New research by APS financial, the most proven digital UK challenger to banks, reveals what’s stopping UK mums from starting their own business.
With nearly half of UK mums saying they admire entrepreneurial businesswomen like Michelle Mone, Karren Brady and Liz Earle, the study unveils the barriers Mumpreneurs believe are stopping them from becoming the next ‘Baroness Bra’.
Of the UK mums polled by APS financial, the top three reasons for not starting a business were:
- It seemed like too big of a risk (47%)
- Not knowing how to get started (43%)
- The admin and financial aspects involved (35%)
Meanwhile, those who currently own a business (23%) and previously owned a business (25%) named the top challenges they faced when starting and running their own enterprise:
- Having enough time to do everything (40%)
- Managing the business while raising children (29%)
- The amount of red tape they went through as a start-up (29%)
- Finding a bank who’d support them financially (22%)
Financial services providers lacking flexibility
These Mumpreneurs also found financial service providers as being far from flexible:
- 41% said that the process of setting up a business bank account had taken longer than expected
- 38% thought it had been a ‘long and slow’ process
- 38% found the rates and fees were not transparent enough
Worryingly, more than one in ten British mumpreneurs admitted they had decided to cease trading due to lengthy admin tasks such as completing tax returns, talking to their bank, and problems with keeping track of business costs and expenses.
Perceived costs of establishing a dream business were also dramatically different from the reality, indicating education about start up fees could be far better.
While 36% of mumpreneurs who had started their own business had done so with an investment of less than £1,000, many of those who’d not gone into business thought their start-up would need an investment of £10,000 – £50,000 to get it up and running.
A business current account opened in 6 minutes
To help break down some of the barriers to starting a business, APS Financial now offers UK entrepreneurs, sole traders and small businesses the chance to get their digital, current accounts up and running within 6 minutes of starting their application.
This is in stark contrast to research commissioned by APS Financial previously, which revealed that over 15% of UK small businesses had to wait more than 26 days before they were granted access to their business bank account.
Fastest way to open a UK business account
APS financial prides itself on providing one of the fastest, easiest platforms to set up a business account in the UK and has helped nearly 80,000 start-ups and small businesses, including nearly a quarter of female entrepreneurs.
Business owners are given a personalised account number and sort code in the time it takes to change a nappy, helping them to get up and running faster.
You can find out more about APS’ business current account here, or to open an account (without a credit check) in 6 minutes, here.
More help on starting up
ByteStart is packed with help and advice on how to start your own business and deal with the thorny subjects of tax, accounting and finance. Try some of our most popular guides;
Starting Up
- 5 things you must do when you go self employed
- 10 advantages running your business as a limited company has over being a sole trader
- How to set up a limited company
- Top 10 business planning tips for start-ups
- Which types of insurance must your business have?
Leading a business
- How to be a leader rather than a manager
- Why the best leaders do less
- The Founder’s dilemma – Managing the transformation from start-up to growth business
- Building your resilience to help you cope with the ups and downs of starting and running your own business
- How to create your own support team and increase your startup’s chance of success
Accounting
- How to choose the best online accounting software for your business
- 15 Questions to ask when hiring an accountant for your small business
- Guide to Bookkeeping for new business owners
- Staying on top of your company accounts – Book-keeping Dos and Don’ts
- Book-keeping basics every new business owner must know
Finding funding
- What to do when the bank says “NO”!
- A Guide to ‘Alternative Finance’ – the new funding options for startups and small businesses
- What exactly are invoice finance and factoring, and what benefits can they bring to my business?
- How peer-to-peer lending offers start-ups and small businesses a new funding option
- Finding finance for your new business – funding advice for start-ups
Paying less tax
- 10 ways small business owners can pay less tax
- Corporation Tax – How to reduce your bill
- Capital Allowances – A review of the various schemes available for businesses to cut their tax bill
- Using Research & Development tax relief to reduce your corporation tax bill, or claim a tax refund from HMRC.
- How setting up a salary sacrifice scheme can reward staff and mean lower tax bills for employers and employees
Improving cashflow
- The way to get paid – 12-Step Action Plan to stop customers from paying you late
- 8 signs that a small business may be approaching insolvency
- ByteStart’s Guide to insolvency, liquidation and bankruptcy for business owners
- Improve your cash flow – 7 ways to make sure your business gets paid on time, every time
- 10 late payment excuses used by customers – and how to deal with them
Tax guides
- ByteStart’s Guide to the main business taxes
- Dividend tax changes from April 2016 – A summary of the financial effects for small business owners
- Tax rates, thresholds & allowances for small business owners 2015/2016
- How are limited company dividends taxed?
- 10 common Self-Assessment Tax Return mistakes and how to avoid them
