Feargal Quinn: Solving the problems of small business: Email your questions to [email protected] Question: I run a small but growing bread business. A good friend runs an early stage cake business from the same premises and we have combined to create a third business producing fresh donuts, how can we grow all three businesses? Answer: My concern lies around how these businesses are going to be managed and in particular, I would worry greatly about the shared business. What is going to happen when each of your own businesses gets busy and there is no time for the shared business? Which one will get the priority? I will have a bet with you now that you will each retract back to protect your own individual business and ignore the needs of the new business when things get really busy. Why dont you consider bringing all these related categories together in one business? Set up an ownership structure that is fair to you both and allocate different responsibilities within the business to each of you. Perhaps one of you takes responsibility for all production and the other for sales and distribution, etc. As yet another motivation to pull all the businesses together, put yourselves in your customers shoes, whether that as a local shop owner or a consumer on the street. They are not interested in the fact that this is three separate companies and will find it totally confusing if they are seeing you representing different products on separate occasions. Come together and build one strong united brand. That is where you will make your money.
Posted on: Thu, 28 Nov 2013 12:27:48 +0000