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Setting up self storage business in South East London.

I
I’m into buy to let property investment. With the present interest rate hikes, the business is like walking on a tight rope. A friend has recently given me the idea of diversifying into container self-storage. I have decided to explore this route and I am looking for resources and information about how to setup this business correctly, which seems to be scarce on the internet, I may be wrong. Are there any courses/mentorship available? I couldn’t even find anything on YouTube produced by people based in Uk except for those based in USA. Grateful for your support in my research!
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Can All Of The New AI Influencers And Virtual Idols Be Copyrighted By Their Developers?

H
Hi there. I am currently excited about my recent domain I purchased at auction and I want to get into the whole virtual influencers and ai idols market that is coming from Japan and South Korea where k pop and vitrual influencers are very big business. My question comes from watching many many AI music compositions that are done in the style of the Beatles or the Stones and I wondered whether these bands and their owners have any right to complain that the ai virtual technology is copying their sound. Can they possibly sue and go to court claiming it is too much like them in the sound and lyrics or is that simply impossible? I want to include many of these ai songs and other stuff and don't want to spend the next year or so building my website only to find lawyers telling me to take it down or else.
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Oh dear - critical website issue - one or more modules are missing

Onthebrightside
Having worked totally find I went into my wordpress site today to be advised it has a critical error. I don't own the website but I can update it.

There's a X beside : The required module gd, is not installed, or has been disabled.

Regretfully I don't even know what that means and a quick scan of the internet/youtube turned up nothing. Can anyone please advise whey that's suddenly and issue or what needs to be done about it. I don't think it can be something I did as I haven't been into the website in an age and it was working when I left it. I put a message out to the website builder but she's not been in contact for ages and hasn't responded. Of course we can stop paying her for the use of the website but it doesn't help us much right now :-(

Any advice kindly given would be much appreciated such as - what does it mean, what does it want :)

Regards,
Trish
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App testing problems

S
I have written an app in my spare time aimed at people who run rounds selling sandwiches out of a van. When I first developed the app, I had a local business who was willing to use and test the app for me. Since then, she has retired, and the person who took over has not responded to me. I have also sent out countless emails to businesses outlining the app, and asking if they would be willing to help. The app is designed to let people know when they are around - and also possibly attract more customers. Obviously, testers of the app would be able to use it for free in perpetuity.

Does anyone have any experience of finding people to help test/try a website/app, and do they have any advice or pointers to where I might find someone, or other advice to help?!
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Getting the message out there

M
Hi all, I've just released a product called IdentityHealthCheck which is subscription based at very reasonable rates, its currently on sale with founders discount at 50% off and its currently priced at £250 - £2500 dependant user numbers anybody taking this offer will have the price fixed at founders rate for upto 10 continuous years.

IdentityHealthCheck isn't your standard Identity product. It has 46 patents pending and it should make lif much easier for the C-Suite

Check us out at identityfirst.net. How would you all attempt to get this message out quickly to SME's ?
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Starting and scaling a candy/sweet brand

C
I have a couple of years of experience selling themed candy in the US under my own brand. I found a niche and expanded into it, and so far it has gone well. My main channel there is Amazon. I want to bring that concept to the UK, creating a new candy brand. Based on my research, Amazon is not the right place in the UK for selling food and making money from it.
I have solid branding, suppliers, etc. My plan is to set up a tiktok shop and launch new products there, posting some content myself and then using affiliates to push sales. Once I have proof of sales I want to take that to small shops/distributors, and slowly scale from there. I also want to try and get my sports/football themed sweets into the stadium concession stand space.
Based on my research, retailers will want an approximately 50% gross margin before VAT, whilst distributors will want 25 - 35%. Is that correct? What kind of introductory offers/launch incentives should I offer them to make it a no-brainer to stock my product?
Is this plan at all realistic?
Thanks for any and all advice.
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Vat registration question

C
Hi All. We have recently registered for v.a.t. We import goods from china which we have always paid v.a.t on . We were registered beginning of December. Are we able to claim vat paid , prior to registration , as we still have quite a lot of stock which was purchased prior to registration . Sorry if it’s a stupid question but i have to ask for peace of mind!
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Company Registration

J
Hi
I’m a start up setting up a Ltd company,
We are currently negotiating a lease on a commercial property and our solicitor requires the company details before we instruct him.
As the property lease has not yet been finalised I won’t be able to use this as the registered business address so as an interim measure is it best to use my home address with a view to changing it on companies at a later date/once the lease is agreed
Many thanks in advance
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Do you need terms and conditions for your business (companies, sole traders, freelancers and partnerships)?

legaleagle21
I've just launched Termsmith — a tool that generates tailored English law contracts for freelancers, sole traders and small businesses for £1.99 (launch price). It's brand new and I'm looking for early users willing to give honest feedback on output quality. No catch — genuinely want to know if it's good enough to rely on. Thank you!
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Recommendations for low volume but scalable fulfillment in the UK?

Aurok
Hi everyone, I'm new here. I am in the process of setting up a niche business selling graphite composite musical instrument parts. We are very low volume at the moment and shipping straight to individual customers from China. When the website has been launched, I would like to ship speculatively to a warehouse in the UK and then on to UK customers to make the ordering experience more convenient. It would be good to have a solution that can scale with the business once I start exploring B2B potential. My wife has been selling on Ebay for about 15 years but the fulfillment solution she uses isn't going to work for my products unfortunately.

