Startup Business Ideas
Thinking about starting a business? These guides explain what it takes to start in 20 UK sectors: the qualifications and registrations, how to set up, what to budget for, how to price, where the first customers come from and the mistakes to avoid.
General information for people planning a business in the UK, not legal, financial or regulatory advice. Rules change and differ between the UK nations, so check the current guidance before you act.
Honest Guides for People at the Planning Stage
Most advice about starting a business is either so general it could apply to anything or so promotional it reads like an advert for a franchise. These guides take one sector at a time and set out what actually has to be in place before you can trade in the UK, what the first year tends to involve and how new businesses in that sector find their customers. They are written by the team that builds websites for those businesses, so the sections on finding customers and getting online come from what we see working.
Each guide ends with a checklist for the first ninety days and links to the official sources to check, because the rules change and often differ between England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. When you reach the point of needing a website, each guide also links to our sector pages, which explain what a new business in that sector needs online and what it costs.
Trades and Home Services
How to Start a Plumbing Business in the UK
What it takes to go from employed plumber to running your own business in the UK: the qualifications and registrations, the set-up, the costs to plan for, how to price jobs and where the first customers come from.
How to Start an Electrical Business in the UK
What it takes to go from employed electrician to running your own electrical business in the UK: the qualifications and scheme registration, the set-up and insurance, what to budget for, how to price jobs and where the first work comes from.
How to Start a Building Company in the UK
What it takes to go from working on site for someone else to running your own building company in the UK: the experience and registrations, the set-up and insurance, what to budget for, how to price and contract jobs, and where the first clients come from.
How to Start a Landscaping Business in the UK
What it takes to start a landscaping business in the UK: the training that helps, the registrations and rules, the vehicle and insurance, the seasonal cash flow, how to price design, build and maintenance work, and where the first customers come from.
How to Start a Cleaning Business in the UK
What it takes to start a cleaning business in the UK: the checks and training that matter, the set-up and insurance, choosing between domestic and commercial work, what to budget for, how to price cleans and contracts, and where the first customers come from.
Professional Services
How to Start an Accountancy Practice in the UK
What it takes to set up your own accountancy practice in the UK: the practising certificate and supervision you need before the first client, the set-up, the costs to plan for, how to price your services and where new practices find their first clients.
How to Start a Law Firm in the UK
What it takes to set up your own law firm in the UK: the authorisation and compliance roles you need before trading, insurance and the accounts rules, the costs to plan for, how to price your work and where new firms find their first clients.
How to Start a Financial Advice Firm in the UK
What it takes to set up your own financial advice firm in the UK: the choice between FCA authorisation and a network, the qualifications and compliance you need before advising, the costs, how to charge and where new firms find their first clients.
How to Start a Recruitment Agency in the UK
What it takes to go from recruiter to agency owner in the UK: the Conduct Regulations and who enforces them, the set-up, the cash flow realities of temporary work, how to structure your fees and where the first clients come from.
How to Start an Architecture Practice in the UK
What it takes to set up your own architecture practice in the UK: registration and the protected title, insurance and appointment terms, what it costs to run a studio or work from home, how architects charge and where the first projects come from.
Property, Hospitality and Retail
How to Start an Estate Agency in the UK
What it takes to open your own estate or letting agency in the UK: the redress, anti-money-laundering and lettings rules, the set-up, the costs to plan for, how to set your fees and where the first instructions come from.
How to Start a Restaurant in the UK
What it takes to open a restaurant, café or bar in the UK: food business registration, hygiene and allergen rules, alcohol and premises licensing, the lease and fit-out, how to price a menu and how the first customers find you.
How to Start a Bed and Breakfast in the UK
What it takes to open a bed and breakfast in the UK: planning and fire safety when you convert a home, the registrations and licences that differ by nation, business rates and insurance, how to price rooms by season and where the first guests come from.
How to Start a Shop in the UK
What opening a shop in the UK involves, whether on the high street, online or both: the premises and the rules, the set-up and the stock, how to price what you sell and where the first customers come from.
Health, Care and Wellbeing
How to Start a Dental Practice in the UK
What it takes to open your own dental practice in the UK: registration with the GDC and the CQC or its equivalents, squat or acquisition, NHS or private, the set-up and costs, how to set fees and where the first patients come from.
How to Start a Physiotherapy Clinic in the UK
How to go from employed physiotherapist to running your own clinic in the UK: the registration and insurance, premises and software, what to budget for, how to price assessments and follow-ups and where the first patients come from.
How to Start a Hair or Beauty Salon in the UK
What opening your own salon in the UK involves: the qualifications and council registrations, the lease and fit-out, the chair-rental decision, what to budget for, how to price by stylist level and where the first clients come from.
How to Start a Personal Training Business in the UK
What it takes to turn a personal training qualification into a business in the UK: the qualifications and insurance gyms expect, the freelance, mobile and studio models, what to budget for, how to price sessions and where the first clients come from.
How to Start a Home Care Agency in the UK
What starting a home care agency in the UK involves: registering with the Care Quality Commission or your nation's inspectorate, finding a registered manager, recruiting and training carers, insurance, pricing care by the hour and winning the first clients.
How to Start a Nursery in the UK
What opening a day nursery in the UK involves: registering with Ofsted or your nation's inspectorate, finding and fitting out premises, recruiting qualified staff, offering funded hours, setting fees and filling your rooms before the doors open.
Before You Act on Any of This
Please read: these guides are general information for people thinking about starting a business in the UK. It is not legal, financial, tax or regulatory advice, and it is not a substitute for checking the current rules with GOV.UK, the relevant regulator or a qualified adviser. Requirements change and often differ between England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Starting a business carries risk, and nothing here is a guarantee of income or success. DigitalPod designs and builds websites; we are not business, legal or financial advisers, and we accept no liability for decisions made on the basis of these guides.
If you are further along and ready to think about your website, our startup web design service and startup website design prices explain what we build for new businesses and what it costs, and the startup blog covers domains, branding, content and getting found on Google.