Steps to consider before you start your business
23 JAN 2020
The first steps into the business world can be scary, both mentally and financially, here at Barnes Law we work alongside entrepreneurs and new businesses who are looking to put their all into a new idea. Below we have detailed various useful points to consider if you are looking at starting your own business.
Market research
This may seem the most obvious step to consider and many of you may have already done so. Understanding your target audience is crucial. There are companies who will conduct the market research for you and these can be found by a simple google search.
Funding
Getting your business off the ground requires funding, and a lot of the time it is more than what people first think. The most common source of funding for start-ups are their own personal savings and sometimes even friends and family.
Your bank is a good first option as you will have already established a relationship with these companies, through personal accounts and this puts you in a superior position.
Venture capitalist’s firms invest in your idea at the early stages in exchange for a share in your business. Like we mentioned this is not something that everyone will want to consider as they are handing over part of their business and its profits from the outset. On the other hand, companies like Facebook, WhatsApp and Groupon all received considerable investments and have soared since.
Protection of your IP
Ensure you have an intellectual property (IP) strategy from the outset in order to keep costs down. All new products or processes will require some form of IP protection to keep fellow entrepreneurs at bay!
The best IP strategies protect the needs of the business at present and provides foundations for the business as it continues to flourish.
Patents are the most common form of excluding others from using, making or selling the product/service involved in the start-up. The product/service must qualify for patent protection; this information can be found online but if you are serious about the product/service it is best to talk to a patent attorney.
The brand
Start-ups need to establish a common ground with the audience they are targeting and branding is the best way to build this. When the brand is first thought of, many of you will be thinking the logo and what colours to choose however, it is much more than this. The brand is how you establish an identity and stand out from the countless other start-ups.
You will need to consider a company name, name of the product/service you are offering, and a slogan as these are the key features to first consider for your brand. Once again these can all be patented.
We provide company formation services and can advise on legal requirements to run your own business. Here at Barnes Law we have considerable experience working with start-ups. Please contact us if you would like to talk to us about starting your own business.
Yulia Barnes
Managing Partner
Yulia Barnes is our Managing Partner. She is an experienced solicitor and advises on a wide range of contentious and non-contentious matters for both private and corporate clients.
Experience Yulia started her legal career at a large international Magic Circle firm. She then became a partner at a regional law firm and headed a Dispute Resolution Department. She then moved in-house before starting her own Boutique practice, Barnes Law, with the aim of providing exclusive services to high net-worth individuals and privately-owned businesses. More details can be found on her LinkedIn profile.Expertise Yulia and her team are widely recognised for their professional and practical approach to matters. She is committed to ensuring that her clients’ objectives are achieved in the most cost-effective way possible.
Approach Yulia has a wealth of experience working with businesses of all sizes: from large multinational corporations to start-ups. She has particular expertise in a hospitality industry, investment funds, private and corporate clients, and focuses on startups and technology-driven companies. Yulia brings the same level of attention to detail, professionalism and a personal touch to every case and client, and truly immerses herself in her clients’ businesses. She prides herself on her problem-solving, commercially astute approach and her track record of partnering with clients to help them achieve their strategic objectives.
Will Moran
Solicitor
Will joined Barnes Law as an Associate Solicitor in Spring 2023, shortly after qualifying in September 2022.
Will works mostly on real estate and corporate/commercial matters. Will enjoys providing advice on transactional matters.
Away from the office, Will can be found reading or playing golf. While he played rugby until university, and rowed throughout his degree, he now tends to watch both from the sidelines. During the winter he can also be found skiing.
Will plans to continue developing his legal skills and experience at Barnes Law, under the expertise and guidance provided by Yulia.
Mark Corran
Solicitor
Mark is an experienced solicitor whose practice areas include intellectual property (IP), IT, data protection and general commercial law.
Mark advises businesses of all sizes – from sole traders to corporations. Among his clients are: clothing and lifestyle brands, restaurants and food suppliers, IT companies, banks, hedge funds and venture capital firms, education providers, medical and pharmaceutical brands.
Outside of his practice, Mark also advises members of the Institute of Directors as part of its Directors’ Advisory Service.
Recent transactions- Prosecuting a UK trademark application on behalf of an education provider and representing them in related UK IPO opposition and revocation proceedings;
- Advising a publisher and a delivery business on data protection matters, B2B and B2C Ts & Cs of sale, website and app Ts & Cs, all aspects of global brand protection;
- Advising footwear brands, alternative asset managers and hedge funds on their global brand protection, including overcoming various refusals, representing them in opposition proceedings and settlement negotiations;
- Representing a central bank in opposition proceedings before the UK IPO;
- Advising a lifestyle brand concerning trademark clearance and protection, negotiations for a website/app development and maintenance agreement.
Ioulia Tatawat
Family Law Adviser
Ioulia has a solid background in family law and offers guidance, clarity, and support to clients during one of their most challenging times in their life.
She advises on all three pillars of separation: divorce, children matters and financial settlements. Ioulia is a member of Resolution and is keen to try to settle matters at early stages.
Ioulia is dedicated to assisting clients and navigating them through their legal matters with clarity and support.
Alex Reidy
Paralegal
Alex joined Barnes Law in September 2023 after finishing his master’s degree in law. Prior to joining Barnes Law, Alex worked in property litigation at Ashfords. Alex assists Yulia on a variety of both contentious and non-contentious matters.
Outside of the office, Alex enjoys reading and hiking. Prior to working in law, Alex was a competitive tennis player.
Alex continues to develop his skills in legal practice under Yulia’s guidance, he plans to sit the Solicitor’s Qualifying Exams (SQE) in 2024.
Mehves Selamoglu
Paralegal
Mehves joined Barnes Law in August 2023, right after graduating from Queen Mary, University of London (LLB Senior Status). As part of her qualification journey, Mehves is currently pursuing her Legal Practice Course (‘LPC’) at the University of Law. She also holds a degree in European Union Law from Maastricht University, Netherlands.
Mehves works closely with Yulia on a variety of contentions matters and also writes Barnes Law’s legal blogs, manages social media accounts and is responsible for marketing.
Outside of work and studies, she enjoys running, tennis and yoga.
Mehves is looking forward to developing her legal skills at Barnes Law.
Julia Podgornova
Investor Relationship Manager
Julia guides clients in making important business decisions based on comprehensive risk assessment and strategy. She supports investors in devising strategies designed to maximise each business’s potential from pre-seed to IPO.
Julia’s particular area of expertise are IT start-ups at different stages. Julia supports business through their fund-raising journey. As an Investor Relations Manager, Julia communicates with investors to facilitate a smooth round and legal part of each transaction.
In her free time Julia enjoys sailing, ballroom dancing, art exhibitions and travel.