The dream of being their own bosses is one that drives many Londoners to quit their jobs and start up their own businesses. Having your own business means no more looking for jobs. Gatineau residents might actually find themselves moving to London to ask YOU for a job. Sound exciting? Well it is. Unfortunately, it's also a lot of work. If you're not willing to put in the time, you may find your business venture going under and leaving you in the red. To help keep that from happening to you, we've created this guide to starting a business in London.

Know What You're Doing

If you've got a background in business, then great: you're all set. The rest of us might need a little help figuring things out. You don't need a four year business degree to open a small business though. The London Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Agency should be able to tell you when lectures and workshops on everything from accounting to data encryption are going on and they only take a few evenings.

Finding a Niche

What sort of business will I open? Will my idea for a business work in London? These are two questions you need to ask yourself. If you don't have an idea, think of what London has. For instance, it's got a lot of university students. Now what do these students need? Beer? Acne treatment? Help with coursework? Students generally don't have a lot of money to spend, so a cheap bar, inexpensive acne cream, or discount tutoring service might be good ideas. Another key to success is making sure you choose a business you will enjoy operating, so don't open a hair salon if you hate cutting hair.

Setting Up

Capital is the cornerstone of the setup process. Some internet businesses have almost no start-up costs while some can have require big layouts for equipment, like opening a catering company. Toronto stock trading is one way to get capital, a bank loan is another. Once you've got one, you'll need to look into finding space to operate, for which you'll need a commercial real estate agent unless you're operating from home.

Getting the Word Out

While a huge billboard announcing: "Wedding Rental Brantford" would be effective it would also be expensive. Start out with listings in the phone book and in the city's business directory, and proceed with word of mouth and ads in print, radio, or flyers in likely places.