8 January 2009

Recession, credit crunch, deflation - all words at the top of most people consciousness. The news is full of alarming statistics about redundancies, 27,000 people now out of work because of the closing of Woolworths 815 stores. Other well known businesses re going under daily, here is a list of just a few who have gone under in 2008/9: Viyella, Wedgwood, Wickes Furniture, Whittard of Chelsea, MFI, Adams Children’s wear, Amtrak Express Parcels, Morgan clothing brand, too many airlines and banks to mention and of course Northern Rock, little did we know this was just the tip of the ice-burg!

So a difficult times ahead, but not necessarily a bad time. During the 1970’s England suffered a terrible economic downturn. The 3 day week was introduced to save electricity, a need brought about by the coal miner’s strike, causing a downturn for business generally. It was during this time that Microsoft and Apple started trading.

For those who are or expecting to be unemployed now is the time to be creative because not many companies will be looking for new recruits at the moment. Look at what you have to offer, resurrect that business idea you have been nursing all these years, instead of fretting about your circumstances start working on a plan, a business plan.

There are many good reasons why starting a new business in a recession could be a good time especially for internet and i.t. based companies. Starting a business in difficult times brings out qualities like creativity, problem-solving, perseverance and energy, all things which are good for a new business, and will set you up for success in the long term. Of course the success of any venture will depend on you.

You will need to take a good hard look at your business idea, do your homework, research who, where and how your competition work.

Is there a demand for what you are offering, now in a time of recession when everyone is holding back and in the future when we come out the other side and things are looking rosier?

Do you have enough resources to get your idea off the ground without looking for loans from the bank? Starting a business in a recession is great because will probably spend as little as possible, the cheaper your company is to operate the less likely it is to fail.

There are other good reasons for starting a new business:

Being your own boss is one of them, being able to make decisions and do things your way is one of the best reasons.

You will be working in an area you are particularly interested in, you could be turning your passion into your career.

The work is likely to be very varied. You will find yourself on a steep learning curve getting to grips with the details of running a business, with many different hats to wear; director, accountant, graphic designer (that’s where we come in), receptionist, sales rep, cleaner, maintenance, tea lady to name but a few.

It can be very profitable, although the beginning can be difficult if work hard and you get it right the profit is yours not someone else’s.

If you are running your new business from home, or a shed in the garden, just think of all the money you will save on commuting.

Of course one of the most important aspects of starting your new business is choosing a new name, making the right decision on this is one of the keys to success, it represents you in everything you do. Once you have chosen your name, make sure it is not being used by anyone else. The next step will be to commission a logo design and the best place for that is LogoPro, over the last 7 years we have made it our business to specialise in logo design and our logo designers are the best in the business. The advantage of coming to LogoPro is the quality of work we provide at a fraction of the cost of conventional design agencies and other online logo design companies. We achieve this by cutting out unnecessary meeting and phone calls to concentrate on the important part of the job, the design work.

There are many examples of our work on our website, and testimonials from happy clients both on the home page and the testimonials page. If you are starting up your new business and are unsure about any aspect our service, do contact us via our website or the blog, or telephone our freephone number 0800 170 1060, we would be pleased to advise you.