Start Your Own Business

The best start-up advice usually comes from the best-placed experts of all – those who’ve actually been there and done it. In this start-up story episode, we speak to Troy Johnson, co-founder of Sweet Dee's Jerk (Juici Jerk at the time of recording), award-winning Caribbean food brand, kitchen and meal-kit maker, which is based in Tooting, South London. Sweet Dee's Jerk also sells its delicious sauces online, as well as mouthwatering Caribbean delights from locations in London, including Selfridges, while also providing private and corporate catering services.In 2017, Troy started the business with his brother, Jarrell, inspired and influenced by their mother’s West Indian home-cooked delights. But the Johnson brothers are winning many fans with their own unique, modern take on traditional Caribbean cooking. Here Troy looks back at his start-up journey and offers some great start-up advice.Visit Start Up Donut and sign up to the Donut newsletter for more free start-up news, advice and special offers to help you save time and money. This series is brought to you thanks to the support of Dell Technologies. Our partnership with Dell means you get top products at special prices and a personalised consultation from a dedicated tech adviser who will get to know the goals of your business. Find out more by emailing the Dell for Startup UK representative at UKSTARTUP@Dell.com

Offering superior customer service is a proven way that small businesses can be more attractive to customers and lure them away from larger and more established competitors. But any commitment to offering superior customer service has to be firm and consistent throughout your business. In this episode, we speak to leading customer service expert Stephanie Edwards of Wiltshire-based Customer 1st, specialist provider of innovative self-paced online customer service programmes. She explains how you can raise your customer service game to enviable heights and attract and retain customers as a result.Visit Start Up Donut and sign up to the Donut newsletter for more free start-up news, advice and special offers to help you save time and money. This series is brought to you thanks to the support of Dell Technologies. Our partnership with Dell means you get top products at special prices and a personalised consultation from a dedicated tech adviser who will get to know the goals of your business. Find out more by emailing the Dell for Startup UK representative at UKSTARTUP@Dell.com

More than 640,000 new businesses are launched each year in the UK and the popularity of starting up continues to grow. But significantly rising costs means many people will have to try to start their own business with little or no money. In this first episode of our third series, we get top money-saving start-up tips from Lucy Cohen of Mazuma, leading provider of low-cost, subscription-based accounting services. With a relatively modest budget, aged just 23, Lucy founded Mazuma with Sophie Hughes in 2006. It’s since grown into a multi-award-winning business with almost 40 employees. If you’re strapped for cash but determined to start your own business, don’t miss this tips-packed season-opener.Visit Start Up Donut and sign up to the Donut newsletter for more free start-up news, advice and special offers to help you save time and money. This series is brought to you thanks to the support of Dell Technologies. Our partnership with Dell means you get top products at special prices and a personalised consultation from a dedicated tech adviser who will get to know the goals of your business. Find out more by emailing the Dell for Startup UK representative at UKSTARTUP@Dell.com

In the UK, small businesses are reportedly owed more than £23.4bn in unpaid invoices. That’s an eye-watering amount that creates significant cash flow problems for many business owners. Late payment remains a big problem for SMEs, with many large businesses particularly bad at paying their small-business suppliers on time. This can have disastrous consequences. Research by the Federation of Small Businesses suggests that 50,000 UK businesses a year close down as a consequence of late payment. In this episode, former small-business and consumer-affairs broadcaster and writer, Liz Barclay, who became the Small Business Commissioner in 2021, talks about political, economic and business factors that could make late payment worse in 2022 and 2023, and what small businesses can do to limit the chances that it will affect them. Liz also shares her insight on chasing overdue invoices, charging interest and what legal steps you can take should late payment become a bad debt.Visit Start Up Donut for more free information on getting paid and sign up to the Donut newsletter for weekly start-up news, advice and special offers to help you save time and money. This bonus episode of the podcast is brought to you thanks to the support of the Federation of Small Businesses.

Whether it’s via a market stall, shop, garage, restaurant, café or a range of other settings, being able to sell successfully face-to-face is key to success. It comes more naturally to some rather than others, but by adding knowledge and experience, most can get much better at it. In this episode, you can pick up some tried and tested face-to-face selling tips from sales expert Glen Williamson, who provides key dos and don’ts. Glen is the CEO of sales consultancy, Kiss the Fish Training. As a consultant sales director, sales trainer, speaker and accredited master coach, Glen works with sales professionals and SME business owners to help them to reach new heights of sales performance. With more than 30 years’ experience, Surrey-based Glen is also a Fellow of the Institute of Sales Management and is Chair of Judges at the UK Business Awards.Visit Start Up Donut for more free information on selling and sign up to the Donut newsletter for weekly start-up news, advice and special offers to help you save time and money. This series of this podcast is brought to you thanks to the support of the Federation of Small Businesses.

