Beverley Budsworth – The Debt Advisor FCA regulated Debt Solution Provider

SPEAKING FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE

The sole proprietor business was sold in 2006 for £2M to a £14M turnover Aims listed PLC. Turnover increased from less than £1M to £2.3M with the help of talented teams within the PLC. Unfortunately the PLC had taken on too much debt and after 13 months I bought the business back for £750k.

There have been many challenges TDA has faced in our 22 years of trading. It takes courage to make difficult decisions that is what leadership is all about.

2021 – COMPANIES FACING FAILURE

Earlier in the year, Accountancy Daily warned that there were around 250,000 businesses at risk of closure as a result of the pandemic. This came from a survey undertaken by The Federation of Small Businesses “FSB”.

The companies that will survive will be those that have leaders with courage to make difficult decisions.  Covid forced companies to review their operations and with the benefit of furlough, CBILS and BBL loans it was possible to cut back on costs and get access to finance to fund ongoing trading.

The businesses that will survive will use their Covid plans to either completely overhaul strategy or pull together projects which targets resources to growth pockets.

A survey by McKinsey Global Institute of 860 executives found that companies in the top 25% for growth invested 2.6 times as much as those in the bottom 25% in “intangibles”. These include research, technology, software, advertising, branding and human capital.

SEEKING ADVICE

If your business is declining and you can see that no action will mean failure in due course, you will feel so much better if you seek sound and practical advice.

Apart from your own position, your employees need to be protected. The Redundancy Fund will step in to pay monies owed to all salaried staff (which could include you) for sums owed for wages, holiday pay, notice pay and redundancy (if employees have more than 2 years service) but only if the company enters a formal insolvency process.  If you carry on trading, deplete your assets and then find even formal insolvency is not an option, you will have let down your team.

There are a range of possible solutions which are detailed at The Business Debt Advisor. The options depend on whether your business operates as a sole trader, partnership or limited company.

It’s vital that you feel comfortable speaking to someone who will ensure that they fully understand your businesses circumstances before making any recommendations. Certainly if any organisations requests payment for advice – avoid like the plague.

The Debt Advisor which includes The Business Debt Advisor have been advising individuals and businesses for over 21 years. Doing the Right Thing is vital for your clients and this starts with ensuring that they get “whole of market” advice on the options available to them.

The Debt Advisor Ltd which incorporates The Business Debt Advisor is authorised and regulated by The Financial Conduct Authority, number 659920. Beverley Budsworth, the MD and IP is licensed and regulated by The Insolvency Practitioners Association.