Could you build your business again today?
Discussion
Depends on what sector.
Long time ago when my granddad was working for RCA, they were inventing technology in the 60's and 70's which everyone wanted a piece of.
It was the technology revolution. He often says life back then seems in heinsight to be a lot easier than it is now.
You had the post-war mentality, the get up and go, without the social rot.
He might just be an old codger living the old days, but I think he has a point.
Long time ago when my granddad was working for RCA, they were inventing technology in the 60's and 70's which everyone wanted a piece of.
It was the technology revolution. He often says life back then seems in heinsight to be a lot easier than it is now.
You had the post-war mentality, the get up and go, without the social rot.
He might just be an old codger living the old days, but I think he has a point.
And just when you thought it had gone quiet...here's a new one. Everyone ready for it??
Summary
The Agency Workers Directive will be implemented in the UK on 1 October 2011 through the Agency Workers Regulations 2010. The purpose of the Directive is to provide temporary agency workers with equal treatment in terms of basic working and employment conditions as if they had been employed directly to do the same job. The implementation of the Directive will have major implications on the costs and use of agency workers for local authorities.
http://www.lge.gov.uk/lge/core/page.do?pageId=1192...
Good luck!
Summary
The Agency Workers Directive will be implemented in the UK on 1 October 2011 through the Agency Workers Regulations 2010. The purpose of the Directive is to provide temporary agency workers with equal treatment in terms of basic working and employment conditions as if they had been employed directly to do the same job. The implementation of the Directive will have major implications on the costs and use of agency workers for local authorities.
http://www.lge.gov.uk/lge/core/page.do?pageId=1192...
Good luck!
stuart-b said:
Depends on what sector.
Long time ago when my granddad was working for RCA, they were inventing technology in the 60's and 70's which everyone wanted a piece of.
It was the technology revolution. He often says life back then seems in heinsight to be a lot easier than it is now.
You had the post-war mentality, the get up and go, without the social rot.
He might just be an old codger living the old days, but I think he has a point.
Well this seems to have been pretty much Alan Sugar's experience - if you believe his autobiography.Long time ago when my granddad was working for RCA, they were inventing technology in the 60's and 70's which everyone wanted a piece of.
It was the technology revolution. He often says life back then seems in heinsight to be a lot easier than it is now.
You had the post-war mentality, the get up and go, without the social rot.
He might just be an old codger living the old days, but I think he has a point.
He would design something, for example a hi-fi separates look-alike music centre, have it made in the far East and sell millions of them in the UK. His account of things suggests that he had little if any competition and it did not seem to occur to the large chains (Laskeys etc) to cut him out the loop and buy direct.
His account of his business career gives the impression that he was able to freely profit from arbitrage and that no one else seemed to cotton on.
Manks said:
Well this seems to have been pretty much Alan Sugar's experience - if you believe his autobiography.
He would design something, for example a hi-fi separates look-alike music centre, have it made in the far East and sell millions of them in the UK. His account of things suggests that he had little if any competition and it did not seem to occur to the large chains (Laskeys etc) to cut him out the loop and buy direct.
His account of his business career gives the impression that he was able to freely profit from arbitrage and that no one else seemed to cotton on.
Yep, there was a huge "wave", a revolution akin to the industrial revolution. Now we are not having revolutions but revisions. The Internet provided a huge leap, but now the world is a smaller place. Competition is global, not local, in every type of business you're doing. You can't charge higher rates and hope to get away with it when a quick Google will find you global competitors (assuming you're working in FMCG sector).He would design something, for example a hi-fi separates look-alike music centre, have it made in the far East and sell millions of them in the UK. His account of things suggests that he had little if any competition and it did not seem to occur to the large chains (Laskeys etc) to cut him out the loop and buy direct.
His account of his business career gives the impression that he was able to freely profit from arbitrage and that no one else seemed to cotton on.
There is also the risk of Chinese rip offs coming in, after you've invented a technology/product.
The best type of business seems to be value added. Being top of your game in knowledge, not being a chancer. However, this takes a lot longer... One self improvement book I read (can't remember the name now...) states that it takes 10,000 hours to be a 'master' in anything.
By master I mean, people seek you out.
