Step 1 – The Basics
Starting a business is hard and unfortunately the chances of success are low. Even if you have a great product, an amazing business plan and an impressive team, you may still be unlucky. As such, when considering starting a business you should think carefully about the consequences and obligations involved. Some questions to consider:
- The Problem: What problem is your business solving? How will you solve this problem? Has someone else done this business already and failed? If so, why?
- The Customer: Who will be your customer? How will customers find out about your products/services? Why would they buy from you? How big is the potential market and how much of this market will you be able to address?
- The Alternatives: What is the competition? What alternatives are customers using?
- The Team: Who will be involved in the business? Does your team have the right skills to start this business? Will you need to recruit additional talent?
- Funding: How much cash are you going to need to get started? How long will it be before the business starts generating positive cash flow?
Step 2 – Create a Business Plan
Once you have a good idea of the answers to the questions above, putting together the business plan should be fairly straight forward. Keep the business plan as simple as possible but make sure you cover the key issues. Treat the plan as a live document, it will almost certainly change as you develop your business and test your assumptions.
Some people question the need and usefulness of having a business plan, but it serves a number of useful functions:
- Helps you clarify your own thinking about the business and communicate your ideas to others in your team
- Provides you with a guide as to what actions you should be taking to grow your business
- Help you test your decisions and actions and hold them accountable
- A necessity if you require external funding
If you require financing for the business make sure the sections on the problem you are addressing, your competitive advantage, competition, market size and financials are comprehensive and clear.
Having both a Spanish and English version of your business plan will be helpful if you need external funding.
There is lots of information on the web about writing business plans. I think these articles are especially useful:
Step 3 – Choose a Business Structure
There are a number of different types of business entity in Spain depending on the type of business you are intending to develop. Each comes with a different set of legal and fiscal responsibilities and liabilities. In this regard, it is a good idea to get your own legal advice. However, the types of legal entity available include:
- Sole Trader / Sole Proprietor (Empresario Individual or Autónomo)
- Jointly Owned Company (Comunidad de Bienes, C.B.)
- Partnership (Sociedad Civil)
- Public Limited Company (Sociedad Anónima, S.A.)
- Limited Liability Company (Sociedad Limitada Nueva Empresa)
- Worker-Owned Company (Sociedad Laboral)
- General Partnership (Sociedad Colectiva)
- Limited Partnership (Sociedad Comanditaria)
- Cooperative (Sociedad Cooperativa)
The requirements for setting up a company will differ depending on what type of business entity you decide to proceed with.
Step 4 – Choose a Business Name
In Spain, sociedad businesses can have a brand name that is different from their official business name. Business name registration is optional but registering the business name gives an exclusive right to use that name for commercial purposes within Spain. Registration is handled by the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office.
Step 5 – Find Financing
There are a number of different potential sources of financing available to you:
- Personal financing
- Friends and family members
- Loans (Préstamos)
- Lines of Credit (Cuenta de crédito or póliza de crédito)
- Grants (Subvenciones or Ayudas) – Check the local Chamber of Commerce and DYPME for availability of grants.
- Angel investors
- Venture Capital
Step 6 – Secure Licences and Permits
Depending on the type of business, you will likely require some licenses.
You will need to charge Value Added Tax (Impuesto sobre el Valor Añadido, IVA which ranges from 4 – 21%) on any goods and services you sell. Tax rules vary depending on the type of business so seek advice from your financial advisor and the Agencia Tributaria on your requirements.
You will also need a “Visitors Book” (Libro de Visita) and have it available at all times for potential labour and social security inspections. The book can be obtained from your province’s Dirección Provincial del Ministerio de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales.