Don't leave it too late to start your own business
17 April 2008
If you want to set up your own business then start young. That's the advice from entrepreneurs surveyed by Abbey Business Banking. The research reveals that the majority of business owners (87,000) made their big break when they were ‘juniors' rather than big shot senior managers - of whom only 1 per cent took the plunge from the safety of their existing job.

There are 484,300 entrepreneurs in the UK today, and the average age to start trading is 35. However, the majority wish they had chosen the road to business independence at a younger age, with 29 estimated as the best year to start up.

Whatever your age, it seems that a key requirement for entrepreneurial success is to put the hours in. 44 per cent of those questioned stated that they work more hours since setting up alone. The average entrepreneur works a 42-hour week, but over 106,000 of them (22 per cent) said that they work 60 hours or more. 10 per cent even said that since starting up on their own, they "lived to work" rather than "work to live."

When it comes to qualifications, opinion is split. 50 per cent of respondents wished that they hadn't spent so much time gaining qualifications while a further 50 per cent thought that they should have spent more time developing their qualifications.

Ian Wilson, managing director of Abbey Business Banking, commented: "You need energy to run your own business but the great thing about it, is that it is ultimately very rewarding. If you are planning to start up your own business, the key thing is being prepared, so you can focus and channel your energy on the right things. At Abbey, we take the hassle and cost out of your business bank account, leaving you able to focus your resources on more important things."

Abbey Business Banking is one of the only accounts on the market to offer free banking to small businesses on an ongoing basis. For more details please see our website: anbusiness.com.

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