Business Made Easy

The Spark | Ignite / Connect / Achieve
www.thesparkng.com
Getting it Right
from the Start
As an aspiring entrepreneur, the realities
you will face in starting a business may not
be readily captured by a simple business
plan. Here are some of the elements you
need to consider as you make plans to
jump out and execute that business idea.
By Teju Abisoye
The internet has a plethora of articles
on starting or formalising
a business; most of which are
rather generic and not tailored to any
particular industry. Nigeria is a vibrant
and ripe economy for starting a business
with a host of ideas everywhere
you turn. However, the actuality of
starting a business in Nigeria can present
itself as a daunting task. Aside from
challenges that may arise such as inadequate
capital, staffing challenges,
choice of location and overall business
viability, a potential business owner
will almost certainly encounter a number
of regulatory considerations from
concerned Ministries, Departments and
Agencies (MDAs) which can be easily
overlooked while developing a fantastic
business plan. The importance of
these legal and regulatory considerations
cannot be overemphasised, as
“...a potential business owner
will almost certainly encounter
a number of regulatory
considerations from concerned
Ministries, Departments
and Agencies (MDAs)
which can be easily overlooked
while developing a
fantastic business plan”
they will almost certainly involve a level
of financial commitment e.g. taxes, fees
and permits. Failure to comply with
these regulations can often times lead
to dire consequences such as business
closure and fines for entrepreneurs,
and may affect their ease of conducting
business in a particular location.
The aim of this article is to provide
some level of clarity the steps required
to start a successful business venture
while taking into consideration very
important legal and regulatory aspects.
1) You are ready to start your business,
so what’s next? By now, you already
have a business idea and fancy business
name. It may help to have your
great ideas documented in a business
plan and undergo some desk and market
research to ensure the viability of
your business. It will be beneficial to
identify your competitors and closely
examine their business models; not to
replicate them verbatim but to improve
on those aspects that you consider as
areas of competitive advantage while
including your new ideas. At this stage,
you should consider having mentors
who may or may not have operated in
your proposed industry as a highly useful
resource for guidance and direction.
If possible, join a business association
to receive mentoring and support from
business owners in similar ventures.
2) Regulations, Regulations, Regulations!!!:
The importance of complying
with stipulated business regulations as
enacted by the Federal Government of
Nigeria is of critical importance:
• Business Incorporation Certificate:
Firstly, a business owner will
have to register the business with
the Corporate Affairs Commission
(CAC). In the past, this was a very
laborious process that took weeks
or months to complete, but recently
there have been improvements
made due to the work of
the Presidential Enabling Business
Environment Council (PEBEC),
which was set-up by the current
administration to improve the ease
of doing business in Nigeria. As a
result, you can now search for and
reserve a company name within 4
(four) hours, and register a new
company) within twenty-four (24)
hours from the time you submit
the required and correct documentation
for registration with the
CAC.
• Tax Matters: It is also important
to register your business with the
Federal Inland Revenue Service
(FIRS) and your state tax agency
to remit your taxes regularly.
These processes have now been
06 @the
sp
ark
ng