Starting a small business during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Starting outside of the UK in late 2019, the Coronavirus (COVID-19) quickly became a global pandemic. The pandemic caused social distancing, self isolation, business shut down and worldwide issues.

In the UK, millions were out of jobs due to social distancing and emergency measures to stop the spread of the virus, causing thousands of businesses to be shut down, for people to be out of jobs and the economy to fall into a tailspin.

That being said, starting a small business during the COVID-19 pandemic shouldn’t be something to rule out.

Starting a small business during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Boy oh boy why would anyone want to start a small business in the UK during these tough times, you ask?

Well, as much as there are many negatives:

– Emergency measures remain in place
– Everything is still closed
– The British Pound is falling
– Borders are pretty much closed

…there are also many positives:

Those who are still active are profitable!

The certain businesses that are affected due to the mandatory closure are thinking outside the box to find new ways to make money.

• Accountants and lawyers are offering their services via web and phone.
• Restaurants are using delivery and take out options more and more.
• Cleaning companies are sending in one person to do the work instead of a team.
• Clothing retailers are selling online.

There are a number of options. While many businesses are still struggling, it is due to the shut-down and not to the effectiveness of the business.

This is something to consider and plan for.

Should you start a new business now?

UK Startups works with thousands of businesses each month and during this pandemic, these numbers are only increasing.

This tells us something good for the future of the UK and its economy.

More and more people are considering starting their businesses now due to losing jobs and income – they want to be their own boss and plan for the future on their own. In other words, they no longer want to rely on someone else to pay their bills as an employee. Moving forward, they want to be in control of how they handle adversity as a business owner instead of as an employee.

At the same time, existing business owners are taking their time now to improve their business – so that when it is time to re-open, they can prosper.

So should you start your business now?

Absolutely. 

Starting a business doesn’t mean going out and launching it right now mid-pandemic. It means preparing your business plan, working out the details, finding the funding you need and planning for better days to come.

This way, you are ready to jumpstart when the time comes.

The UK Government

The UK government has supported its citizens through this time quite well.  

They have implemented several new funding programmes (loans, grants, rebates and more) to help SME’s survive some of the losses associated with COVID-19.

In addition to that, the many small businesses with employees and wages to pay can also benefit from the 80% wage subsidy scheme.

With that in mind, the UK economy after the pandemic will have to rebound.

To do that, small businesses across the UK will help the economy grow – that means good things for you starting or expanding your business.

All that means is that there will be more and more government funding available. This includes government grant schemes, government loan programmes and tax break or tax credit rebates.

Now is the time to take advantage of social distancing and this extra time at home to develop your business plan. This is the first thing you will need to ensure you can apply for funding programmes as they become available.

In addition to the hundreds of existing funding programmes available through the UK government now, we will see new programs become available left, right and centre to help boost the economy back to normal.

This is your time to start your small business in the UK – or at the very least prepare for it.

What are you going to do about it?