If any of you have recommendations for low volume but scalable fulfillment solutions, I'd welcome your feedback.
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1 man band Ltd director - I was not trading in 2025/26 and want to make the company dormant - how to approach the final steps?

U
Hi Everyone,

I had been a one- man band Ltd company director for years but decided to stop trading and try my luck with something else. Because I took a year off and was not sure how things would work out, I left my PAYE scheme open for the current tax year (2025/26). However, now I know that I most likely won't be working as Ltd anymore, so I have already ceased the PAYE scheme earlier this year and submitted everything to HMRC via the Basic PAYE Tool I have always used .

Now I have got a little problem with my company tax return filing that I always submitted via their webpage. I was not trading in 2025/26, so it will be a simple £0 filing, but unfortunately, I am not allowed to submit the return now, as I am getting an error saying that I need to wait until the 31st of March. The problem is that on the 31st of March, they are going to close the webpage filing, and from what they say, I will have to use some commercial software.

Is there any workaround, such as a paper copy filing , or an option to change the date to before the 31st (I can't see it anywhere), to avoid all the hassle with setting up everything using a commercial software when all I want is to submit that final tax return and close that topic?

If I leave the company dormant, I know I will still have to submit the confirmation statement every year, but do I still have to submit the company tax return too? If so, would the only way to avoid that be to remove the company from their register?

Cheers
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  • Solved
Query regarding a Alibaba logistics agent

K
Hello, I hope someone can advise me on a query regarding shipping.

I recently started e-commerce, and I am considering placing an order with an Alibaba supplier and using a logistics agent (whom I also found on Alibaba). The supplier will send the goods to the agent, who will then transport them to my door under DDP incoterms.

I don't currently have an EORI number, so I asked the logistics agent if they would use theirs. They informed me that an EORI is not needed for ordinary goods and is only required for special goods. My understanding is that it is needed regardless, but I may be wrong. The agent then assured me that it is not an issue, as they frequently handle CN-UK DDP shipments, and if there is any problem, the logistics agency would resolve it since the shipment falls under DDP incoterms.

My question is: does this sound reasonable, or should I look for an agent who specifically mentions that they have an EORI number they can use for bringing the goods into the UK?

Thanks in advance.
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Sole trader invoicing

M
If you are a sole trader and not VAT registered, Is it a legal requirement to provide each customer an invoice for your service?
Or can you simply keep records of the sale/service by your bank account statement and maybe a receipt? I am thinking of times when it is not feasible, for example, a one off payment from a customer who wishes to pay straight away after your service.

Thanks.
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IP licensing in a multi-company setup

O
Hi all, I’m working with a UK client who’s building a structure of several Ltd companies (consulting, SaaS, and a community style business). We’re setting up a separate IP company to hold intangible assets such as brand/logo, course content, frameworks/methodology, templates, know-how, client lists, etc.) . The plan is for the operating companies to license what they need.

The commercial driver here is exit optionality: the client previously had a situation where they couldn’t sell one business cleanly because IP/rights were entangled across entities, so we’re trying to avoid that from day one. Royalties would be modest and we’d document the rationale behind them.

My main question is around future IP evolution: if the operating companies develop/improve content/processes over time, what’s the best-practice legal approach to ensure the IP company remains the owner of improvements/derivative works while still reflecting commercial reality?

If anyone has views on the overall logic (or pitfalls you’ve seen in practice), I’d appreciate your input. Also, I’m looking for recommendations for a UK commercial/IP solicitor who can do a paid consultation and draft/review the IP assignment + licence agreements (including “improvements/derivatives” wording and buyer-friendly transfer/step-in clauses).

Thanks in advance.
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Couriers/Shipping of Long Items in the UK - Diabolical Service - need recommendations

V
Hi we currently us DX Freight as they are the ONLY company i can find who will ship our items. We sell long items that are light, but awkward. Max dimensions are 6000mm x 150mm x 150mm 25kg. They are packaged in solid cardboard tube. DX Freight have lost 3 of these this week alone and refusing to pay compensation as the parecls were going to a private address. I have scoured online trying to find any other companies but no luck. This is going to bankrupt us, they simply do not care.
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UK structuring of overseas rental property funded from trading company

Margarita
Hello,
Client has retained profits in a UK trading company and intends to use approximately £250,000 to fund renovation of an overseas residential property that will be let.
I am reviewing the UK tax implications only and considering the most appropriate structure, including:

  • Extraction via dividends and personal ownership
  • Establishing a separate UK Property SPV
  • Funding through an existing trading company
  • Use of shareholder loan vs share capital

I would welcome practical insights on:
  • Corporation tax treatment of overseas rental income
  • Impact on trading status where property activity is introduced
  • Any common structuring considerations or risks under UK tax law
Many thanks.
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How do I automate internal linking?

ayaan rahman
A Webflow site with 11000+ content. Need to interlink all those. It will drive me nuts if i try to do this tracking in google sheet.

On my Shopify and Wordpress sites I use Linkboss. It handles it perfectly. Fast & the suggestions are good. Ditched the previous tool I was using after finding Linkboss. But they natively don't support Webflow sites.

So I need something at least half decent to save my sanity.
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