Getting to the next stage

I run a corporate catering business, employing 50 staff and have several blue-chip clients. I want to take on more work, but feel that to do this I will need to take on more staff and move to larger premises. I don't want to significantly raise my expenditure without first securing clients, but don't feel I can offer the same quality of service without the company growing.

What should be my first steps in this expansion?

The first thing you have to do is understand the market you are operating in and its opportunity. Next, set a clear strategic and financial plan for that business based on the market and historic performance. I would suggest initially that constitutes two sides of A4 so you've really got some clarity around where the growth is; we are not talking about a 100-page business plan. You need to know where this growth is going to come from because unless you can be comfortable in achieving that growth, and the profits that will flow from it, then you shouldn't be expanding.

I would then suggest you sensitise your financial plan so you ask: ‘what if this didn't happen, what if that were to happen'. If the financial plan looks positive and the numbers look positive, then you can confidently take the next steps. I would also, in this particular case for a catering business, envisage quite a lot of capital expenditure involved in moving to new premises. I would suggest not leasing premises where you are going to invest an awful lot in the infrastructure where the main beneficiary would be the landlord. Try and find a freehold premises where you'll retain the value in the fit out.

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