 With the UK now officially leaving the EU, small and medium sized business owners need to put plans and procedures in to place to ensure their business carries on with no problems. Research show that unfortunately the vast majority of SME business owners continue to bury their heads in the sand and ignore the potential ticking time bomb.
Below is a short check list of what you may need to do:
By Anni Khan at Tax Affinity Accountants Tax Affinity Accountants are experts in Tax and Accountancy. Based in Worcester Park and Kingston upon Thames and Epsom they are considered in the Industry to be expert business accountants and tax advisors for small and medium sized businesses (SME's). Helping and supporting limited company owners and self employed people throughout the UK, they regularly help clients grow their business providing tailored advice and support. Their support has been considered invaluable by many clients and key to their success. For more information visit www.taxaffinity.com. To read more interesting articles like this visit www.taxaffinity.com/blog. Please feel free to comment and share this with your friends.
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 Every year around this time we get a wave of negative news in the media with large corporations issuing retail sales warnings, making excuses publicly about Brexit, the election, weather, online sales, anything really to distract from their own incompetence in the run up to Christmas and New Year 2019. In fact last year December 2018 it was the exact same excuses with only exception being the recent general election.
Always ignore the 'nay sayers' and pro-actively look at what positive steps can be taken to ensure your business sales and profits rise or at the very least stay level with previous years. To help with this we've compiled a short list based on our extensive experience and industry wide knowledge. 1. Go where the money is - try to be fluid and adaptable and look to see what is selling and sell more of that and stock less of what is in less demand. If its a different product or service that you don't offer consider adding this. 2. Give the customer what they want not what you want - try to listen to them and understand them properly and give them what they are looking for. Your customer will tell you how to keep things going in your business. Don't be shy to ask them, actively ask for feedback. 3. Make an offer they cant refuse - when things are difficult for a client make sure you have offers and special deals like supermarkets do. This may mean you have to offer something at a lower price with the plan to sell another product/service that compliments that item which will make more profit. 4. Keep an eye on competition - try to make sure your business is not lagging behind on the four P's of the marketing mix - Product, Price, Promotion, Place. All four need to be excellent to ensure growth in a slowing economy. 5. Give away stuff to entice people to keep visiting - This doesn't mean give everything away at a knock down price, but more specifically could mean a good chance to clear out old stock items and have more space by getting rid of it at cost price. The customers get a good deal and you keep the cash-flow coming in. 6. Don't use bad economic conditions as an excuse - try to stay focused and think positive, don't listen to negative sources of information, look at the positive sources as well. Many large retailers have a positive outlook, its just that media outlets like to dwell on negativity as bad news sells better than good. Compare your business to the bigger companies and see what they are doing and what you can do as well. The Director / CEO that thinks and plans positively is the one that drives their business forward. By Anni Khan at Tax Affinity Accountants Tax Affinity Accountants are experts in Tax and Accountancy. Based in Worcester Park and Kingston upon Thames they are considered in the Industry to be expert accountants and tax advisors for small businesses. Helping and supporting contractors and self employed people throughout the UK, they regularly help clients grow their business providing tailored advice. For more information visit www.taxaffinity.com. To read more interesting articles like this visit www.taxaffinity.com/blog. Please feel free to comment and share this with your friends.  To understand its importance, it is necessary to look at the scale of the matter with regards to small and medium sized businesses (SME’s).
In the UK, there are some 5.7m SME’s, which account for almost the whole of the private sector firms and 60% of total UK private sector employment. SME’s also account for 73% of all net private sector job creation in the UK. Therefore, SME’s have significant implications for the economy and anything that can effect SME’s is very important. SME’s need to be proactive and prudent as they prepare for BREXIT – deal or no deal. While some business know how they will be affected, and what will be the consequences. Many do not have the time to spare to look at this and seriously lack any plan of action of how to deal with and overcome weaknesses that may affect their business. This short article will focus on the most important aspects of leaving the EU without a deal for small businesses.
There are more questions than answers regarding impact of Brexit available yet. Ever lingering uncertainty and heightened anxiety in the business world in awash in the news at the moment. In any case, costs and delays relating to customs and trade are expected to increase in general. And these will affect all businesses and consumers. Some businesses may see their business grow and will look for new opportunities, but many are likely to lose out, if they do not plan ahead and manage their competitive position. By Awais at Tax Affinity Accountants in Epsom, Surrey Tax Affinity Accountants are experts in Tax and Accountancy. With branches in Surbiton , Worcester Park , Kingston upon Thames , Cheam and Epsom they are considered in the Industry to be expert accountants and tax advisors for small businesses. Helping and supporting business throughout the UK, they regularly help clients grow their business providing tailored advice and support. For more information visit www.taxaffinity.com. To read more interesting articles like this visit www.taxaffinity.com/blog. Please feel free to comment and share this with your friends.  A few months ago it was #Brexit hitting the UK headlines and now its Trump. The cartoon series The Simpson's, many years ago, predicted Donald Trump would be the President of America and joked that he will bankrupt the country. In the cartoon Trump calls America just another one of his ex-wive's. (they even flicked through different possible years in the cartoon in one spooky sequence).
