According to credit management service, Debtsource, Three out of every five companies in South Africa fail. Prof Christian Friedrich, University of Applied Sciences, Giessen, Germany and Extraordinary Professor at the University of the Western Cape saw similar stats in a study - approximately 70% to 80 % of the small businesses are failing within 5 years. So what is going wrong? It seems a lot can be attributed to a lack of training on what it takes to be an entrepreneur and the fundamentals of running a business to create wealth and employment.
Ahead of Financial Planning Week 2017 (2 – 6 October) BDO Wealth Advisers are launching their second e-Book, titled – The BDO Wealth Advisers’ Guide to being business savvy: making money decisions that create wealth.
“Our job is to try find solutions to help our clients make the right decisions regarding their financial wellbeing. When we saw the stats on small business in South Africa and received a few queries from clients on basic business management, we felt we needed to do something to help not just our clients, but everyone to make the right money decisions with regards to using their business to create wealth,” says Ricardo Teixeira, Chief Operating Officer and Certified Financial Planner® Professional at BDO Wealth Advisers.
“The aim of the e-book is to educate and upskill young entrepreneurs, start-up owners, those looking to start a business, as well as people who may be looking at investment opportunities, with quick snippets of advice on the various components of starting and running a business,” continues Teixeira. “The book is a collection of shared wisdom and insights from a range of BDO professionals, Certified Financial Planner ® Professionals, accountants, and legal advisors – Topics covered in the book include the risk and rewards of starting a business, funding your business or using debt to grow it, buying an existing business over starting one, buy and sell agreements, marketing yourself and other burning issues (budding)business owners face but may not have considered or have the experience to apply.”
Understanding these topics will go a long way in helping the entrepreneurs and business owners of tomorrow be more business savvy and hopefully reduce the number of small businesses failing. Creating wealth starts with making good money decisions.
“As a Financial Planning Institute (FPI) Approved Professional Practice ™, BDO Wealth Advisers ensure we do what we can to share financial advice far and wide, enhancing the decisions South Africans make towards financial wellbeing,” concluded Texieira. “As such, each year we take part in the FPI’s Financial Planning Week – first week of September each year – by launching a Wealth Guide to making good money decisions.”
READ THE 2017 WEALTH GUIDE
READ THE 2016 WEALTH GUIDE
Be sure to speak to a Certified Financial Planning (CFP®) Professionals regarding your financial wellbeing sooner rather than later.