Many people have used the opportunity of lockdown or redundancy to start a new business during the past few months.
If you’re thinking of setting up a business, you’ll probably be looking forward to doing things your way without pressure from managers and directors trying to get you to do things which make no sense.
Being in charge of your own destiny – even in these challenging times – can be thrilling and rewarding for people with an entrepreneurial mindset and the right accountant.
Rushing into starting a new business can be tempting – it can’t be that hard, can it? Yes, of course it is possible to start straight away with no planning or thought – however, the most successful businesses are those that have considered the detail of what they need to set-up.
That’s where we come in. After all, we were a start-up once! That means we understand what you’re going through.
Once you’ve decided on the finance you need and the premises you’ll be working from it’s a good idea to think about business structure.
Predominantly, business owners tend to set themselves up as a sole trader or limited company. It’s important you make this decision with our help as it can affect your take home pay after tax.
Our team will assist you with:
Company registration with Companies House
Structure of company and shareholders
Registration with HMRC
Tax planning
VAT registration
Payroll and drawing money out from your new business
Cloud accounting and invoicing
Contact us on (0161) 980 8788 if you are starting or just about to start a new business venture.
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Since lockdown began, we’ve noticed a significant upturn in the number of business owners who live just a ‘stone’s throw’ from our office in Hale expressing how much they love having their accountants based near where they live.
A large number of business owners (and their advisers) choose to live in Hale, Hale Barns, Bowdon or Altrincham – even if they run successful businesses in other parts of Greater Manchester.
Many business owners have already confirmed that that they have no intention of their staff returning to work as normal in their city centre office – and neither do they.
In fact, like us, they swiftly adapted to the new normal and have been able to continue their business operations with the vast majority of staff working at home thanks to technology and an entrepreneurial attitude.
Why choose accountants in Hale?
Being located in Hale means we are perfectly placed to deliver our professional services to business owners who, in no uncertain terms, want to avoid Manchester city centre!
That’s why we’re seeing so many business owners switch their accountants from city-centre based firms to ours in Hale.
By appointing us as your accountants you’ll avoid all the headaches that come with trips to the city centre including: the commute into town, parking problems and the sheer waste of time and unproductiveness of meeting accountants in the city centre.
We have:
Grade A offices in the heart of Hale on Hale Road. ✅
Plenty of free parking ✅
A client base of successful entrepreneurs who live locally just like you ✅
Talented and experienced staff ✅
More competitive rates than ‘rival’ city centre-based practices ✅
An entrepreneurial attitude to help your business thrive in 2020 and beyond ✅
Of course, we’re always ready to meet via Zoom – but we firmly believe that most people in business still prefer a face-to-face meeting – and there’s nowhere handier for locally-living entrepreneurs than our office in Hale.
Why don’t you speak to us about becoming your new accountants in the new post-Covid era?
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We are proud to report that our colleague Jack Crowther, who joined us as an apprentice, has now attained AAT full membership (MAAT) – the internationally recognised professional status in accounting and finance.
We are committed to supporting the careers of the next generation of accountants and we are delighted with the progress and dedication that Jack has shown.
Alexander Knight & Co is an attractive career choice for both experienced accountants and people who are just starting off in their career.
Our supportive, flexible and entrepreneurial approach attracts just the right kind of professionals who our wide client base of business owners trust.
If you want to join a growing firm that invests in your accountancy career – especially one that offers a hybrid office/homeworking environment in the current climate – then speak to us now.
We are recruiting – so please send your CV to Alison Spier now.
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will finish at the end of October and there are some important things you need to know as an employer.
From August, employers must pay National Insurance and pension contributions, then 10% of pay from September, rising to 20% in October.
Furlough scheme changes for employers
Also, employees can return to work part-time from July, but with companies paying 100% of wages.
The scheme was originally intended to last until the end of July and the confirmation that it is running until the end of October is largely good news for employers, employees and the wider economy.
Some businesses, however, may need to consider their staffing levels when the cost of pension contributions and and National Insurance is factored in – as well as the tapering off of the support in September and October.
Support making new furlough claims
It is important that if you are making furlough claims you calculate the amount you can claim accurately. We have already seen multiple instances of clients missing out on money they are entitled to because they have ‘under-claimed‘. Any more additional procedures added to the extended scheme could see more errors being made.
If you need support to make your claim – speak to us.
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We are guiding many clients through the process of ‘furloughing‘ employees. In addition, as we have previously indicated, company directors are also eligible to be furloughed – and we are guiding our clients through this process too.
An update has been made by the Government to the Job Retention Scheme (or ‘80% scheme’) which you can see here and officially confirms:
company directorsare eligible to be furloughed.
the minimum period for each employee to be furloughed is 3 continuous weeks (the word continuous is part of the updated legislation).
employees can be furloughed multiple times, but each claim is for a minimum of 3 continuous weeks.
The information required by an employer in making a claim on the HMRC portal is:
your ePAYE reference number
the number of employees being furloughed
the claim period (start and end date)
amount claimed (per the minimum length of furloughing of 3 consecutive weeks)
your company bank account number and sort code
your contact name
your phone number
There are still some questions that the update doesn’t answer. Specifically, these are:
when the online portal for making a claim will be ‘live’ – HMRC guidance still refers to ‘the end of April’, but is not specific.
whetherthe 3 continuous weeks (requirement) can span a month, so that employees can return to work for short periods of time, but employers can continue to claim furlough.
how quickly payments for furlough will be made.
Do you need more help in furloughing staff?
We are looking at launching a new specific service to help clients make their furlough claims in the correct way. If this is of interest please email Murray Patt now so that we can assess the level of demand – and then provide the necessary resource in-house to support you.
