phillipberry Posted November 16, 2004 Share Posted November 16, 2004 I'm thinking of starting my own theatre and events consultancy company. I'm a lighting designer by training, yet I've got good experience in all aspects of theatre and events. I'm thinking of starting a company were clients can come with ideas for an event / show / product launch, etc and I can use my skills to turn there idea into a reality. I would initially start from home as a sole trader, hiring equipment for jobs as needed, but would like to be able to expand to an office and own stock in the near future. Any body who has any advice, experiences of running a company, or even events companies in the Sheffield area, please reply or email me at phillipsimonberry@hotmail.com Any comments are welcome Phillip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted November 16, 2004 Share Posted November 16, 2004 OK, based on my experience over the last two years... 1). There is a huge amount of official paperwork to keep on top of. More than you'll imagine. Sticking as a sole trader will help; going 'ltd' quadruples the paper mountain. 2). Get a good accountant and pick their brains. 3). Get a good bank manager and pick their brains. 4). There will be a lot of things you do that you cannot charge clients for. Do not under price yourself. 5). Be organised with everything, especially stuff like accounts. 6). Running premises costs a lot of money. Insurance, business rates etc etc soon add up. 7). Running staff costs even more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phillipberry Posted November 16, 2004 Author Share Posted November 16, 2004 Cheers I'll keep that lot in mind Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
la grande homme Posted November 16, 2004 Share Posted November 16, 2004 ask ag-ed ones who have employed you in the past if they might have any ideas... :o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeR Posted November 16, 2004 Share Posted November 16, 2004 Is this the night of the silly postings? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blame Jono Posted November 16, 2004 Share Posted November 16, 2004 Sticking as a sole trader will help; going 'ltd' quadruples the paper mountain. However staying as a sole trader will mean unlimited liability, so if the firm goes bust owing money then you as an individual have to pay it. And if you give someone bad advice and they sue you then again its you personaly that has to pay. Becoming a private limited company prevents this and liquidation of the firm will be used to pay debts etc and any remaining debt will not need paying by you. As far as I remember there are only 2 documents you need to get to companies house to regester; Artical of association and memorandum of association. You'll also need a chartered accountant to do your accounts every year and submit them. But in a time of sueing etc and in an industry where things go wrong, if you're to blame and you get sued then you're probabaly going to want to be a ltd company. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted November 16, 2004 Share Posted November 16, 2004 Sticking as a sole trader will help; going 'ltd' quadruples the paper mountain. However staying as a sole trader will mean unlimited liability, so if the firm goes bust owing money then you as an individual have to pay it. And if you give someone bad advice and they sue you then again its you personaly that has to pay. Becoming a private limited company prevents this and liquidation of the firm will be used to pay debts etc and any remaining debt will not need paying by you. True, but try getting a loan as a limited company; what does the bank want? Personal guarantees. So if you go bust you still lose everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Hannam Posted November 18, 2004 Share Posted November 18, 2004 I you give professional advice you will need Professional Indemnity Insurance - expensive! You can't hide behind a Limited Comapany - Company law has changed! Sticking as a sole trader will help; going 'ltd' quadruples the paper mountain. However staying as a sole trader will mean unlimited liability, so if the firm goes bust owing money then you as an individual have to pay it. And if you give someone bad advice and they sue you then again its you personaly that has to pay. Becoming a private limited company prevents this and liquidation of the firm will be used to pay debts etc and any remaining debt will not need paying by you. True, but try getting a loan as a limited company; what does the bank want? Personal guarantees. So if you go bust you still lose everything.<{POST_SNAPBACK}> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phillipberry Posted November 19, 2004 Author Share Posted November 19, 2004 Cheers Chris. Didn't know that. Looks like I'm going to be spending a long time in the local libary reading up on this before I even think of taking my first customer! Oh well (I'll work on my spelling as well while I'm there) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lightnix Posted November 19, 2004 Share Posted November 19, 2004 Ask your local bank for a copy of their Business Plan software or form. This will get you to ask questions of yourself and your ideas and assist you in deciding whether they will fly. You could also get in touch with your local Business Link or Chamber of Commerce, who will be able to offer more assistance. The Business Link page on Starting Up and index will give you a few things to think about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lightnix Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 I just thought I'd bump this one up again to see if anybody else saw Dragon's Den last night. Definitely required viewing for anybody running, setting up or thinking of starting their own business, I'd say and it certainly gave me a few things to think about. Shame I missed the first series. A selection of entrepreneurs present their business ideas and inventions to a group of self-made millionaires (the "Dragons" of the title), in an attempt to secure tens / hundreds of thousands in investment capital. The Dragons give them a thorough grilling, before deciding whether to invest some of their hard-earned in a new venture or not. Usually not. It's useful because it gives you a very good of idea about the kind of questions that financial types ask of new businesses, what sort of people they are and the reasoning behind their decisions. Dragon's Den, BBC2, Tuesdays, 8.00pm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Higgs Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 Couldn't agree more. Is there really a market?Will it last?What will this cost to run?If I invest, what's in it for me?What is the business plan?Hard, but fair. The best advice I ever got was "Keep the day job as long as you possibly can" (run it down whilst building your business up) and from 'Business Link'.I think they have changed their name now (TEC?), but we had a guy in about 1990 who was recently retired from a successful small business. The man really knew his stuff and was very helpful. He had obviously learned the hard way, his point was "What do you need to do to make this work?", not "What do you want to do to make it work?".The concept of 'busy fools' and other ideas - all good stuff.Find someone similar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Hannam Posted January 16, 2005 Share Posted January 16, 2005 Please note that Company law has changed in recent years, Directors of limited Companies can be held responsible for the Company debts in some cases if things go tits up. :unsure: The days of unlimited liability are over! Chris Hannam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lightnix Posted January 16, 2005 Share Posted January 16, 2005 ...Directors of limited Companies can be held responsible for the Company debts in some cases if things go tits up. The days of unlimited liability are over! Chris Hannam.<{POST_SNAPBACK}>Very true. You won't find a single bank who will loan your Ltd. Co. money, or even give it a £1,000 overdraft, unless you are prepared to put up some kind of personal guarantee (like your house) to cover it. There are also far greater personal H&S responsibilities for directors now and the eyes of the corporate world will be watching the verdict on the Corporate Manslaughter charges for the Hatfield train crash, very closely. In fact, director's personal legal duties of all kinds are on the increase, to the extent where the average SME director spends an average of four hours a week dealing with compliance. I met the owner of a small printing company last year. He spends £27,500 a year ;) (plus Employers NIC) on an HR guy, who ensures that the company stays on top of all H&S and employment regulations. "He's a lovely guy, but he produces nothing, he just stops me falling into the abyss", were the words used. About the best protection you can hope for from a Ltd. Co. these days, is to keep unpaid suppliers and contractors (like freelancers) at bay and stop them from getting their hands on your assets. In fact, there has been a very recent demonstration of this within our business, but I'll mention no names :unsure: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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