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Your EnterQuest Bulletin - Issue 216
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| Thought for the week: "Designing your product for monetisation first and people second will probably leave you with neither." Tara Hunt |
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In this week's issue:
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Innovative mother whose business was started through need
Successful small enterprises are often born out of need, as was the case with one of the original 'mumpreneurs', Mandy Haberman.
Mandy invented a feeder for children with suckling difficulties when her daughter was born with a congenital condition which made it hard for her to feed. None of the big companies were initially interested in Mandy's product, so she decided to go it alone. The first prototypes of the 'Haberman Feeder' were produced in 1984.
Mandy said: "I went into it because of necessity and circumstances. I had to find a way to feed her.
"I felt very strongly that I needed to get it out into the market. It wasn't a question of 'will it sell?' I had a lot of determination because I felt that the product needed to be there."
In 1990, she began producing the spill-proof 'Anywayup Cup' after she saw a friend's toddler drop blackcurrant juice on the carpet. She says this was "much more of a commercial product", and carried out intensive testing at nurseries. When she took the prototype to a trade fair, it attracted £10,000 in orders. Since then, the cup has won numerous accolades and has twice been recognised with the Tommy Award for most innovative product.
Many mothers start their own enterprises because they believe it will give them a better work-life balance, and allow them to spend more time with their children.
Mandy said: "I don't think that's totally unrealistic [but] I think people can be a little bit naïve.
"When you start your own business you work bloody hard. I was working every hour that I had; I was working at evenings and weekends. I was taking my baby to business meetings with me."
But she believes that mothers already have many of the skills necessary to become self employed.
She said: "You become a multi-skilled people manager. You juggle so many tasks. I think that gives women confidence.
"I think having kids is a bit of an eye opener about just what you're capable of."
And she's quick to point out one of the major benefits of being a woman who works for herself: "There is no glass ceiling."
A quick guide to the Small Firms Loan Guarantee
Getting the right kind of funding can be one of the biggest hurdles facing entrepreneurs. Securing a bank loan may be difficult if you don't have a trading history or security, or have a poor credit rating.
To address this, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) works with high street banks and specialist lenders to provide the Small Firms Loan Guarantee (SFLG), which helps early stage and start up businesses gain access to funding to help get their ideas off the ground.
The SFLG guarantees loans of between £5,000 and £250,000 over terms of between two and ten years to start ups and businesses that have been trading less than five years, and which have an annual turnover of less than £5.6 million.
You can get a loan guaranteed under the scheme if:
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You are about to start, or already run, an eligible business.
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Your proposed business activity is eligible for a loan.
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The loan will be used for an eligible purpose.
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Your lender wishes to make the loan but is unable to do so because you do not have the security they would normally accept.
All decision-making is carried out by the participating lenders. The Government, through the SFLG, provides a guarantee to the lender of 75% of the loan. In return, businesses pay a premium of 2% per year on the outstanding balance. Banks and other financial institutions apply their usual commercial lending practices, including setting interest rates and other charges.
Most business activities are included, but there are some restrictions.
A full list of approved lenders is available on the DTI website,
or see our practical factsheets on the SFLG and raising finance to start a business.
Each week we provide you with summaries of some popular or emerging business ideas in the UK and elsewhere around the world.
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Curry-making lessons from home - Curry Cuisine is a business run by Prett Tejura, who visits people in their own homes and gives them one-to-one tuition on how to make authentic Indian food. Curry Cuisine also caters at dinner parties, provides taster sessions and sells blends of spices.
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Food retail for children - Kidfresh is an American store selling food and drink for children. The emphasis is on selling wholesome, organic, nutritious food to encourage children to eat healthily. It sells everything from frozen ready meals and lunchboxes to baby food, vitamin supplements and smoothies. The store also provides children's cookery classes.
Regularly improving your vocabulary is not just about learning a new word and its meaning. It will improve your general knowledge and make you feel and act smarter in all sorts of personal and business situations.
Do you know the meaning of the word 'garrulous'?
a) Performing tasks speedily
b) Slow or cumbersome
c) Thinking deeply about an issue
d) Talkative or wordy
Answer at the end of the Bulletin.
The following topical business issues have been recently reported in the media. Did your radar pick them up?
1) Health shops are concerned about their future because of forthcoming European regulations covering the sale of what?
a) Seaweed
b) Vitamins
c) Imported peas, beans and lentils
d) Organic goods
2) What is now considered to be one of the biggest threats to computer security, according to the latest report by security company Sophos?
a) Infected webpages
b) Spyware
c) Trojan horses
d) Worms
3) The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is warning that small enterprises will face financial problems if which planned event goes ahead?
a) Postal strike
b) 2012 Olympics
c) The opening of a super-Tesco
d) The banning of drinking alcohol in public places
Answers at the end of the Bulletin.
Search for people with Pipl.com
This search engine, which is powered by Google, is specifically set up to search for people, rather than products, services or organisations. It lists a number of different categories where a person's name can be found, including news articles. The search engine can also bring up addresses and photographs where they are available.
View web traffic history with free tool
Compete.com is a tool that provides users with free information about any website on the Internet. Users enter the domain name they would like statistics for and the tool provides a 'snapshot' analysis of the website. The snapshot is useful for tracking your competitors' web traffic, and registered users can compare up to five sites at a time. A Compete.com toolbar is also available to download.
How to boost your website's performance
Small business owners are being offered some useful tips to improve their website and make it more appealing to customers. The Freelance UK website has ten handy tips for helping to attract and retain customers, including guidance on navigation, design, layout and copy.
Filing tax online could earn you £150
Employers with fewer than 50 employees who filed their 2006-07 Employer Annual Return online will receive a £150 tax-free payment from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). HMRC says anyone who had fewer than 50 members of staff before 30 October 2005 is eligible for the payment and it will inform business owners when the payment has been made. See the HMRC website for more information.
This book contains invaluable information if you're travelling to Europe on business. It includes information to help you through business meetings across Europe, with hints and tips, cultural IQ tests, a 'know before you go' section, and alerts on international security issues. Check out:
Just one word answer
The answer is d).
Garrulous means talkative or wordy.
The corner shop owner was known for being garrulous with his regular customers. |
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Good luck
The EnterQuest Team
This information is meant as a starting point only. Whilst all reasonable efforts have been made, the publisher makes no warranties that the information is accurate and up-to-date and will not be responsible for any errors or omissions in the information nor any consequences of any errors or omissions. Professional advice should be sought where appropriate. |