That is 8 solid hours, 5 days a week, for 6.25 years. Assuming you're 50-75% time efficient, (working on the basis of 200 working days) that is 8-12 years.
Seems about right?
Manks said:
Listening to Lord Sugar last week, banging on about how he started out in 1967 and how entrepreneurs these days don't know they're born, got me to wondering if I could build my current business again tomorrow if I had to.
The answer is I don't know. From zilch it would be very hard, or perhaps impossible. With some start-up money of about £50k, maybe a bit easier. But it would take years before it became a decent living.
So, is Lord Sugar right, is it as easy (easier?) today to start a successful business as it was in 1967 or harder?
Could you start your business again today and grow it as fast as you did?
were you at the BIBA conference as he touched on this in his speech/interview their last weekThe answer is I don't know. From zilch it would be very hard, or perhaps impossible. With some start-up money of about £50k, maybe a bit easier. But it would take years before it became a decent living.
So, is Lord Sugar right, is it as easy (easier?) today to start a successful business as it was in 1967 or harder?
Could you start your business again today and grow it as fast as you did?
insurance_jon said:
Manks said:
Listening to Lord Sugar last week, banging on about how he started out in 1967 and how entrepreneurs these days don't know they're born, got me to wondering if I could build my current business again tomorrow if I had to.
The answer is I don't know. From zilch it would be very hard, or perhaps impossible. With some start-up money of about £50k, maybe a bit easier. But it would take years before it became a decent living.
So, is Lord Sugar right, is it as easy (easier?) today to start a successful business as it was in 1967 or harder?
Could you start your business again today and grow it as fast as you did?
were you at the BIBA conference as he touched on this in his speech/interview their last weekThe answer is I don't know. From zilch it would be very hard, or perhaps impossible. With some start-up money of about £50k, maybe a bit easier. But it would take years before it became a decent living.
So, is Lord Sugar right, is it as easy (easier?) today to start a successful business as it was in 1967 or harder?
Could you start your business again today and grow it as fast as you did?
Okay, silly question. He must have said, "yes, it's as easy or easier today to start and build a large successful business".
Why? Because that's what he's been saying on TV and in his capacity as "enterprise tzar" he couldn't very well say anything different.
The only problem being, he has admitted to selling his electronics business because he just could not keep it viable anymore. As far as I can make out, the money he has made since is the result of investing the profits he made in the 70s and 80s in real estate*.
If we consider his more recent endeavours - the Emailer, the screen-based advertising for Post Offices (etc) and the electrical beauty products they are not exactly blockbusters, are they. Even with his financial clout and experience Sugar has not made them fly. So can you imagine the average Joe remortgaging his three-bed semi in Essex to start and succeed in a similar line?
No, my personal opinion is that it is far harder to start and grow a business today. In my opinion, Lord Sugar is now in the business of selling personal development along with the likes of Duncan Bannatyne. It is in their interest to make out that "it's so easy anyone can do it", when in fact it's a bit bloody difficult. But then a book entitled, "it's bloody hard, give up now before you fail" is unlikely to reach the WH Smith top 10 Best Sellers.
- Was he lucky - in part yes. He famously predicted that the commercial property boom was not over, just before 40% or so was wiped off values.
From my experience in retail, things are much much harder now.
As others have pointed, long gone are the days you can name your price, and now thanks to the internet sales are won on pence differences.
Perhaps the internet / globalisation has brought a lot of cash for e-consultant firms, however it's killed money in retail and manufacturing.
As others have pointed, long gone are the days you can name your price, and now thanks to the internet sales are won on pence differences.
Perhaps the internet / globalisation has brought a lot of cash for e-consultant firms, however it's killed money in retail and manufacturing.
rog007 said:
And just when you thought it had gone quiet...here's a new one. Everyone ready for it??
Summary
The Agency Workers Directive will be implemented in the UK on 1 October 2011 through the Agency Workers Regulations 2010. The purpose of the Directive is to provide temporary agency workers with equal treatment in terms of basic working and employment conditions as if they had been employed directly to do the same job. The implementation of the Directive will have major implications on the costs and use of agency workers for local authorities.
http://www.lge.gov.uk/lge/core/page.do?pageId=1192...
Good luck!
