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1) legally you are 18 and can do it yourself if you want to. It would be wise to have an advisor though - someone with experience in life and business who can help you negotiate some of the tricky bits. 2) They don't really need to know much. What you say depends on your arrangements with them - are they a drop-ship place, or will you be purchasing stock and warehousing it yourself? If they drop ship it's not a big deal...they aren't out anything by dealing with you even if you're new. If you are buying and storing, credit can be an issue. In any case, all you have to say is that you are are nearing the website launch stage of your business and need to gather data on their stock prior to making any legally binding agreements and such. 3) Your uncle will probably want to help you out anyway....and he will probably already know that the banks are going to be ugly with you. They're ugly with everyone. Trust me. You need to work something out with him - borrowing XXXXX dollars, you will begin paying him back in the amount of XXX monthly, beginning with December of this year or whenever. You will be working part time while doing this business right?? YOu won't make squat for the first 6 months at least...so be ready for mammoth promotional work in your spare time, and to work elsewhere until you get rolling. 4) You need to have a business plan he can look at. Taking time to research your competition and having creative ideas for your promotion will show him that you aren't flying by the seat of your pants. It's one thing to have an idea, but you have to back it up with concrete data - competitors, locations, what they sell, how you will be different, what strategic alliances you can form (you sell shoes, so you form a friendship of sorts with a clothing place... or you sell leather goods so you hook up with the local Harley dealership....that kind of thing.) You can find all kinds of info about business plan writing online... 5) Huge question, my friend. You really need to talk to a tech at your ISP about what they do for you, what steps you need to take with them, AND you should probably try to connect with someone in a related business (maybe a local shop) who has website going. They can tell you what they encountered problems with....so you can AVOID those same things! 6) Without a credit history it could be difficult for you to do this on your own. If you uncle is out of it, then you have to figure out a way around that. So....find out if your chosen business name is available. You can register cheap - then check your ISP and others for their monthly hosting costs. For a new, small site, you could get away with it being fairly cheap to start, but expect at least $100 a month on the high end. You can use Paypal to process your payments, and a form on your site to send you the orders. If your suppliers are going to do drop shipping for you, it's a no-brainer. You send the order to them, and process a paypal payment for it, keeping your profit. With paypal, you can transfer the customers money into your bank acct fairly quickly, but you will do well to always keep a balance there for your payments to your suppliers. Paypal charges a percentage so it's not a big deal..you won't feel it. Oh - and check on the tax issues. Some places charge tax, others don't. You will have to have an acct with paypal that knows what to charge whom...those MIGHT have a charge per month attached. 7) I have no idea. There are so many scams out there... 8)It will get easier in time....start up is the hardest part.....you need to start putting things in writing, starting with the business plan. You will need one even if you go to the bank for help. It will help with Uncle Frank, but the bank will laugh in your face without it...so do your best and be thorough. 9) In order to gain respect, you have to give it, but you also in a way, have to command it. Be as organized as you can. You took the time to sit down and ask all these questions - that says a lot about you right there. You WANT to know what to do, so that you can do it right and be successful. That's the first step. The idea, and the drive to make it happen. You need to temper that with a step by step plan. You need to visualize your goal, and plot out the steps that it will take you to get to it. When you talk to people about your plan, don't get upset if they giggle or don't take you seriously. Just remember - living well is the ultimate revenge. When you DO it and are successful, they will feel pretty sheepish. You should see if your local business help center offers any free courses. Some do, others don't. There can be ones on bookkeeping, taxation, communications, etc. They're mini courses but there are little gems of wisdom in them. Knowledge is power!! Looks like you have some work to do, huh? Get out there and make it happen. :) Good Luck!

by Ankhesan Amun

5 months ago

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