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Murray Patt, our founder, is focused on supporting clients in this challenging period:
“Over the last few weeks we have all been shocked with how coronavirus has had an impact on our respective businesses.
“Whilst we are all in unchartered territory I have some basic rules for you to consider, in trying to get through this period. It may be that not all of these are relevant to you, but there will be some aspects which will help you to think clearly going forward.”
My top-ten-tips are as follows:
“Cash is king”. Businesses do not fail through making losses – they fail when they run out of cash.
Forecast your cashflow. Predict your future cashflow as best you can, & schedule this out using excel/similar tools. I recommend doing this for a 12 week period & monitoring it daily vs actual.
Cash injection. Be prepared to inject monies into your business & talk with your bankers at an early stage for support. Through fundingcircle.com our clients can secure a discount on standard loan rates, with a rapid decision-making process.
Government loan/grant schemes. Whilst these schemes are very welcome, it will take time for them to get up & running – therefore do not rely on them. Further, if they are administered by the banks/local authorities, who are already struggling for staff, then expect them to be slow & cumbersome.
Loan repayment holidays. Talk with your funder(s) & see if you can arrange a payment holiday on your existing loans.
Employment contracts. Review your staff contracts, & see what scope there is to make changes & save cost. However, please consider the knock-on effect on them.
Paying suppliers. Talk with them &, if you can, agree revised terms in the short-term.
Be selective with cancelling discretionary expenditure. We will eventually come out of the other side of this, & therefore do not terminate arrangements now, which you may regret in a few months time.
Plan in advance. If some form of restructuring to your business is required, then the sooner you take some professional advice the better.
Talk, talk, talk. Don’t be afraid to talk with us, & other business owners. The more we share our experiences the better for everyone.
Murray Patt says:
I suspect that things will get worse before they start to improve again, but they will improve – the uncertainty is the timescale for this. The team at AK&Co are there to support you & we will always make time to speak with you. Every day is a steep learning curve, & we will get through this eventually.
With the concerns surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak we wish to reassure our clients and contacts that Alexander Knight & Co remains fully operational and open for business.
We are following all appropriate UK Government guidance to ensure the wellbeing of our employees, their families and our clients.
We have robust contingency plans in place to ensure that client work can continue with minimal disruption. Our plans will ensure the continuity, integrity and level of service that we provide to help you meet your business objectives and priorities during this time.
As part of our business continuity plan all our team have laptops and are able to operate remotely if required. They can be contacted via email or phone in the normal way.
We operate in a paperless environment and so all client records and transactional documents are held electronically and can be accessed remotely and securely.
We are are still operating face to face meetings and site visits but if you would like to use other methods of communication during this time then we have video and/or telephone conferencing services available.
Alexander Knight & Co are here to support you and your business operations during this time.
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If you run a business then you’ll know how hard it is to capture the attention of your target audience. Getting people to become aware of your product or service is only the start of the battle. Once you’ve got their attention and they are aware that you exist – how do you actually get them to buy?
It’s often said that we are bombarded by at least 5,000 brand messages every single day.
Consciously or unconsciously you are experiencing the results of somebody’s PR and marketing efforts. In this competitive environment you need to work out what ‘message’ you want to send to the market by defining your own brand identity first and then working out which channels to use to market your services effectively.
Brand footprint
Defining a brand in a crowded sector can be daunting task. The very best brands in any marketplace don’t just look good aesthetically – they back it up with great products and brilliant service.
Remember, a brand isn’t just a logo. It’s a promise, it’s your reputation and it’s your personality as a business. It’s these things combined and rolled out across your website, social media, PR and other marketing collateral that defines who you are to you target market.
Defining who you are as a brand is crucial. Most businesses evolve naturally and business personas develop over time It’s important that you define, not just what your brand identity is now – but where you are going in the future. This is particularly important if you’ve recent acquired a company or merged with another company. Having a cohesive brand identity is essential.
What is your brand promise?
Are you faster? Are you cheaper? Are you better? Are you more friendly? Are you luxury? Whatever it is that makes you different needs to be clearly understood internally by you and your entire team before you begin the process of externally marketing it.
We defined our own identity at Alexander Knight & Co as the ‘accountants for entrepreneurs’. It has been highly successful in encouraging business owners to contact us, largely because we talk the same ‘language’ and as business owners ourselves we understand the challenges. Our brand is therefore very important to us – and it plays a huge role in not only attracting new clients but also new staff, suppliers and new business opportunities.
In fact, our own brand development has encouraged many new clients to come on board who are in the business of brand-building, marketing and digital services – so we must be doing something right. Our PR company has been very helpful in this process.
Finally, by reading this article, you are experiencing our own PR and marketing efforts to make you aware of our own accountancy practice for business owners like you – so if you’re in the market for a new accountant – please do drop me a line!
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Coronavirus tax credits should be introduced for businesses that suffer from the impact of coronavirus – as well as more measures to assist SMEs.
The Italian government has introduced tax credits for businesses effected by coronavirus and tax experts say the UK should follow suit to lessen the impact for SMEs.
The Government has now announced an action plan which includes help for businesses. In our view, this should include tax credits for firms who have been hit especially hard like in Italy where firms who see a 25% drop in revenue as a result of the virus can secure further tax breaks.
Impact on business
We are in uncharted waters with regards to the impact of the virus on UK businesses. We know that the FTSE100 has been volatile but we also need to look at the impact on SMEs who are the backbone of the economy.
Tax credits should be introduced for firms who get hit hard and they should be announced in the Budget next week. With companies doing their very best to take precautions to protect their staff we must give SMEs all the support and confidence they need.
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