And if your wondering what does all this mean to the UK economy and to your business, then your not alone. Speculation and peoples opinions are what effects business on an a very basic level. The UK has not yet even activated article 50 to start leaving the EU but the vote made the (GBP) Pound drop dramatically in value and UK public spending to slow. Who'd have thought that there were there that many Marmite lovers out there? Similarly the US election win of Trump doesnt mean he is the 45th President yet, but public and business opinion has swung already and made the GB Pound rise and become stronger against all currencies as the exchange rate investers shift from the Dollar back to Sterling. Far Eastern economies jitter and UK confidence rise thinking they will have have just found a better business partner than the EU. Brexit may mean better trade deals in the future with the US, Canada, India, China etc as we shift focus on building stronger ties with others rather than Europeans. But negatively in the short term it has also meant direct increase in costs for businesses, which may eventually mean more unemployment and less spending. Have you noticed how many recruitment agencies have been calling you to place their candidates recently? Across the pond, Trump promised lower corporation taxes and more investement in infrastructure and the economy. Although lacking in detail how he really plans to make 'America great again' (suggesting its not very great at the moment). And not to mention the huge (Berlin/Chinese type) wall against Mexico. That curiously seemed to go down very well with US voters. So with so much media trash being touted to sway public opinion. A clever entrepreneur will try to cut through opinion and see the facts only. Then try to foresee the rise and fall of public opinion before it happens. Letting this be his/her guide as to what to do with their business and ensure that it remains in an optimal position no matter what the economic situation prevailing. That is why at Tax Affinity Accountants in Kingston we recommend all our cleints worldwide who could be effected by Brexit and Trump or whatever happens next (bad news usually comes in three's doesn't it?) to keep a cool head and see the the wood for the trees. Focus on making your business better and stronger even more so than before. And just keep moving forward even if its only an inch a day, because that is how winners perform. And that is exactly what hugely successful multinational corporations already do. Look at the facts and view the visible signs to work out if The Simpson's predicted it right and Trump will make America another one of his ex-wives or if he will make make it a more profitable place to do business than ever before. Maybe your business needs to have a established foothold in the US while Brexit ping pong starts with the EU or maybe you just need to make sure you offer a better level of service today if your prices are going up in 3 months time. By Anni Khan at Tax Affinity Accountants Tax Affinity Accountants are experts in Tax and Accountancy. Based in Worcester Park and Kingston upon Thames they are considered in the Industry to be expert accountants and tax advisors for small businesses. Helping and supporting business throughout the UK, they regularly help clients grow their business providing tailored advice. For more information visit www.taxaffinity.com. To read more interesting articles like this visit www.taxaffinity.com/blog. Please feel free to comment and share this with your friends.  Since the Brexit vote, we have seen that a larger than usual number of enquiries about ensuring that an entrepreneur, doing business in the UK, needs to make sure they have updated their visa and rights to remain in the UK by the British Home Office.
Normally this involves the services of a solicitor to organise your paperwork or at the very least a good understanding of the Home Office rules for application if your doing it yourself. The solictor will often also ask you to provide a qualified accountants letter and financial evidence of the past 5 to 10 years of employed or self employed activity in the UK. With evidence showing how you have contributed to the British economy through your taxes and national insurance contributions (NI). If your employed this is through P60's, P45's and P11d's. And if your self employed this is in the form of Company Accounts, Corporation Tax Returns, Personal Tax Return's, SA302's (tax calculation) showing total income and tax and NI payable and a HMRC statement of account (like a bank statement showing payments made and balances due). Your accountant can provide the company accounts, SA302's and tax returns if required urgently. And copies of the HMRC headed statement of account and SA302's can be ordered from HMRC with a normal delay of 7 to 10 days. This information along with others required eg bank statements and ID documents etc can then be submitted with the application to the Home Office. Some types of visa's such as the entrepreneur visa require detailed business plans with the application and this is something we have a speciality in and can help create this to help your application. At Tax Affinity Accountants we have already helped many self employed businessmen and women with their successful applications. So if you feel you need help with any of these documents then feel free to contact us and we would be happy to help. By Anni Khan at Tax Affinity Accountants Tax Affinity Accountants are experts in Tax and Accountancy. Based in Worcester Park and Kingston upon Thames they are considered in the Industry to be expert accountants and advisors for small businesses. Helping and supporting business throughout the UK, they regularly help new and established businesses to succeed. For more information visit www.taxaffinity.com. To read more interesting articles like this visit www.taxaffinity.com/blog. Please feel free to comment and share this with your friends.  A lot of wise entrepreneurs are making a lot of money in the fallout as the UK economy bounces around with the triple hit of Brexit, PM resignation and new appointment and the now predictable event of England being kicked out of the Euro 2016 football championships.