I've known about this for some years. I ran a temp agency for 10 years, and this legislation was one of the reasons for getting out of that market. It is madness of the worst kind. Unfortunately, employment protection isn't for the protection of the workers, it is for the protection of the economy; we are so reliant upon regular wages paying regular debt payments and regular tax payments that it is imperative to keep as many people in waged employment with little chance of losing their jobs. This drives a broad swathe of other public policy.Summary
The Agency Workers Directive will be implemented in the UK on 1 October 2011 through the Agency Workers Regulations 2010. The purpose of the Directive is to provide temporary agency workers with equal treatment in terms of basic working and employment conditions as if they had been employed directly to do the same job. The implementation of the Directive will have major implications on the costs and use of agency workers for local authorities.
http://www.lge.gov.uk/lge/core/page.do?pageId=1192...
Good luck!
It is madness, of the sort which will be looked back upon in years to come as one of the reasons for the decline and fall of our place in the world.
stuart-b said:
The best type of business seems to be value added. Being top of your game in knowledge, not being a chancer. However, this takes a lot longer... One self improvement book I read (can't remember the name now...) states that it takes 10,000 hours to be a 'master' in anything.
By master I mean, people seek you out.
That is 8 solid hours, 5 days a week, for 6.25 years. Assuming you're 50-75% time efficient, (working on the basis of 200 working days) that is 8-12 years.
Seems about right?
I can believe that. The issues centre around establishing your credentials (where on the internet, everyone is a very noisy expert on everything) and finding customers who can translate your skills into sufficient value in order to pay you. I say customers, because often when you're an expert translating your skills into value is a challenge beyond your area of expertise. You need the support network of the 'not experts' who can make your business viable. That either means clients with wider businesses, or building a company around a 'core vision' that you can provide. Depending on the market, the former may or may not be available. The latter is a whole different challenge.By master I mean, people seek you out.
That is 8 solid hours, 5 days a week, for 6.25 years. Assuming you're 50-75% time efficient, (working on the basis of 200 working days) that is 8-12 years.
Seems about right?
In IT these days, skills are becoming more specialised (partly due to recruiters cutting through the buzzword soup by just doing a direct match on TLAs), which must make it hard for new entrants to join. Twenty years ago you could walk into many IT companies, say "sure, I'll give it a go" and pick up skills on the job. These days you have to have 5 years' experience (in a technology that's only been available for 4 years) before you'd be considered.
In terms of building business on the 'net, right now is not good because the barrier to entry is fantastically low and competition truly is global. Brand/fashion/marketing sites are ten a penny and hard to distinguish etc. etc.
Oh... and to actually answer the question.
No.
Due to the inevitable commitments you take on (mortgage, wife, kids), it becomes much harder to 'take a punt'. Right now I'm committed to keeping business as usual because I want to retain the benefits that years of work have brought. That translates to "I've done well, but I have bigger financial commitments than when I was penniless".
Starting a new business has great appeal, but I would be very unwilling to make the sacrifices necessary to make it possible, unless they were forced upon me. Give me a decade to build up the comfort zone and I'd be more than happy to give it a go.
No.
Due to the inevitable commitments you take on (mortgage, wife, kids), it becomes much harder to 'take a punt'. Right now I'm committed to keeping business as usual because I want to retain the benefits that years of work have brought. That translates to "I've done well, but I have bigger financial commitments than when I was penniless".
Starting a new business has great appeal, but I would be very unwilling to make the sacrifices necessary to make it possible, unless they were forced upon me. Give me a decade to build up the comfort zone and I'd be more than happy to give it a go.
Our market has changed massively since I started in 1997 and the short answer is no.
Chinese copies and business owners driving the price down of our day to day products have meant margins are a fraction of what they were even say 5 years ago.
Fortunately when times were good I stuck loads of money away and that helped us during the past couple of years when frankly times were worse than s
t! What the recession and cheap competition has done is to make us focus on what we are good at, we have changed our product range and now supply higher value modular stands competitors selling cheap and cheerful banner stands simply can't design or build. For the moment margins are back, turnover is on the way back up and we are more than holding our own. We are as a matter of interest now opening more new accounts than we have done for quite some time, so our hard work is paying off.
