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i know that similar subjects have been posted before but without going into details had some thoughts milling about so what do i need to consider

im talking along the lines of a online shop to start with working from home help and suggestions welcome

Ginge !

grant get on msn mate

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if it works

Ginge !

wel, its seemed to

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up can any one help?

JBcos

a few simple things to consider
1. Do you have good suppliers (some require you to have a point of sale i.e a shop where the customer can visit)
2. Are you going to hold any stock (cost/money implication)? or will your supplier deliver direct to your customer? (Bad thing about not holding stock is you cant check the quality therefore returns may be a headache at times)
3. Read about the Long Distance Selling Act 2000
4. Can you build a website?
5. How are you going to acceot payment? ( a few options for online payment but none are that cheap to set up)
6. Company tel and fax numbers? Can people contact you? will they leave a message if your only there part time?

Deano

First thing you want to consider is are you going to be a LTD company or a Sole Trader , I would go and see an accountant first mate let him go through all the pros and cons

I have my company set up as a LTD company

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where can i find out about long distance selling act?

regarding the suppliiers im doing my research/homework at the moment hence this post!

was planning on getting stock on demand to start with until i establish what the faster items of stock that sell then obviously have some stock of these items

some good comments there keep them coming please

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up for help from the daytimers

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cant belive there all these peeps on pf that run there own buisness and havent dropped a few hint in to help me

Phil

iTrader: (1)

Definitely set it up properly as a Ltd, Sole Trader status can get you into all kinds of a mess if the worst case happens! (liability of monies owed to creditors etc)

Have you searched around on the net? There must be loads of sites giving advise. (the government do a lot for small businesses as do banks - so it might be worth contacting them)

Make sure you do your maths so you can afford to live on a negative income from your part whilst the company gets going!

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thanks phil

yep spoke to the bank today who was really helpful gonna staart it up whilst still working and see if it earns enuff to jack my job in.if it doesnt happen like that then thats life, hoping to not have to use any credit at all but will see

anyone know any websited that would be helpful?

cossymad

You will need to consider costs very carefully. It is easier to work backwards i.e. What is the bottom line you need to earn
You will need to get public liabilty insurance which would need to cover liability to customer if product fails i.e. if someone buys tyres off me and one blows up killing someone, I am liable at first as customer purchased from me.
Do you have time to run 2 jobs?

most companies will require initial stock order to get trade discounts etc.
What sort of thing do you want to sell?
Who will buy it?
Will the market get bigger or shrink?
What to do about posting goods out?
What about returns?
What about TAX and becoming self-employed?
Stock holding premises or warehousing?
These a few extra items to consider

nthorpey

I've been looking at starting my own small business in the next couple of months too.

This is a good site

tonyk

bank is a good places to start, next check to see if you have a gioverment funded centre for help and advice on setting a business up. There is a lot of things to consider, and u have to ask urself will ur business be viable? Conduct research to find this out. It may seem gd to you but maybe not to others.

Maybe of some use to others looking to start ur own business.

http://www.princes-trust.org.uk/Main...20business.asp

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thanks tony

pugo

I ran an e-commerce site for karting spares and still have all the software and licences for the catalogue system, i still hold the website on my computer, however i gave it all up as it got too much (i work as well), it ended up i was working 30 hours a day(well it felt like it), i was ltd, went through all the same stuff as you are about to, pm me if you want to discuss it in detail , i will send you my number then!!!
To start with you need to sort yourself out a business plan and get the help of somebody who is not to close to you to hold your rose tinted glasses while you write it( as in the cold light of day some good ideas look poop)
Don't worry about to much stock, however it cost me Ł10k to get full set up with a bit of stk, all the crap that you will need and your website!!

If you need a good company to host your website then i will give you the company i used, they were great!!
don't be too quick to sign up with all these do-gooders who will promise you the hosting and stuff with the e-commerce site, the co i used gave me full support 24 hrs a day and used to pop round to help with any website stuff that i had cocked up (regularly did this) and helped me when i couldn't quite workout what button i had to press!!!


Pugo

PS have you got a bigger jacket yet??????

nomad

you are far better off becoming a sole trader rather than a limited company, you dont have to keep as many records for a start, remember that turnover is not profit, no bank will entertain new business without a business plan, most cities have a business advice place, in notts we have business link where you go on a days course to learn about all aspects of setting up your own business. it sounds good but take me, i have a 3K vat bill to find and my january tax is 7K, oh and in june i have to find 3K towards my next tax bill
cheers nomad