Who runs a business and how's trade?

Bill Walker said:
Do you need a high level of insurance ? I've thought of doing this.
What industry are you in ?
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This would depend massively depending on your industry.

I run a marketing consultancy for the live events / culture / music industry so for me it’s quite easy on that front. Other industries will vary wildly.
 
Johnny Mars Bar said:
This would depend massively depending on your industry.

I run a marketing consultancy for the live events / culture / music industry so for me it’s quite easy on that front. Other industries will vary wildly.
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I'm a site manager for a building company.
Been thinking for a while of setting up on my own.
Basically same as I do now.
But get my own jobs in.
Add 12% on everything and charge myself out to run the job
 
Betterdeedthan red said:
I'm a site manager for a building company.
Been thinking for a while of setting up on my own.
Basically same as I do now.
But get my own jobs in.
Add 12% on everything and charge myself out to run the job
Click to expand...

I guess in your game there would be a ton of elf’n’safety and procurement hoops to jump through.

But if you have a solid business plan and cash flow projections and back yourself then go for it.

I’m not an expert by any means and with my business people are basically paying for skills and knowledge (I do marketing strategy, campaign management, some creative work and digital advertising) so my outgoings are tiny.

Subcontracting is a small part of what I do but it’s basically free money. Last month for example I had to get some video editing done. Charged the client X and paid my subcontractor Y and pocketed the difference - nice bit of cash for sending a few emails. Everyone was happy.
 
Johnny Mars Bar said:
I guess in your game there would be a ton of elf’n’safety and procurement hoops to jump through.

But if you have a solid business plan and cash flow projections and back yourself then go for it.

I’m not an expert by any means and with my business people are basically paying for skills and knowledge (I do marketing strategy, campaign management, some creative work and digital advertising) so my outgoings are tiny.

Subcontracting is a small part of what I do but it’s basically free money. Last month for example I had to get some video editing done. Charged the client X and paid my subcontractor Y and pocketed the difference - nice bit of cash for sending a few emails. Everyone was happy.
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Basically as a contractor I'd do all the health and saftey and make on all thr contractors I use.
Have some good contacts.
Got a meeting tomorrow about 14 apartments to renovate in Stoke.
Could be a good start
 
Betterdeedthan red said:
Basically as a contractor I'd do all the health and saftey and make on all thr contractors I use.
Have some good contacts.
Got a meeting tomorrow about 14 apartments to renovate in Stoke.
Could be a good start
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Sounds vaguely similar to what my dad did for years. He had a team of guys doing energy / insulation inspections and something to do with solar panels and made commission on every house. Sounded a bit dodgy but he made quite a few quid out of it.

Do a three year business and cash projection and see if you reckon it’ll work.

It feels great to make money for yourself rather than some other ****, I can tell you that much.
 
Johnny Mars Bar said:
Sounds vaguely similar to what my dad did for years. He had a team of guys doing energy / insulation inspections and something to do with solar panels and made commission on every house. Sounded a bit dodgy but he made quite a few quid out of it.
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I've just made a few grand doing an extension for a guy I know.
I've just organised the trades and made on each.
While still at work easy money
 
Johnny Mars Bar said:
I guess in your game there would be a ton of elf’n’safety and procurement hoops to jump through.

But if you have a solid business plan and cash flow projections and back yourself then go for it.

I’m not an expert by any means and with my business people are basically paying for skills and knowledge (I do marketing strategy, campaign management, some creative work and digital advertising) so my outgoings are tiny.

Subcontracting is a small part of what I do but it’s basically free money. Last month for example I had to get some video editing done. Charged the client X and paid my subcontractor Y and pocketed the difference - nice bit of cash for sending a few emails. Everyone was happy.
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Capitalist pig.
 
How is your 2024 going? How is the trade now? I've been reading a lot about the future of self storage and it's got me thinking that maybe I want to invest in that sector. With the increasing demand for flexible storage solutions, especially in urban areas, it seems like a promising opportunity. The industry appears to be adapting well to trends like e-commerce and urbanization, which can drive more customers to seek out storage units.
 
