SIMPLE STEPS TO GROWTH

John McGrane, Head of Commercial & Business Banking, Ulster Bank

Looking to grow your business? John McGrane has some top tips and invaluable advice to ensure you take your company to the next level

Take time out of your busy schedule to de-stress, relax, and exercise. Separate work life from your personal life. It can be hard to juggle the two but there needs to be strict time out from work to relax. Healthy life is a healthy business unpaid invoices – often up to 90% of their value.

Seek Advice

If you aren’t already working with your bank and accountant, you should make an appointment. Good financial advisors have experience of advising many entrepreneurs on growing their business. They can act as a good sounding board for any ideas you have and also provide you with invaluable information on factors to consider such as protecting yourself against foreign exchange fluctuations. If you aren’t involved in a professional or trade organisation, your financial advisors can also help put you in touch with other people who have been in similar situations.

Network To The Top

Learning from peers can provide you with insights to the different markets you might be considering and the challenges you will face in the next stage of your business. Some of the best ways to access this knowledge is to join bodies such as the Small Firms Association, the Chambers of Commerce, or other associations relevant to your business. There are many associations whose job it is to help indigenous companies grow, and that includes those who are considering exporting. It is estimated there are around 110 business networks around the country, so make sure you join one.

Protect Against Risks

If you want to expand into the north, the UK or further a field, you need to consider the impact a changing foreign exchange rate will have on your business. The people to advise you here are the Treasury & Capital Markets department in your bank. If you are exporting goods or services, you need to be prepared for changes in the exchange rate to ensure your business doesn’t suffer. Your bank will advise you on exchange rate hedging, working with you to help evaluate and manage your risk tolerance levels and hence protect your bottom line.

Shop Around For Best Deals

If borrowing from your bank is the best way for you to fund the next stage of growth for your business, make sure you shop around for the best loan deal. This is a competitive sector in banking, so it’s worth popping into your local business branch to discuss your needs. You need to consider the loan rate on offer, the amount you can borrow and also the support that you will receive from your bank. Will they take an interest in your business or do they just want to lend you the money? It makes sense for you to work with someone who understands your business sector and your market.

Develop A Franchise

If you have a good business concept and you’d like to roll it out across the country, developing a franchise is an option. This is where you own the franchise rights but work with another entrepreneur in helping them set up a business which has the same offering as the one you’ve already been running. There’s an advantage because the service or product has already proven to work. This is an option where you need to seek advice from your accountant, legal advisor and a body like the Irish Franchise Association. There will be a cost involved in setting up another business, to be shared with the franchisee but you need to work out what the business concept is worth and then structure an agreement accordingly.

Some of Ireland’s most successful small businesses are franchises, for example O’Brien’s Sandwich Shops, Insomnia coffee houses and many other retail outlets.

Growth By Acquisition

Many service companies find that buying another business in the same or a complementary area can be a good way to secure their future. If you are considering acquiring another business, make sure you do your research properly and above all, hire an expert in this area to ensure you look closely at the business you are buying.

Get your money in place so that if you do come across an opportunity, you are ready to move. Financing an acquisition can be done through existing investors raising funds, bank loans, outside investors for example venture capital companies or a combination of the three.

Author: John McGrane, Head of Commercial & Business Banking, Ulster Bank. If you would like to talk to Ulster Bank about options for expanding your business, why not drop into one of our local branches and talk to an Enterprise Adviser or call us on 1850 213141