Bit of advice re going self employed

[Bhoydavid]

Nothing concrete as of yet but seriously considering it. I know it's rough to start up but are there any government grants available in Scotland that don't require you to put in the same as what you want? That seems a big stumbling block for starters. Then there's the work. Obviously it will be slow to start with but was looking into doing subbying and was wondering where is best to find companies looking to subby work?


cheers all help appreciated

 

[kris]

Youve more chance of grants if under 27, which i think is terrible as it shouldnt matter what age aslong as youre keen , i remember when i started i looked at this and i contacted the princes trust and couple others and they all said i was too old for grants , i was 30 at the time , but try anyway ,,, as they say SHY KIDS GET NOTHIN, good luck david

 

[T & H Plumbing]

Grants are hard to come by I'm in the process of getting a start up loan, check you goverment website

 

[CES]

When I started up, I got the square root of feck all. I did manage to get a training grant a couple of years ago from skills development Scotland. They will give you up to £500 to up skill as long as it's not statutory training (I.e. They won't fund your acs but if you want to do heat pumps etc). As far as work goes I found it quite frustrating at times ( I subbed to BG as well as CORGI and The Able Group) but also rewarding. You always have to keep your private customers sweet as the subby work tends to disappear quickly and you can easily find yourself down to a two day week rapidly!. I recently went back to work on the books with another company although I keep my gas safe registration for homers now as I have a nice wee sideline fitting jobs for a few kitchen fitters I know. Good luck and don't be fooled into all the hype regarding Eco and green deal work that's more or less non-existent up here.

 

[Millsy 82]

Be prepared for alot of boredom. Ive been self employed 6 weeks and that is the thing thats the worse when I have nothing on so I try to find things to do but after going from 40-50 hours a week to 8-10 its quite a shock (although it gives me time to do estimates and to triple check them).

Also save up as much as possible and get as much sorted before the start date as possible so your not paying out all the time (advertising/ sign writing/ insurance etc)

Get subby work lined up before you start and dont believe the job sites as I think alot of them advertise jobs that are not there so they build up a portfolio of engineers. Be prepared for loads of scam phone calls (usually 1 a week at least)

 

[Leo21]

It'll take time to build a customer base, make sure your financially secure as possible.
You don't want to be in a position where your tempted to do something unscrupulous to get a few quid in.

 

[Deleted member 32524]

it is hard defo to go it alone. It will take about 5 yrs before it starts to get a bit easier. You will need multiple adverts to fill a week. I find that I can be a week or less, sometimes, from being out of business. Sometimes you have money in the bank others you need to a line of credit to source materials. Once you are low on cash flow it is really hard to catch up. The phone will start to drive you mad with fannies phoning at all times with their "emergency" and expect you to jump.

Plus points.... You are the boss, can earn more once established. If you need a day off for something you have the freedom to do so.

As for grants. TBH even if there are any it will be pennies like £1000. Seems alot of money but, when you are running a business that will keep you afloat for a few weeks.

 

[SimonG]

I got a couple of hundred when I first started through the enterprise people. That was a while ago though.

 

[WHPES]

Use the services and advice offered for free by Businesslink. They were very helpful to me and they have useful business workshop sessions.

 

[townfanjon]

David, I have been saying this for years...... If you think you have worked hard so far in your life, you ain't got a clue until you have worked for yourself .
Some can do it , some can't, but bloody good luck if you have a go

 

[mfgs]

When you get busy, you will be working 8-6 on a job, going to do quotes from 6-7 then getting back and writing out quotes, invoicing and answering silly emails from customers on how to use a room stat you fitted 2 years ago until 9pm. Then from 9-10 you will be emailing and calling people who have owed you money for god knows how long. Its all great fun. It is extremely stressful at times, a lot of hard work, but I could never go back to working for another firm now.

 

[PatchettPlumbing]

Good advice here, all I can say is good luck and stick to it!

 

[Bhoydavid]

Thanks for all the replies guys. Cheers.

What would you say is an average start up cost for PLI, van, adverts, gas safe etc? What are the essentials needed for startup?

 

[mfgs]

I would say you will want a minimum of 10k to get you started.

 

[Millsy 82]

Thanks for all the replies guys. Cheers.

What would you say is an average start up cost for PLI, van, adverts, gas safe etc? What are the essentials needed for startup?

So far I have spent around £5k that was van (only a cheap expert), PLI, Gas safe, adverts, additional tools (I only did service and maintenance so needed drill etc), 4000 leaflets and had them delivered,

It all depends on your out goings mine are around £300 a month so I am not massively worried about being short of work as I am earning enough to cover that but if you have mortgage, bills and family I would want enough to cover all the bills and payments for 12 months at least.