How to build a great business / Sheila Elliott

How to build a great business

Edited by Dionne Grant (Source: The Voice)

BLACK ASIAN and other ethnic minority businesses make up nearly 20 percent of London's small business community.

Up to 60 percent of small businesses cease trading within the first five years, and this rate of failure can be partly attributed to a general lack of business expertise and understanding. Former accountant turned successful business advisor and author of book, My Business is My Business – Learn How To Earn a Fortune, Sheila Elliot shares her tips far success.

WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO WRITE MY BUSINESS IS MY BUSINESS?

The reasons for doing this book was because in the United Kingdom, despite there being a lot of growth in black and ethnic minority businesses, this did not always equal success. The London Development Agency (LDA) recently did some research that showed despite there being a lot of growth in the market among ethnic minorities, there has also been a lot of failures too. The Asian market is growing significantly within the ethnic minority market but the Afro-Caribbean and the African communities are not doing as much as they can do. The book also,

highlights a number of weaknesses and soft skills in this group.

WHY DO YOU THINK BLACK BUSINISSE AREN’T AS SUSTAINABLE AS WHIT BUSINESSES?

I don’t believe that the support out there is the right one for that particular community. There are a lot of courses that focus on the technical skills as opposed to focusing on nurturing the developmental aspects of people's lives, A lot' of people from our community know what they want to do, but they need a little bit more support and hand-holding, and that’s not necessary available through the likes of business links or the agencies, There is a little bit of coaching, but not predominant.

WHAT ONE THING PEOPLE CAN PEOPLE TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR BOOK?

The importance of attitude and technical skills as a success formula; 85 percent of our success is to do with our attitude and our relationship with one another - not necessarily how much academic qualifications you have. I would like to encourage BME (Black Minority Ethnic) communities to become entrepreneurial. They need to recognize that there is a formula to succeed in business, and they need to be willing to invest their time and thoughts into learning that formula and applying it. They need to avoid going for that short cut methodology that many people have fallen victim to, only to find themselves very disappointed the day after.