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Brighton is a fantastic place to start a business. It’s known for its diverse community and a welcoming and inclusive environment, meaning new businesses can often find great support.
If you’re thinking of starting a new business in Brighton, read on for some tips on how to make it a success.
Find your niche
Brighton is full of unique businesses, all with their own character and quirks. If you want to stand out in Brighton, you’ll have to find your own niche. It doesn’t matter if you’re selling food, clothes, homeware – decide what makes you and your business unique and make sure to shout about it.
What makes you unique could be your attitude, what you do, or even your colour scheme. Include it in all your marketing so your new customers will be able to learn exactly what you’re about.
Location
When starting a business in Brighton, you’ll have plenty of choice of great locations to act as your base. Brighton centre is of course where you’ll find the most activity, but this is often where rents are highest. Luckily, Brighton has many other lively suburbs that could be the perfect starting location for your new business.
You could find success in Hove, to the west of Brighton city centre. Hove has its own bustling shopping district and independent businesses. It’s particularly praised for the arts and culture scene that’s grown in the area, so could be a great location for businesses centered around this.
Alternatively, Kemptown is located on the eastern side of Brighton. Here, you’ll find a diverse range of independent businesses, including a vibrant LGBTQ+ community and distinctly bohemian vibe.
Preston Park, to the north of Brighton, is more residential but still has plenty of local businesses. The area is popular with families and the right business could flourish in this location.
Finances
Business finances and accounting can be a complex process. You’ll need to ensure you adhere from finance regulations and taxations from the get-go, which can be a lot when you’re just starting out and want to focus on your business.
So, finding the right local accountant can be a huge help in keeping your business compliant and letting you look after the rest. Searching ‘accountant Brighton’ online can help to bring up popular accountants in your area. You should make sure to read their website to ensure they offer the services you require, and also check reviews from their customers.
A good Brighton accountant will be able to help with your business tax, including corporation tax and employment tax, as well as providing bookkeeping and accounts services. They might also be able to assist with payroll services and auditing, which can be especially helpful as your business grows. The benefit of having a local accountant for your Brighton business is that they’ll be on hand to assist you with every part of your business accounts.
Company values
Brighton is known for its diverse and welcoming community. The city is known as both the LGBTQ+ capital of the UK, and also the vegan capital of the country, with more vegan-friendly restaurants than any other city.
Brighton residents are known for having strong values, especially around inclusivity, diversity, and issues such as the climate. As such, the best Brighton businesses will also be able to reflect these values.
Consider what you want your company to stand for and how you can incorporate that into your business practices. It could be that you have a charity that the business supports, with opportunities to donate and fundraising events. It could be that you’re committed to sustainability, and so you should be able to demonstrate that throughout your supply chain.
Whatever your specific company values are, make sure you communicate them in a clear, concise, and honest manner. This can help your new customers learn about you and your business and feel more connected to you.
Build a community
Following on from Brighton’s values and welcoming attitude, a key to a successful business in Brighton is building a community. You should start building relationships and connections with Brighton residents even before your business opens.
You can do this on social media, by running a campaign to tell people about your new business and what you do. You can create excitement about your opening and hold an opening day event to welcome people to your business.
You can also do this in the city itself. You could print flyers to hand to people, with information about your new business. You could find that many people in Brighton will be happy to stop and chat to speak with you about what your business will offer.
You can also reach out to local newspapers, such as The Argus, to see if they want to publish an article about your new business. This will work best if you have something special and unique about your business, to help draw people in and make them excited to read about you.
Local support
Brighton and Hove City Council has a number of resources to support local businesses, that you could find particularly useful as you’re starting out. This includes information about trading standards and food safety, as well as links to HMRC and Companies House.
There is also support through Growth Hub, which can be found on the council website. Growth Hub is a service designed to support small and medium businesses in Brighton and across West Sussex and East Surrey, identifying specialist support they may need and helping them overcome challenges.
You may also like: How to Find Your Startup Niche
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