would want to sell a growing business?

maybe they bought a dysfunctional business for cheap and built it up to sell for a profit

[TRD Rs200]

22

[jackmeister]

dhari is right!

if the business is selling....doesnt it either mean that
1. running out of business
2. over-priced since u are buying a successful business

i mean...who would want to sell a growing business?

in addition to what bcrdukes mentioned about retirement , i would also like to add that lots of people spend their life building a business, do not have a successor that would like to take over, and at the same time, they don't want to see their life creation wither away into oblivion, so they sell their company in order for it to continue as a going concern.

other reasons might be: desperate need for cash for personal reasons; change in life goals; want to focus on another type of business etc.

You should also notice why there are so many mergers and acquisitions in the stock markets lately. Different people (investors) have different priorities. Some own a business purely for financial reasons, some for personal reasons (hobby or otherwise), some are inherited, some feel they're the savior, etc.

Not really sure whether you're looking for a retail business, service business, advisory or consulting. Maybe if you provide more details such as which industry, maybe we or some other members can provide more valuable input

[Ulic Qel-Droma]

not to discourage you, but you can't be too optimistic. you have to have very good connections, lots of people that trust you, and you have to work your ass off.

i come from a family full of people that own their own businesses, most of them being multi millionaires and maybe 1-2 billionaires.

man, i gotta say, you business becomes your life. be prepared to work longer than you've ever worked before, harder than you've ever worked before. be prepared to sweat tears and blood.

be prepared to be back stabbed, front stabbed, lose friends over money, lose family over money.

you just have to get up and keep trying.

if you're willing to do all that plus more, you'll succeed (maybe not the first time, but you will eventually).

that's all i gotta say.

[chupowei]

to be honest ive already had a chance to have my own business

i had a beverage shop selling bubble tea for about a year and 8 months

and all of the above.... working conditions did apply.

im ready for another one, but im low on capital

i do understand that there are many many reasons to why people would want to sell their business..

i kinda typed that without thinking too much and/or maybe in more general terms?

[chupowei]

why did i get a couple fails for this post? =S

[TripleSoul]

Don't know much about starting one, but another option could be opening a franchise, so there's some reputation already? You should do a lot of research before starting one

[Groot]

thx, haha, I have started my own business in import and export and a entertainment business. its not as easy as it seems, really. there are so much to consider, there are so much to calculate, sometimes I think back and I think that I should just get a job~ haha. But then, when the hard works pays off, its all worth it.

hire me :)

[chupowei]

hire me too!

[dhawes]

ive wondered myself about starting a small business (in relation to food), but I can't imagine how many lets say in your business: bubbleteas, you need to sell a month to cover rent + worker(s) + electricity + food cost etc.... like how does selling bbteas (and snacks?) cover ALL that and net profit?

[ecchiecchi]

ive wondered myself about starting a small business (in relation to food), but I can't imagine how many lets say in your business: bubbleteas, you need to sell a month to cover rent + worker(s) + electricity + food cost etc.... like how does selling bbteas (and snacks?) cover ALL that and net profit?

If you can't figure that out then you shouldn't think about starting a business at all.

[dhawes]

that's why I'm asking? I 'm just trying to gather knowledge, no where near an actual plan yet.

[E-40six]

if you want to be your own boss be prepared to put in extreme amount of hours and make huge sacrifices for your business. once you start it, your life is the business.

[MelonBoy]

ive wondered myself about starting a small business (in relation to food), but I can't imagine how many lets say in your business: bubbleteas, you need to sell a month to cover rent + worker(s) + electricity + food cost etc.... like how does selling bbteas (and snacks?) cover ALL that and net profit?

The best way for you to learn is probably read up on Cost Control book or take classes..

BBT is pretty easy.. Lets say water/ice - 5cents, fruits - 30cents, cup - 10cents, lid 5cents, straw 10cents... Anyways your cost of making a BBT is well under 1 dollar.. while you sell it for about 3.50-5bucks.

A lot of variables in business.. such as locations, types of customers (ex. which groups of people are you mainly aiming for)

Usually your average item on the menu is 200-300% of its cost price, but this isnt for all items.. and different establishments may lower or raise prices to increase customer or profit..

For smaller businesses a lot of owners cut down cost by reducing staff, working longer hours themselves.
There are plenty of ways people try to cut cost and make ends meet or just to increase overall profits..


Anyways my best advice is to learn by working for someone before you even start to think about opening a business. Make mistakes, connections, and learn from your employer. Dont burn any bridges cause its a small world out there.

[ecchiecchi]

that's why I'm asking? I 'm just trying to gather knowledge, no where near an actual plan yet.

If you don't have the initiative to research it yourself and instead just ask someone- You're not gonna get very far.

[quasi]

I've been running my dads for the last two months and it's harder then it looks. Even though I've been working with him at least part time since I was 15 years old there is so much I didn't know. He ended up in the hospital for 7 weeks and I had no choice but to step up.

It's a lot of stress, you go home and all you think about is work. What do I have to do tomorrow, the next day? Who owes me money? Who do I owe? Did I do this or that? Although it's been hell it's made me realize that I can do this. Working for someone else and collecting a check is a lot easier but the rewards and payoffs are obviously not there as well.

There is a decent chance that I'll be starting my own thing with a good friend when he's healthy again. I noticed a lot of things my dad does poorly that I can improve on. Ideally I'd actually like my dad to sell what he has and come work for me, less stress, less work for him and better for his long term health.

[6793026]

not necessary true but in general there are 3 types of people
1) idealist. they are Martin L. King... "i have a dream", and all these people who started the revolutionary etc.... they have ideas, they are positive thinking and they are able to come up with ideas. bottom line, these are people that comes up with shit.

2) logistics. you are able to make things work. you throw them a business idea, they will piece it together. whether its a person with business sense, knows how to do math and calculate the rate of return, knows how to network, knows the industry...etc....;
These people are buddies of people above and makes the ball turn.

3) 9-5 workers, these are the best people to hire, they work 9-5, they listen, they are a dime a dozen and they work. period.

Of course there are many of diff types. People who are number 1 who opens a restaurant without people # 2 will fail. They think, OH, look, i'm going to open a restaurant and tons of people will come and eat will fail because they dont' realize, the overhead, the cost of running a place, the bills, the break even point, the amount of business they need to run a place etc.

anyhoo. you know what i mean.

[tiger_handheld]

to be honest ive already had a chance to have my own business

i had a beverage shop selling bubble tea for about a year and 8 months

and all of the above.... working conditions did apply.

im ready for another one, but im low on capital

i do understand that there are many many reasons to why people would want to sell their business..

i kinda typed that without thinking too much and/or maybe in more general terms?


if you are low on capital, that means you are not ready to grow.
build your capital base using ur current location, and then expand.

u want a successful base before even thinking about asking for a loan ..