If you speak to people who know business statistics, you will hear them say that many small businesses will fail within the first five years. These facts are a contributing factor to people buying long-established businesses in order to gain a higher chance of success compared to a start-up. So what are the odds of surviving more than five years? There are government organizations who keep statistics on this. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “About half of all new establishments survive five years or more and about one-third survive 10 years or more. As one would expect, the probability of survival increases with a firm’s age. Survival rates have changed little over time.” These statistics are backed up by the Small Business Administration (SBA), who state that nearly 66% of small businesses will survive their first two years. What that implies is that only about one-third of total businesses will actually fail in these first two crucial years. The reason that is given is the lack of business experience by the owner/management of the business.

According to Statistics Canada, “Thousands of businesses enter and exit the marketplace throughout the year…..The greatest number of SME births (13,820) and deaths (12,590) occurred in professional, scientific and technical services, followed by construction (12,050 births and 11,900 deaths). Mining and oil and gas extraction had the fewest SME births and deaths (780 and 800 respectively). In 2013, the total number of SME births was 78,430, compared with 83,240 deaths, which resulted in a net decrease of 4,810 businesses.” With all these numbers, what are start-ups to do if they want to survive? Most business experts will say that watching debt and expenditures are key to success. Others will say that budgeting with fixed expenditures will also help you keep your focus on growth rather than where you can save money next.

Even the Canada Business Network states on their website: “When you start your own business, you may have to wear many “hats.” You may have some great ideas, but how are you at handling business operations like administrative or managerial tasks? You need to know your strengths and weaknesses. Lack of management experience can lead to small business failure. Do not be shy about seeking out the advice of experts, networking with other entrepreneurs, and hiring employees to help you run the business.” In other words, paying attention to detail and motivating others are all key elements to achieving business growth and ultimately, survival.
Here are some of the survival tips that Canada Business Network gives to help avoid the pitfalls that often lead to small business failure.

Develop a good marketing and business plan that takes into account customer needs, competition, pricing and promotional strategies.
Have a good working knowledge of business law or hire a lawyer.
Understand your business finances, such as cash flow and handling credit.
Keep a good inventory of your products or services and your existing customers.
Supervise, train and motivate your employees.
Make sure you have the experience, expertise and talent to run your business.
Plan every part of your business from start to finish.
Know your market and define how much of it you will be able to capture.
Make sure you are offering a product that is unique and competitive or at a lower cost than competitors.
Don’t under estimate your expenses and over-estimate your revenue.
Make sure you have some cash reserves or a line of credit to help you get through slow periods.

Another mistake that some small businesses make when starting out is trying to build all their infrastructure while they are just start-ups. They want to use start-up funds to lease office space, furnish it and lease expensive office equipment. They fail to realize how much the infrastructure costs to develop and how much debt they will have to carry for this infrastructure. There are alternatives that they should look into first, such as serviced offices, shared offices and coworking spaces.

Serviced offices and shared office spaces come at a fixed rate per month and the infrastructure is already set up. so there are no worries about negotiating leases for photocopiers or having to wire the office for Internet and phones, as they are already in place. Very similar to shared offices, coworking allows for a space to get work done without the formal or traditional office environment.

Looking to Learn More?

Small Business Owner Productivity Tips

18 King Street East Suite 1400
Toronto, Ontario
M5C 1C4 Canada
416-574-1112

18 King Street East Suite 1400
Toronto, Ontario
Canada M5C 1C4
416-574-1112

Site Designed By Giant Shoe Creative.

Our Amenities

We are by far the most experienced and best coworking team in the market – established in 1980

We are the highest Tech centre in the market

We have a very modern, high quality, brand new facility located at:

18 King Street East, Suite 1400

Toronto, Ontario M5C 1C4 Canada

- 18 King Street East is a boutique Class A building – East of Yonge: easy street parking, less traffic, excellent restaurants and lovely parks – St. James Park @ Church & King and Berczy Park @ Wellington East, Scott and Front Streets – Very high energy and engaging area
- A few steps (a few seconds) to the Yonge Street subway/underground PATH network and streetcar available outside building
- Building is located in Toronto's vibrant financial district
- Plenty of parking available in the area including street parking and reserved parking in the 18 King building
- Adjacent to the building huge outdoor food courtyard - Beer Bistro www.beerbistro.com and Craft Beer Market www.craftbeermamrket.ca restaurants and bars with onsite catering services
- Onsite amenities: Tim Horton's, Beer Bistro, Convenience store and Starbucks across the street
- Nearby amenities: underground PATH network, numerous restaurants, banking, Starbucks plus a wide array of nearby shops and services
- New modernized office layout fully furnished with meeting spaces and training rooms plus café lounge area
- We are leaders in the service of training/meeting rooms with full conference facilities, high quality hot and cold catering
- Largest training room and conference facilities accommodate up to 60 people classroom style
- Ultra-high-speed - 1 GIG pipe = 1,000 x 1000 fiber-optic network, which will deliver internet connection speeds faster than most North American services
- Private shower room
- Indoor Reserved Parking at the current building rental rate
- Bicycle parking
- Rent a space to accommodate your team for meetings, training sessions, corporate events or coworking space or flexible office space for one day, one week, one month or one year, or whatever term suits your business
- Telsec has over 650 locations in 40 different countries worldwide available for their clients. Office clients receive up to 8 hours of meeting space per month at no charge at any ABCN member location. Plus, Office and Virtual Office clients may rent a space from any member location at special member rates which varies depending on the location
- King Edward Hotel is located across the street - recently completed a $40 million renovation and boutique hotels close by within walking distance

Dining and entertainment at high quality restaurants only minutes away – Carisma, Terroni, Woods Restaurant & Bar and Michelin Rated - Restaurant 20 Victoria. Plus numerous lunch and takeout eateries nearby

Please check out our 70 second video on our home page or click here:

Take a look at our facilities www.telsec.net

Telsec will Customize Your Client’s Office(s) Layout to Meet Their Requirements.

You are welcome to drop-in any-time, a quick call would be appreciated to ensure our availability Vanessa 416-574-1112 or Josie 416-606-4349 or e-mail josie@telsec.net.

Small business survival: The numbers don’t lie!

Looking to Learn More?

Small Business Owner Productivity Tips

How Not To Kill Your Small Business

Small business survival: The numbers don’t lie!

Looking to Learn More?

Small Business Owner Productivity Tips

How Not To Kill Your Small Business

Hotels

Restaurants

Health and Wellness

Our Amenities