They know that there is money to be made where there is fear and speculation. Some are buying cheap UK Sterling others are snapping up cheap stocks and shares while others are haggling hard on basic business deals on such as renewing a lease for a property or machinery. Facing fears and thinking positive in times of an economic downturn is what a true entrepreneur does. Many success stories are about people who made their most money during recessions and economic slumps. Just read about billionaire businessmen and women such Warren Buffet. So when the chairman of JCB Lord Bamford recently said we have "little to fear from leaving the EU" and the business community "needed to look to the future", he was not wrong. He went on to explain "European markets are important to many UK businesses, including JCB, and this will not change," but also said "We should look ahead to opportunities to trade more freely with the rest of the world, as well as building on existing trading relationships with customers and suppliers in Europe." So he was basically saying, we have to remember is that the UK is the world's fifth largest trading nation in the world, and being positive and looking for the opportunites to do even better should be the priority not giving in to the nay sayers and fear mongers. With this in mind, some economists have predicted that the UK could be heading towards a recession, while others have predicted stronger growth once things settle down. "We can look forward to faster rates of economic growth as we embrace the world economy," John Hearn, an economist at the London Institute of Banking and Finance stated recently. But why the huge contrast? Well let's not forget that these people are paid employees and don't really understand what it means to be self-employed and how an entrepreneur's take home pay is directly effected by the sales they did that week. So its all well and good to reassure the doubtful but would a true entrepreneur even be paying any attention or be busy working hard? Sorry who said what? - Lets all work hard today to make more profit and be successful tomorrow, and the economy will take care of its self. Its core foundation is after all individual businesses not employed workers or politicians they are just the purchaser at the end of the chain. Top Tip: The fall in the exchange rates is benefiting UK exporters by lowering their prices and helping domestic retailers products look more attractive to the buyers from other countries, so look for opportunities to export your products and expand your market place overseas while it lasts. By Anni Khan at Tax Affinity Accountants Tax Affinity Accountants are experts in Tax and Accountancy. Based in Worcester Park and Kingston upon Thames they are considered in the Industry to be expert accountants and advisors for small businesses. Helping and supporting business throughout the UK, they regularly help new and established businesses to succeed. For more information visit www.taxaffinity.com. To read more interesting articles like this visit www.taxaffinity.com/blog. Please feel free to comment and share this with your friends.  How to increase business profits in a slowing economy.
We often get asked ‘How do I still make more money if my sales go down?’ Using our extensive experience and broad industry knowledge our typical reply is that is actually depends on the industry and type of business that you operate. And then we analyse their business and let them know the best tailored way forward. But there are a few basic things that you can do whatever your business is and below is a helpful list - because everyone loves a to the point list:
We haven’t gone into details about the points raised above, as really most entrepreneurs already know then. It’s more likely that over time they have forgotten to apply or did once apply them but now are too busy doing other things and have lost focus of how important they are. As such they are more a timely reminder for the serious entrepreneur as the UK economy slows down towards the leaving the EU. As they say ‘the cream always rises to the top’ and you just cant stop a good business, so make your business better today for a successful future. By Anni Khan at Tax Affinity Accountants Tax Affinity Accountants are experts in Tax and Accountancy. Based in Worcester Park and Kingston upon Thames they are considered in the Industry to be expert accountants and advisors for small businesses. Helping and supporting business throughout the UK, they regularly help new and established businesses to succeed. For more information visit www.taxaffinity.com. To read more interesting articles like this visit www.taxaffinity.com/blog. Please feel free to comment and share this with your friends.  Tax Affinity - Expert Chartered Accountants in Kingston upon Thames Now that the dust has settled after UK voters decided to leave the EU in the referendum last week. It is worth taking stock of what is going to happen in the short to medium term financially.
While many media outlets are playing the doom and gloom card and many unhappy pro EU voters waste time creating futile online petitions and holding demonstrations to redo the referendum. Entrepreneurs who hold no political agenda are gearing up and putting more positive energy into their business to make it stronger for the future. They know that the decision has been made and thinking positively of what will come and how to steer their business away from problems is the way forward. So the question is what are they looking at? Well the following list should help highlight what they are looking at to help you focus on what is important for you:
By Anni Khan at Tax Affinity Accountants Tax Affinity Accountants are experts in Tax and Accountancy. Based in Worcester Park and Surbiton they are considered in the Industry to be experts accountants for small businesses. Helping and supporting business throughout the UK, they regularly help new and established businesses to succeed. For more information visit www.taxaffinity.com. To read more interesting articles like this visit www.taxaffinity.com/blog. Please feel free to comment and share this with your friends. |
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