Quarter of start-up owners regret their financing method

ALMOST a quarter of UK business owners have admitted they would have financed their venture differently at the start and think this decision held back their firm’s growth, according to a new survey.

Research commissioned by Hitachi Capital Invoice Finance found that pricing was the second biggest regret for business owners, with 21 per cent claiming they regretted their pricing strategy during the start-up phase.

Of the business owners that feared they incorrectly priced their product or service, 78 per cent claimed it was due to overpricing and 22 per cent felt they had undervalued their offerings.

The survey was carried out through Censuswide amongst 1,000 business owners in the UK.

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Another major regret for many business owners was taking advice from friends or “business gurus”, with 17 per cent claiming they took wrong advice and in hindsight would have made alternative decisions.

“It’s fascinating to find out just what regrets business owners have and how they feel they’ve potentially hampered their business,” said Andy Dodd, managing director at Hitachi Capital.

“We are really passionate about helping people start their own businesses and try and support wherever we can, I hope this survey allows new business owners to look at their business plans and reconsider those critical decisions they need to make.”

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Other regrets included the timing of starting the business (16 per cent), the lack of planning before start-up (14 per cent) and location of the business (11 per cent).

The products offered for sale were a regret for 10 per cent of owners, and hiring the wrong staff was regretted by eight per cent.

A further six per cent said they regretted starting a business in the wrong sector, and four per cent said they regretted “not putting my all” into the business during the start-up phase.

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