The Entrepreneurial Journey - Ellora
The Entrepreneurial JourneyFrom the outside, the life of an entrepreneur seems very glamorous, but they go through a hard yet incredible journey.An insight from Jaz Notay, co-founder of ElloraThere are many highs - winning that new contract, receiving funding or simply launching a new website.Equally there are many lows - hitting that bottle neck in production or just missing out on that contract or cash flow issues. There is a steep learning curve by having to do everything yourself. Becoming the Sales, Marketing, Administrator, Operator and Accountant. Working long hours to keep up and there comes a point, when it can become unproductive, especially when doings tasks that are new, which always seem to take as twice as long.Then there are the mistakes that are made, which can be very costly or detrimental to the business.The most common predicament for all entrepreneurs is at which point do you stop and accept you cannot do everything and seek help?
Experience has shown that some businesses leave it too late and something drastic has to happen before action is taken.
I recall a recent example where a company, which had being growing steadily over a couple of years, had a team of three who were each operators providing a service and experts in their field.They believed they could deal with the finances themselves – they had all studied a finance module at university and felt they could cover it. How hard could it be? After all they ‘been fine for the last 2 years’.The company bid for a large contract and were fortunate enough to win it. When the Client did their due diligence they discovered that the company they had just awarded the contract to, had a formal notice published in the London Gazette to be struck off. It transpired that the reason for the notice was non-fulfillment of Directors duties.The company were so busy focusing on growing the business, they had forgotten to file the annual return.A simple task, which most people can do, but if not completed can result in severe consequences.Luckily for the company they were able to resolve (after much time, effort and pleading – time and effort, which could have been used elsewhere) and did not lose the contract. But what if the client had not been so understanding?A simple omission could have been very damaging to the business. Accepted, the contract was not lost, but it’s still not the best start to a new contract/relationship.The moral of the story is, it's important to be realistic about what you can actually do yourself and how your time is best spent. Cost will always be an influencing factor in every decision especially in the early days, but it is always worthwhile having a discussion, you may be surprised.Ellora is an Accountancy and Business Advisory practice, specialising in the Hospitality sector, with a special emphasis on start-ups, SMEs and private individuals. Ellora is focused upon providing a bespoke service that is accessible and personal. Ellora was co-founded by Jaz Notay, who has over 17 years’ experience in the hospitality industry working very closely with the operators and has herself been on a similar journey and therefore can resonate with some of the entrepreneurial experiences. Jaz is a firm believer of providing exceptional customer service and has a very proactive approach to business and Clients, which translates into the ethos and values of Ellora.