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Tourist related laundry...so so, so far, figures tell me we will about the same as last year but it feels quieter. Everywhere says it's quieter so we'll wait and see what the end of this month tells me and how the year will be.
Fucking Welsh government doing all and more in its power to stiffle the only growth industry this country has along with periferal businesses. And there's more to come.....No help or encouragement just barriers and gimme gimme gimme more money.....Plaid Cymru and Welsh labour dragging this place back to the stoneage.
 
Probably the worst it's ever been as I'm only a small outfit I can't compete with the big hire firms.
It doesn't help that Aldi etc are selling cheap shite for a fifth of the price of what I buy professional tools for.
I've also noticed that young couples don't seem to be doing house's up anymore.
On the flip side I've stated a garden maintenance business to run along side the hire businesses and that's doing really well so my plan is to do that instead and sell the hire business.
A shame as it's been trading since 1979
 
henrythedogcity said:
Probably the worst it's ever been as I'm only a small outfit I can't compete with the big hire firms.
It doesn't help that Aldi etc are selling cheap shite for a fifth of the price of what I buy professional tools for.
I've also noticed that young couples don't seem to be doing house's up anymore.
On the flip side I've stated a garden maintenance business to run along side the hire businesses and that's doing really well so my plan is to do that instead and sell the hire business.
A shame as it's been trading since 1979
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I can imagine. I looked at hiring some tools this summer to sort my garden out. It is almost cheaper to buy aldi ones assuming they sell the ones you need.

You should focus on what people can't do DIY. Stump removal, mini diggers etc. I've chopped loads down and now have a garden of stumps...
 
I'm fucked at the moment.
My shop is in the middle (literally) of a building site. No passing trade or footfall. Been like this for 18 months and delays mean another 12 months still to go.
If i make it through to the re-openinf of the town centre i'll be laughing due to holding a prime spot.
THe dilemma is do i hold out and lose money or jack it in and retire fully.
 
stonerblue said:
I'm fucked at the moment.
My shop is in the middle (literally) of a building site. No passing trade or footfall. Been like this for 18 months and delays mean another 12 months still to go.
If i make it through to the re-openinf of the town centre i'll be laughing due to holding a prime spot.
THe dilemma is do i hold out and lose money or jack it in and retire fully.
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I've always wondered what happens to businesses that get surrounded by scaffolding and building work, they not compensate for it I'm guessing? Can do a fake facebook nonce sting on you if you want get your place torched?
 
henrythedogcity said:
Probably the worst it's ever been as I'm only a small outfit I can't compete with the big hire firms.
It doesn't help that Aldi etc are selling cheap shite for a fifth of the price of what I buy professional tools for.
I've also noticed that young couples don't seem to be doing house's up anymore.
On the flip side I've stated a garden maintenance business to run along side the hire businesses and that's doing really well so my plan is to do that instead and sell the hire business.
A shame as it's been trading since 1979
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Just on the bit in bold, you'll know already that this has to do with young couples buying fewer and fewer houses overall. But funnily enough - while the number of first-time buyers is significantly up from 15 years ago, the average age of a first-time buyer is 35 now when it used to be 30 and under. Plus, the couples that do buy houses are generally moving into Barratt Homes newbuild styles. And even people who buy older Victorian-era houses are facing a different situation since the pandemic. When me and my partner bought our house in 2022, we bought it off a guy who flips fixer-uppers for profit - he bought our house in 2021 for about £150k when it was (as the estate agent put it) a shithole. He rebuilt the entire inside and sold it to us for about £230k. Guys like him are all over the place and there seems to be loads more of them since the pandemic - I guess a lot of guys like him went into business over lockdown. And people are also just getting sick of waiting in chains, so if a seller can find a couple who've been renting into their 30s and if a buyer can find someone who's not waiting for another sale, things move fast. All adds up in the end.
 
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