I'm now also 15 years older, the wrong side of 40 and frankly I'm not sure if I would have the energy and drive to do what I did back in the 90's. Sure, I still work in excess of 90 hours per week as I always have done and travel all over the UK and Europe, but my work and responsibilities are different now (which includes employees, which I didn't have when I started).
Tha said, the world is an interesting place and there will always be new businesses starting whilst others fade away and I'm sure that if you've got what it takes, you'll be ok - it just may be Internet based or similar rather than a traditional business?
Chinese copies and business owners driving the price down of our day to day products have meant margins are a fraction of what they were even say 5 years ago.
Fortunately when times were good I stuck loads of money away and that helped us during the past couple of years when frankly times were worse than s
t! What the recession and cheap competition has done is to make us focus on what we are good at, we have changed our product range and now supply higher value modular stands competitors selling cheap and cheerful banner stands simply can't design or build. For the moment margins are back, turnover is on the way back up and we are more than holding our own. We are as a matter of interest now opening more new accounts than we have done for quite some time, so our hard work is paying off.I'm now also 15 years older, the wrong side of 40 and frankly I'm not sure if I would have the energy and drive to do what I did back in the 90's. Sure, I still work in excess of 90 hours per week as I always have done and travel all over the UK and Europe, but my work and responsibilities are different now (which includes employees, which I didn't have when I started).
Tha said, the world is an interesting place and there will always be new businesses starting whilst others fade away and I'm sure that if you've got what it takes, you'll be ok - it just may be Internet based or similar rather than a traditional business?
HoHoHo said:
Tha said, the world is an interesting place and there will always be new businesses starting whilst others fade away and I'm sure that if you've got what it takes, you'll be ok - it just may be Internet based or similar rather than a traditional business?
Fortunately for us people cannot live in the Internet.Manks said:
HoHoHo said:
Tha said, the world is an interesting place and there will always be new businesses starting whilst others fade away and I'm sure that if you've got what it takes, you'll be ok - it just may be Internet based or similar rather than a traditional business?
Fortunately for us people cannot live in the Internet.
Regarding Alan Sugar:-
He reckoned he started business with £100 in 1967, and £50 of that went to buy his van.
Allowing for inflation, if you said £1000, I am sure if you gave him £1000 he would have some kind of business up and running within hours, and within a year or so be a millionaire, same with Richard Branson, Mike Ashley, Philip Green etc.
You either have it or you don't.
He reckoned he started business with £100 in 1967, and £50 of that went to buy his van.
Allowing for inflation, if you said £1000, I am sure if you gave him £1000 he would have some kind of business up and running within hours, and within a year or so be a millionaire, same with Richard Branson, Mike Ashley, Philip Green etc.
You either have it or you don't.
Wacky Racer said:
Regarding Alan Sugar:-
He reckoned he started business with £100 in 1967, and £50 of that went to buy his van.
Allowing for inflation, if you said £1000, I am sure if you gave him £1000 he would have some kind of business up and running within hours, and within a year or so be a millionaire, same with Richard Branson, Mike Ashley, Philip Green etc.
You either have it or you don't.
Maybe, maybe not. It's tricky out there at the moment and a million net worth in a year from a standing start is no mean feat. Though if they could use their contacts to obtain borrowing it becomes a more realistic proposition.He reckoned he started business with £100 in 1967, and £50 of that went to buy his van.
Allowing for inflation, if you said £1000, I am sure if you gave him £1000 he would have some kind of business up and running within hours, and within a year or so be a millionaire, same with Richard Branson, Mike Ashley, Philip Green etc.
You either have it or you don't.
olly22n said:
I don't. As others have said he is living off past successes (and why not?).
If he were given a grand i could see him in a year troubling Mike Brewer, but without his contacts, he wouldn't be a millionaire.
I do and it's even easier than ever - If he were given a grand i could see him in a year troubling Mike Brewer, but without his contacts, he wouldn't be a millionaire.
£1000 gets you 200 *items* to sell via the web, make £5 profit on each gives you £2000, buy another 400 etc etc and build stock/sales in 12 months you could be selling 500 a day+
It's possible but requires some ideas and effort.
I started a fun biz a few years ago using £50, this now makes £300 as a side-line per day.
Business has never been as easy.
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