Start Any Business

What to know before starting any business

By Anita Sie

Starting a business can be exciting and challenging. There are several issues that may need to be decided before starting any business. It is important to sort these out ahead of time.

1. Options available when starting a business

There are several ways to start a business:

Develop an idea, obtain funding and establish a new company
Buy an existing business and run it yourself
Purchase a franchise that has already been established with a recognizable product, existing supply network and pre-established business procedures.
Become an independent consultant

2. Business Structure and business name

The business name and structure can be based on the nature of the business and how many people will be involved in running it

Sole Proprietorship
Partnership
Company

3. Legal issues

Find out what local legal procedures need to be followed in order to start a business.

Some of the requirements include:

Licensing
Permit
Registration

4. Tax requirements

Know what the local and government tax system is and how it affects your business

Some requirements may include:

Applying for a tax identification number
Deciding on how your accounting system will affect your tax filing
Knowing what taxes your business will be required to pay, such as property tax, income tax, sales tax

5. Financing and budgeting

It is important to have a budget that can be used to keep the business on track and monitor expenses. Financing can be obtained from a number of sources including:

Personal savings - Use personal savings to finance the business
Borrow money – from family, friends or colleague at an agreed rate and terms
Get a loan from the bank – apply for a business loan from the bank, which will require a business plan to be submitted