Business Start Ups

Choosing to start up a new business is one of the most important decisions you will take in your life. Your future income, your aspirations and your ultimate future wealth creation will all depend on a successful start. With that in mind, you’ll want to take the time to ensure you get everything right from the beginning.

When you start up your business, you have a number of structures to choose from and it can be a daunting prospect to try and choose the right one. At Alliotts we can help you choose the right company structure. Each has its own tax characteristics as well as legal formation hurdles to overcome, so you need to understand the differences before choosing one. We’ll help you make the right decision for your business, and get you started on a secure footing.

If you decide to form a company, the question then arises of how it will be financed. Will it be seed capital from yourself, or an investment from the bank, family, friends or outside investors? If you are looking for third party investment then there are several ways to make it tax advantageous for the investor, and Alliotts can advise you on these. Common methods include the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS)and Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS). These offer a range of tax reliefs to investors who buy shares in your new company. However, it’s worth getting advice on these schemes beforehand, which is where Alliotts can help. We are experts in obtaining the requisite approvals for such schemes, making the whole process considerably easier and less stressful for you and for your potential investors.

You also have the option of taking a government-backed loan that is designed for start-ups. Again, Alliotts can help guide you through the process of starting your company, ensuring you make the right choices for you and your business.

You may be looking to lock in a management team from day one. We can advise on Enterprise Management Incentive (EMI) schemes to help you secure the future service of your key staff. These schemes offer tax advantaged share options to employees of the business, which can be another complicated process. However, with the expertise of the Alliotts staff behind you, the start-up can easily accommodate these schemes and make them work for you and your business.

Alliotts can also help you with the more basic things too – such as opening a bank account for the start-up and registering for VAT and PAYE taxes. We have a range of services that are all designed to make the day to day business operations run that much more smoothly.

• Our payroll bureau service and outsourced bookkeeping service can handle your payroll and bookkeeping in those important early years when you need to be focusing on your business and not spending time on routine administrative tasks.
• Our HR service can help you produce employment contracts and staff handbooks so that your business complies with the wealth of employee relation rules that exist. We take the worry out of dealing with HR issues.
• Our management accounts service can help you monitor your key performance indicators (KPIs) so that you can keep your business on track and know where you are with everything at any given point.
• Our corporate finance team can help you with cash flow projections. You are in business to make a profit, so our business tax teams will be with you every step of the way to minimise your tax bill and maximise your income.

My firm required expansion into the UK and I am so grateful to have been introduced to Alliotts. I am especially impressed with our primary contact there, Dipali Buch, for the incredible service! Our expansion into the UK was the first international office for our US based company. Dipali and her team have been professional, prompt, and thorough throughout the entire process. They offered detailed information at the onset, so we would understand each step in the process. The team have kept us informed and they've done more than their fair share in completing the work. Typically when working with vendors, I'm asked to do a lot of things to support the process, and am usually happy to do so. It has been a pleasant break in work for us to coordinate with Alliotts, though, because they do just about all of the work for us! There are items I've expected to handle that they've done on my behalf. Additionally, when our firm had requirements in other European countries, Dipali was able to provide quick introductions to the appropriate affiliates in those areas. Her responses have always been prompt and convenient. I often forget that we are in different time zones! I am confident that our registrations, filings, and accounting are being handled impeccably. I have nothing but wonderful things to say about our experience working with Alliotts, and would highly recommend this firm to any company that requires accounting services, whether based in the UK or seeking expansion into the area.

Christin Johnson, BlueLine

If you are setting up a business and are looking for sound and practical business start up advice you can get in touch with our startup business specialist Chris Cairns. Chris will be on hand to help with any queries you may have and can set you on the right track from the beginning.