Name: Edwin Bailey
Age: 32
Business: Piribo Ltd (www.piribo.com)
Type of business: Web-based supplier of business information products
Start date: January 2004
Tell us about your business
Piribo is the source for business information products concerning the biotech and pharmaceutical industries. Much like an online bookshop we represent publishers of niche reports and books and target a business and corporate audience through the website and targeted marketing. In many cases we hold a copy of the study on our web servers so paying customers can access it instantly in PDF format.
When did you first decide you wanting start your own business?
I have always wanted to run my own business. I started Urch Publishing Ltd about 3 years ago which has been fairly successful. Before that I worked in major London-based trade publishing companies.
Was it your first business idea and what was your inspiration?
I have had loads of business ideas, but I took the advice; ‘do something you know about’
Once you’d decided to start a business, what steps did you take first?
There is a massive gap between dreaming up the idea in the bath or after a few pints, so the best place to start is by writing a business plan. This helped put my thoughts in order and led me to properly identify the major challenges involved in setting up.
What research did you do?
I knew the market well as I was already working in it.
What advice did you seek?
In the past I have had meetings with Business Links and a number of other government-backed bodies. As a rule I have found them no help at all as they mainly offer very simple advice – which is probably more useful for somebody who has absolutely no experience of business. I also have found that straightforward business to business companies are exempt from many government services as they do not meet “social” criteria.
Do you think the government needs to provide more help to people trying to start a business?
The best thing the government should do is offer start-ups subsidised desk / office space – this could be easily run in conjunction with the private sector and the banks and would be ideal for digital companies.
Talk us through the process of writing your business plan
I read a couple of books and downloaded some examples from the internet. I had help from an accountant friend with putting the financials into a spreadsheet. I sent the business plan to friends and family prior for feedback and to spot those typos. I also paid my accountant to look through it which was very useful as they can see inconstancies in the financials.
How useful has your business plan been and do you think you’ll stick to it as your business begins to grow?
I try to refer to the plan, in particular the budgets, to see how we are doing. This can provide some kind of benchmark. The plan is not set in stone, but it was well thought out so it is useful to remind oneself what ideas you originally had.
How are you funding your running costs until the business takes off?
Costs have been kept very low by using the existing infrastructure of my other business.
Have you made any provisions for business not being as prosperous as expected? Please explain them
Yes, by keeping the costs low and by working in partnership with similarly minded people I have reduced the financial risk considerably. This means we can invest when sales revenue comes in.
