Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
A sole trader’s income is around a third of that of their fully employed counterparts, according to a report from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).
Three years after starting their own businesses, people who went into solo self-employment after a period of unemployment report earning nearly 30 per cent – or £500 less – per month on average. That gap has gone up from 21 per cent in 2002-2003.
ONS figures show that there are more self-employed people than there have been in the past 40 years. However, this move towards self-employment hasn’t created many businesses of scale. According to the report, one in nine workers is now a sole trader with no employees. That’s up from one in 11 in 2008.
Worryingly, more than four in ten solopreneurs were classed as being in poverty in 2018-2019 after deductions from housing costs, compared to one in ten who are in full-time employment. They’re also more likely to be ‘materially deprived’.
All of that said, self-employed people typically have a higher level of job satisfaction and wellbeing than those who are in full-time employment. It’s even true for people who became self-employed because of a lack of
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How to cope with the slow return to trade post-lockdown
by Stuart Crook • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Stuart Crook on Small Business
July 4 marked the most recent phase of coronavirus restrictions easing in the UK, which allowed for pubs, restaurants, and private events to return to trade post-lockdown. Engineering, construction, and non-essential retail had already re-opened, however many are discovering that it isn’t simply a case of “business as usual”.
The Government has offered many different forms of financial aid during the pandemic to help businesses weather the economic freeze, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and Bounce Back Loans (BBL), which have all been greatly received. However, even with businesses opening their doors to the public again, there are new rules and restrictions in place which must be followed which will impact on the bottom line of businesses and squeeze margins.
So, the challenge now isn’t so much restarting operations, but finding a way to do so profitably.
>See also: A quarter of entrepreneurs don’t use social media for their small business
Demand for sales
The Government was praised for its £330bn war chest at the beginning of lockdown to help businesses survive and protect the nation from mass unemployment. The idea was that it would protect the economy and ensure
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Sunak decides whether to subsidise small businesses hiring young people
by Timothy Adler • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, is deciding whether to subsidise small businesses giving young people aged below 25 full-time jobs.
Such a scheme, which could be announced next week when the chancellor unveils his plans to get the UK economy moving again, would be similar to the future jobs fund which ran between 2009 and 2010.
The commitment to subsidise young people working for small businesses would be part of an “opportunity guarantee” to ensure that every young person has a chance of an apprenticeship or an in-work placement.
>See also: How to reopen your restaurant, pub or hotel post-lockdown
Young people aged below 25 are the most vulnerable when it comes to the jobs market post pandemic, with the Bank of England estimating 9 per cent unemployment as the country struggles back onto its feet. According to a Be the Business survey published this week, businesses expect to lay off 11 per cent of already furloughed workers, while a quarter have already had to make redundancies.
Although the future jobs fund cost the Treasury £720m when it ran in 2009-10, the Exchequer recouped half its cost through taxes. Yet then prime minister David Cameron axed the scheme, saying
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Sunak decides whether to subsidise small businesses hiring young people
by Timothy Adler • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, is deciding whether to subsidise small businesses giving young people aged below 25 full-time jobs.
Such a scheme, which could be announced next week when the chancellor unveils his plans to get the UK economy moving again, would be similar to the future jobs fund which ran between 2009 and 2010.
The commitment to subsidise young people working for small businesses would be part of an “opportunity guarantee” to ensure that every young person has a chance of an apprenticeship or an in-work placement.
>See also: How to reopen your restaurant, pub or hotel post-lockdown
Young people aged below 25 are the most vulnerable when it comes to the jobs market post pandemic, with the Bank of England estimating 9 per cent unemployment as the country struggles back onto its feet. According to a Be the Business survey published this week, businesses expect to lay off 11 per cent of already furloughed workers, while a quarter have already had to make redundancies.
Although the future jobs fund cost the Treasury £720m when it ran in 2009-10, the Exchequer recouped half its cost through taxes. Yet then prime minister David Cameron axed the scheme, saying
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Pay us within one month if you take COVID-19 cash, say small businesses
by Anna Jordan • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) wants policymakers to ensure that large firms who receive Government COVID-19 financial help pay their small firm suppliers within one month.
As part of its current calls, the FSB wants to make any big corporation that receives state or Bank of England-backed finance to sign a supplier charter committing to this payment term.
It also wants it to work with the BoE to shore up supply chain finance and ensure said finance is used to pay small businesses swiftly.
The latest data from pay.uk shows that the latest sum of late payment due across the country rose 80 per cent to £23.4bn at the end of 2019.
Almost two thirds of small businesses (62 per cent) have been subject to late or frozen payments during the pandemic.
FSB’s new report, ‘Late Again: how the coronavirus pandemic is impacting payment terms for small firms’, reveals that only one in ten small business have agreed changes to payment terms with clients. That means that most of the recent examples of poor payment practices have not been formally signed off by creditors or debtors.
Despite efforts by the Government to improve procurement practices since the fall
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4 lessons from Germany on how British SMEs can thrive post lockdown
by Sam Rucker • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Sam Rucker on Small Business
As lockdown eases, changes in how we do business have only just begun. One country that might be able to provide valuable insight for SMEs is Germany. Having begun lockdown easing back in April, it is already dealing with the next economic phase that small businesses in the UK will have to adapt to.
