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Keeping control of your finances is critical when you own your own business

-mistakes to avoid>

"We’ve both made loads of mistakes since starting the company, too many to even start thinking about. I believe the most..." Kevin Owens

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-secrets>

"I learnt a lot out of selling my business. When I started the business I had a minority partner. When he saw the..." Alan Timothy

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-pearls of wisdom>

"Business isn’t rocket science, but you have to be a bit fearless. When you first start out, just being able to get..." Lorna Moran

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-challenges>

"When we started, our biggest competitor, the one who was turning over £5.5m, came after us quite aggressively, more..." Chris Quickfall

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-challenges>

"There seems to be a new challenge every day, some of course bigger than others. I think the biggest challenge was..." Jonathan Grubin

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-mistakes to avoid>

"A mistake I learned very early on was that setting up the store cost more than I thought. My projections were out. So I..." Sue Harris

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-successes>

"Everyone was saying to us at the time that taking over Milligans would be a massive challenge and there’ll be loads of..." Greg Phillips

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"I plan to minimise mistakes by starting my business small and letting it grow. Initially I will design from home and..." Vien le Wood

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-defining moments>

"I used to work as a designer and estimator for a shop fitting company in Leeds, worked up to director level until one..." Jamie Greenwood

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"Another mistake we made was not being commercially sharp enough in charging the appropriate fees that reflect our..." Simon Pearson

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-how I... guides>

"When I started out, I didn’t have a bottomless pit of money by any means; my family and I risked everything to do this...." Mark Ions

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-challenges>

"We've faced massive challenges at every turn. There are lots of ups and downs involved in being an entrepreneur. During..." Kevin Owens

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-lifestyle stories>

"I was talking to a friend of mine recently whose situation is exactly how I think I would have ended up if I hadn’t set..." Pete Hunt

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-how I... guides>

"In terms of raising finance, I’d agreed (with my wife) that I would invest £100,000 of my own money, or rather money..." Jonathan Wells

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"We’ve made loads of mistakes but we see them as learning experiences rather than grave errors! That’s the great thing..." Satish Shewhorak

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-lifestyle stories>

"It did feel like a risk. I remember when we got all the money transferred into the business bank account. I’d never..." Chris Quickfall

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-how I... guides>

"I started in the corner of our garage with two very old sewing machines. Because I had no money, I wrote down all my..." Anh Mao

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-mistakes to avoid>

"When I was looking for venture capital, what I should have done is go to all three companies at the same time once the..." James Robson

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-challenges>

"Lack of finance has also been a challenge throughout. I’ve found that little business improvements can make the world..." William Ingram

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"We’ve also gone on business ventures that were strategically just wrong. We did a joint venture with Newcastle United..." John Hays

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-mistakes to avoid>

"In the mid/late ‘90s we experienced rapid growth. In six years we’d grown from a turnover of £7m to £23m but we got..." Simon Pearson

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-successes>

"We managed to maintain a smaller business than we had before and we’re far better off. Ironically, it’s ultimately..." Jamie Greenwood

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-how I... guides>

"My more recent experience has been to do with raising money through institutions on the London market, either through..." Roy Stanley

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-challenges>

"Investment into my business has been my main challenge, along with needing to have the confidence which will ensure..." Nancy Haughey

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-mistakes to avoid>

"No matter how good you are at anything, there’s always something to learn. Part of learning is making mistakes, so I..." Jonathan Wells

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-aspirations>

"In my opinion, you either want to grow a business or you want to make money for yourself; the two things aren’t really..." John Elliott

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-secrets>

"You have to be on top of your overheads. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a small business or a big business, your..." Steven Bell

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-mistakes to avoid>

"If I’d have started out on my own I wouldn’t have borrowed as much money. It gives you a tremendous amount of pressure..." Jamie Greenwood

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-challenges>

"It was still a pretty difficult time though in those early days. It was basically a case of trying to find as much..." Derek Curtis

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"It was the first time that we had to convince other people to back us, but we went to the bank to be honest. I’d..." Greg Phillips

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-secrets>

"When I was setting up – a very long time ago - I went to my bank manager. I didn’t borrow any money, I just needed..." Lorna Moran

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-lifestyle stories>

"Setting up a business without doubt affects your lifestyle, financially in particular. I personally have chosen not to..." Ceyhan Mihcioglu

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-successes>

"One of the most satisfying things in the business was seeing us come as the underdog, taking on the number one..." Sir Tom Hunter

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-lifestyle stories>

"I received my final pay cheque last week and thought to myself… “Its all down to you Michelle!”…But over the last six..." Michelle Taylor

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-challenges>

"When I first sat down and thought about the goals I wanted to achieve, on paper I’d said that I wanted fifty artists in..." Carol Metcalfe

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-defining moments>

"I wasn’t keen on starting it straight away as I had shares maturing in early 2008. I thought you needed quite a lot of..." Mark Ions

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-secrets>

"Make sure you get your bills paid on time. The old saying, cash is king, is still relevant. Profit is great, and you..." Keith Miller

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-aspirations>

"My aspiration when I started the business was basically just to get it off the ground. I’ve exceeded the estimates on..." Kaye Winship

