Recent content by MisterMusty

  1. M

    Right classes for a Community Mark?

    I just applied for a CTM (Community Trademark) online and am not sure whether the classes I applied for were the best choice after my lawyer (not an IP specialist) suggested alternatives. The business is a social network that integrates social shopping function. It will be used, among other...
  2. M

    Pub kitchen contracts query

    Hi, I'm looking into the idea of setting up a kitchen in a local pub to sell Indian food to its tenants and would love to hear from anyone who has any relevant experience. I'm interested in the terms that are typically agreed between pub owner and caterer (I'm assuming that all brewer...
  3. M

    Best (accounting) practice for a pre-launch trial

    Thanks StevensOnIn1, With the food I plan to produce being zero rated rather than exempt, that's good news. So I would be allowed to register for VAT, even though I might never charge a penny in VAT on my food sales, and be able to reclaim all the VAT I have paid out to suppliers for (eg)...
  4. M

    Best (accounting) practice for a pre-launch trial

    Thanks both for your replies. I don't have any other income. I do expect the trial to make a loss. I would like to protect the name but I assumed the only way I could do that would bento pay for a trademark and that's more than I'm willing to spend on the trial phase. I'll be making...
  5. M

    Best (accounting) practice for a pre-launch trial

    I'm planning to run a trial of a new business idea (before I invest in it more fully) to prove there is demand for it. For that trial I'll need to purchase various things (it's a food business so some food, packaging etc) and hire a few things (kitchen hire, van hire, packaging machine hire...
  6. M

    Cafe/restaurant owners. How much do you pay for utilities?

    Hi I'm trying to put a business plan together for a cafe/restaurant concept in central London and am having little luck getting useful approximations from utility companies of the costs I can expect to be charged. I'd be v grateful if anyone who has experience of these costs in a cafe or small...
  7. M

    Alternative to merchant fees on debit cards?

    Hi, I'm looking into merchant fees on debit card transactions for a cafe and the lowest I can find is 22p per payment. But in a cafe your average spend per customer is around £3.25 so if you pay 22p per debit card that's essentially 8% of your post VAT revenue. That's enormous! Seems like easy...
  8. M

    Am I right that part time staff cost less in NI & sick pay?

    I'm planning a cafe/bakery and in my calculations found that employers' NI contributions only apply to staff earning over £7,027, and the same goes for statutory sick pay. Therefore instead of employing 2 full time staff it seems I should employ 4 part (half) time staff who earn around £7,000...
  9. M

    Depreciation query

    I'm trying to plan a cafe/bakery business and an struggling to get my head round depreciation accounting. I get that it is covering the amount my equipment depreciates in value over time. So if I paid £2,000 for a fridge and will get £50 for it in 5 years time it costs me £390 per year. That's...
  10. M

    Holiday pay sense check please!

    Hi I'm trying to predict the holiday pay I would have to account for for a new business I'm planning and would appreciate some help sense-checking my result. By my calculations, if someone works for me for 2.5 days each week, they are entitled to 14 days (2.5 x 5.6) holiday in that year...
  11. M

    Retail card payments queries

    Brilliant. Thanks very much for that 'shadesofblue'
  12. M

    Retail card payments queries

    I'm planning a startup cafe/restaurant and wanted to ask 2 questions about card payments that hopefully should be straightforward for those with experience: 1) if I want to use mobile (wifi) merchant handsets to accept card payments how do I ensure those payments go through my EPOS accounting...
  13. M

    Better to buy British if you're registered for VAT?

    I've just bought a piece of software for £300 from the US. I then realised that, had I bought it in the UK I would have been able to reclaim the VAT on that £300, but I'm not sure if I can from a US company. Can I ask 2 things: A) is it possible to reclaim any US VAT-equivalent tax...
  14. M

    Protecting a future business name

    Yeah you can incorporate the business now and then just let it lie dormant until you want to start it up properly, that way you'll have a business on file at Companies House with the name you want, so noone else can register a business with that name. It costs about £40 and takes minutes...
  15. M

    Recycling a competitor's terms & conditions

    Hi, I am about to launch a web business and am of course looking for ways to save money. One I've identified is the Terms & Conditions. I could spend over £1000 to have them drafted by a solicitor but have read through a competitor's who's business model is near identical to mine and wondered...
See more
Top Bottom
Community
Articles
Menu