Our recent study involving SMEs in Germany reveals what Britain’s economic future might look like, and some best practices for how small UK businesses can face it head on.
Here are 4 lessons from Germany on how British SMEs can thrive post lockdown:
Re-imagine customer journeys to capture support
One silver lining to this dark cloud is the community support SMEs are currently experiencing: Pinterest, for example, recorded an increase of 351 per cent in support of small businesses.
To capitalise on that support, German respondents to the June Vimcar survey recommended ways to remodel customer journeys:
– Use social media
With people craving social interaction more than ever, social media usage has seen a 40 per cent increase. As a result, many German SMEs are feeding into #supportyourlocals and #nowopen threads.
UK businesses can also take advantage of this social media uplift and use the free
Hot Business News Today
Pay us within one month if you take COVID-19 cash, say small businesses
by Anna Jordan • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) wants policymakers to ensure that large firms who receive Government COVID-19 financial help pay their small firm suppliers within one month.
As part of its current calls, the FSB wants to make any big corporation that receives state or Bank of England-backed finance to sign a supplier charter committing to this payment term.
It also wants it to work with the BoE to shore up supply chain finance and ensure said finance is used to pay small businesses swiftly.
The latest data from pay.uk shows that the latest sum of late payment due across the country rose 80 per cent to £23.4bn at the end of 2019.
Almost two thirds of small businesses (62 per cent) have been subject to late or frozen payments during the pandemic.
FSB’s new report, ‘Late Again: how the coronavirus pandemic is impacting payment terms for small firms’, reveals that only one in ten small business have agreed changes to payment terms with clients. That means that most of the recent examples of poor payment practices have not been formally signed off by creditors or debtors.
Despite efforts by the Government to improve procurement practices since the fall
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How to reopen your small business post lockdown – what we know so far
by Timothy Adler • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
UPDATED: Boris Johnson has announced the gradual unlocking of small businesses across England, as the UK emerges from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Shops reopened on June 15
Pubs, hotels and restaurants will reopen on July 4
New guidance published on June 24 details how hairdressers, hotels, pubs and other small businesses in England can reopen safely from July 4.
However, other businesses including nightclubs, casinos, indoor play areas, nail bars and beauty salons and gyms will remain shut for the time being.
Announcing the changes on Tuesday, Mr Johnson said the following venues will be able to reopen from 4 July:
Pubs, bars and restaurants but only with a table service indoors, and owners will be asked to keep contact details of customers to help with contact tracing
Hotels, holiday apartments, campsites and caravan parks but shared facilities must be cleaned properly
Theatres and music halls but they will not be allowed to hold live performances
Hair salons and barbers will be able to reopen but must have protective measures, such as visors, in place
Cinemas, museums and galleries
Funfairs, theme parks, adventure parks, amusement arcades, outdoor skating rinks and model villages
Attractions with animals, such as at zoos, aquariums, farms, safari parks and wildlife centres
The
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Slash national insurance to keep small businesses hiring, says Sajid Javid
by Timothy Adler • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
Sajid Javid, the ex-chancellor, has thrown down the gauntlet for the Government to increase the national insurance employment allowance to £20,000 for small businesses.
Mr Javid has called for national insurance to be given a “significant temporary” reduction to make it cheaper for small businesses to take on staff.
>See also: How to reopen your restaurant, pub or hotel post-lockdown
“If we want to support and stimulate employment, then axiomatically the best option is to cut the payroll tax — employer’s national insurance,” Mr Javid said.
“Tax employment less, and all other things being equal you will end up with more of it.”
Many fear a coming tsunami of unemployment as small businesses are weaned off the Coronarius Job Retention Scheme, with the Bank of England warning of 10 per cent unemployment as Britain emerges post lockdown.
The proposal to lift the Employment Allowance ceiling is just one of scores of proposals in a paper he has written for centre-right thinktank the Centre for Policy Studies, setting out measures to boost the post-Covid economy.
>See also: How to deal with a furloughed employee who refuses to return to work
The former cabinet minister, who resigned from the Treasury in February, said
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Scottish report calls for Government to take stakes in SMEs
by Anna Jordan • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
A new report is asking the Scottish Government to take stakes in struggling firms, including SMEs.
The document, created by the Advisory Group on Economic Recovery, makes 25 recommendations based on the thoughts and opinions of hundreds of businesses.
One of the most significant is that the government must support guaranteed employment for young people, securing two years of work at the real living wage.
Other suggestions include a ‘significant increase’ in infrastructure investment, especially in digital technologies, along with targeted measures to help the tourism and hospitality industries.
SME focused recommendations highlight sector-specific banking products for small businesses and ‘differentiated solutions’ such as re-start loans, repayment plans and new deals.
The enquiry was run by Benny Higgins, the former chief executive of Tesco. Higgins suggests that Scotland will need £6bn to revive the economy – the current limit going through the fiscal framework is £450m. Investment will need to be at least 4 per cent of financial output to be effective.
Figures show that Scotland’s GDP is down 2.5 per cent in first three months of 2020 and fell by 18.9 per cent in April.
Benny Higgins said:
“Scotland faces an economic challenge of monumental scale. If we do not