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-support stories>

"Technology businesses like ours, it’s all about exporting IP and the margins are very high. When we try and raise..." Alan Timothy

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-how I... guides>

"I started to set up the company whilst I was still at uni, but when I graduated I had to take a job to support myself...." Chris Quickfall

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-mistakes to avoid>

"Along with allowing myself more free time, I also should have got some administration help and developed regular..." Trudy Hindmarsh

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-challenges>

"I know I’ll face challenges along the way; I think with starting to work towards my actual long term goal of my own..." Michelle Taylor

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-secrets>

"You have the responsibility of financial debt. You need to service that debt and pay your loans back. Use the..." Keith Miller

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-mistakes to avoid>

"My biggest mistake is relying on one specific source of income (investment). You need to keep your options open and..." Nancy Haughey

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-successes>

"We’ve never really had any major financial problems. It was a low cost start up and we funded the growth out of..." John Hays

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-pearls of wisdom>

"Over the past 20 years, I don’t think there’s a way that I haven’t funded the business, be it from bank money, debt, a..." Roy Stanley

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-how I... guides>

"I was sat in the Sunderland office when I got a phone call from a friend of mine from school. He had a travel agency..." John Hays

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-challenges>

"My biggest challenge thus far has been supporting the business financially. However, I have only myself to blame..." Ceyhan Mihcioglu

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-aspirations>

"I was looking at the margins of our company and thought, hang on, there’s a lot of potential here for North East Bakery..." Greg Phillips

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-secrets>

"In 1991 when we were going through the recession, I was advised by my bank manager, my accountants, professional bodies..." Keith Miller

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-successes>

"Financially, we were prepared to take a cut in what we were earning. We both worked out what we needed to survive and..." Antonia Clifford

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-challenges>

"An opportunity came to take on Milligans bakery who we did an asset transaction with at the end of 2006, and we had the..." Greg Phillips

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-challenges>

"The biggest challenge we faced in setting up the business was that it was so bloomin’ expensive to get started! Some..." Louise Allcroft

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-secrets>

"If you’re not having the right relationship with your bank, look elsewhere. There was a time when Newman Scott lost us..." Steven Bell

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-how I... guides>

"I’ve had experience with venture capitalists, and those experiences have been good. Putting Tanfield together..." Roy Stanley

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-challenges>

"All of the help agencies offered similar support; they could all show me how to write a business plan and a cash flow..." Mark Rogers

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-challenges>

"We looked at getting more funding from banks, but as soon as they saw we were an online business, they wanted nothing..." Sarah Taylor

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-how I... guides>

"Prior to gaining funding from the Arts Council Cultural Business Venture to help me set up ‘vien ici’, I hand crafted..." Vien le Wood

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-successes>

"Some people say that you should change banks to save money but I would actually suggest staying with them if you can...." James Robson

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-lifestyle stories>

"As a result of the business I’ve got no financial worries. It’s January now and I haven’t paid myself yet; I’ve still..." Alistair McLean

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-challenges>

"It was difficult getting started. Even a small bouncy castle can cost up to £1,500 and I had to use all the money I’d..." Leanne Hodgson

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-pearls of wisdom>

"You need investment in financial advice. Sometimes people say they can’t afford it, I’m saying you can’t afford not..." Sir Peter Vardy

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-successes>

"I’ve been able to become financially and personally independent as a result of the business. Three years following my..." Nancy Haughey

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-challenges>

"If you get into a situation where you’ve got some bad sales figures coming in, it’s important to be objective. After..." John Hays

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-challenges>

"I’d left school at sixteen so I didn’t have a clue what a balance sheet, a spreadsheet, a P&L was. Its quite daunting..." Simon Pearson

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-mistakes to avoid>

"I’ve spent the investment on stock, software and machinery to make the shoes, but I have made mistakes along the way as..." Matt Scott

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-challenges>

"I spent eleven months trying to raise the money. I’d committed myself as I wasn’t doing anything else. I worked from..." James Robson

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-secrets>

"A lot of small businesses can’t afford an accountant, especially a qualified one. But from personal experience having..." Steven Bell

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-how I... guides>

"I made a risky decision to invest every penny Rocket Science has generated for the past two years, into i-snapshot...." Alan Timothy

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-mistakes to avoid>

"We were actually successful in the first year after the dot com failure and believed that we had got it right and..." Phil Cronin

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-successes>

"I never expected my business to be as successful as it’s been. When I started, I certainly didn’t expect to be a..." Jonathan Grubin

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-challenges>

"We’d just managed to get a massive loan to expand the business but the day after the money went into our bank account..." Alistair McLean

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Entrepreneurs>

Keith Miller: Miller UK Limited

"I never really questioned my ability to do things, I just got stuck in and had a go. In 1978 I asked my employer what..."

view Keith Miller's story

Susan Pluse: Washington Dance Academy

"I’ve danced since the age of four and by the time I was 12 I knew I wanted to get into the teaching side of things. It..."

view Susan Pluse's story

Carol Metcalfe: Musa Fine Art Ltd

"Before I started my own business my circumstances weren’t that great. I came from a family of six kids brought up on a..."

view Carol Metcalfe's story

view all entrepreneurs

For more information please contact stephen@ifwecanyoucan.co.uk or call 0191 226 7491