Potentially it can be a legal minefield with costly consequences if you get it badly wrong when recruiting and managing staff. There is a wide range of legislation with which employers must comply if they want to stay out of trouble. In this episode we speak to employment law specialist, solicitor Hannah Thomas of Markel Law. She explains how small businesses often get into legal difficulties when hiring and managing staff and provides practical advice on how to get it right. Hannah has specialised in employment law since 2009, having acted for employers and employees in contentious and non-contentious employment law matters. She has also helped employers to draft employment contracts and handbooks and continues to provide advice to businesses and HR professionals on all aspects of employment law.Visit Start Up Donut for more free information on recruiting and managing staff and sign up to the Donut newsletter for weekly start-up news, advice and special offers to help you save time and money. This series of this podcast is brought to you thanks to the support of the Federation of Small Businesses.

As well as being better for the planet, being a net-zero business can bring a range of bottom line benefits. However, according to FSB research, although most small firms are concerned about climate change, only one-in-three has a plan to help tackle it. In this episode, consultant Graham Oakley explains how his business ensures that it is net zero and sustainable, while providing practical advice to other start-ups and small businesses that want to do the same. Graham is the commercial director of multi award-winning West Midlands-based Clear Three, which works with business owners to reduce waste, pollution and misuse of natural resources to become cleaner, greener, more efficient and more profitable. Clear Three works with many customers operating in the laundry sector and among other things, the company is known for its award-winning carbon-reduction software.Visit Start Up Donut for more free information on starting a business and sign up to the Donut newsletter for weekly start-up news, advice and special offers to help you save time and money. This series of this podcast is brought to you thanks to the support of the Federation of Small Businesses.

Digital advertising can enable businesses of all sizes and ages to attract customers. Its popularity continues to grow. About £10.5bn was spent on digital advertising in the UK in the first half of 2021 – 42% higher than in H1 2019. Paid search makes up 36% of UK digital advertising spend, followed by digital display on 27%. In this episode, digital marketing expert Charlotte Sheridan explains the advantages of online advertising and runs through some key dos and don’ts. You can pick up many top tips to increase the chances that you’ll achieve a good return on investment when advertising online. Charlotte is the founder and director of The Small Biz Expert, which is a London-based full-service digital marketing agency that helps small-businesses to grow by marketing their brands, products and services online. Charlotte has helped a long list of small business clients and just one of her areas of expertise is digital advertising, whether on Google, Facebook or other platforms.Visit Start Up Donut for more free information on online advertising and sign up to the Donut newsletter for weekly start-up news, advice and special offers to help you save time and money. This series of this podcast is brought to you thanks to the support of the Federation of Small Businesses.

Some small-business owners don’t claim their full allowable expenses, which means they end up paying too much tax. Other small business claim for costs to which they’re not entitled, which can lead to problems if HMRC finds out. In this episode tax expert Mike Parkes provides a valuable introduction to claiming allowable expenses aimed at sole traders and freelancers, including those related to operating a business from your home, utility costs, travel and vehicle costs, buying tools and equipment, etc. Mike Parkes is Technical Director of Oldham-based GoSimpleTax, award-winning software that makes filing Self Assessment tax returns easier for sole traders, freelancers and others who pay Income Tax via Self Assessment. Mike has worked in the small-business and sole-trader accounting and accounting software space for almost 25 years, so he knows a thing or two about Self Assessment and allowable expenses.Visit Start Up Donut for more free information on allowable expenses and sign up to the Donut newsletter for weekly start-up news, advice and special offers to help you save time and money. This series of this podcast is brought to you thanks to the support of the Federation of Small Businesses.

Running your own small business can bring many highs and lows. It can be very stressful at times, too. In this episode, esteemed expert Sir Cary Cooper provides practical advice on dealing with stress when running a small business, while explaining the dangers to yourself and your employees if you fail to manage stress and disappointment effectively. Sir Cary Cooper is the 50th Anniversary Professor of Organizational Psychology & Health at the Alliance Manchester Business School at the University of Manchester. Sir Cary is also President of the Institute of Welfare and Chair of the National Forum for Health and Wellbeing at Work. He is co-founder of the Robertson Cooper mental health, resilience and wellbeing consultancy, and has been described as the UK media’s first-choice expert for comment on workplace issues.Visit Start Up Donut for more free information on how to manage stress and sign up to the Donut newsletter for weekly start-up news, advice and special offers to help you save time and money. This series of this podcast is brought to you thanks to the support of the Federation of Small Businesses.