1. Plantingtheseeds
ofasoundidea
Profile#
Company cars provide fuel for thought
Each month ProfessorRussellSmith answers your queries, and profiles a small business facing a big challenge
N
eil Bromhall, 50,
fell into business
by accident. Quite
literally. When the
wildlifecameraman
brokebothlegsandanarmina
fall, he found himself unable to
work in the field. But typical of
his entrepreneurial spirit,
Bromhall decided to bring the
field into his studio. His new
focus on time-lapse photogra-
phy and close-up macro work
withplantsprovedsuccessful–
he was awarded an Emmy for
his camera work on David At-
tenborough’s Private Life of
Plants BBC series.
Studying a succession
of plants generated two
by-products: a library of pho-
tographs and a surplus
of plants. The photographic li-
brary had obvious commercial
value but the plants were sim-
plyrelocatedtohisgarden.Not
all of them thrived. “I’d learnt a
lotabouthowplantsgrowfrom
the time-lapse work,” says
Bromhall, “but I knew very lit-
tleabouthowtocareforthemin
the garden, especially the need
for pruning.”
Many plants have evolved in
responsetobeinggrazedbyher-
bivores,sothatpruningisoften
arequirement,ratherthanacos-
metic luxury, for success.
Bromhall sought expert advice
on his growing plant collection
and realised that, as he’d found
itdifficultandtimeconsumingto
source that advice, other gar-
denersmusthavethesameprob-
lem.Bycombininghislibraryof
digitalphotoswithexpertcom-
mentaryhewasabletodevelop
an interactive suite of pro-
grammes and create a “plant
identification,selectionandprun-
ing encyclopaedia”. Complete
GardensCDROMLtdwasborn.
TheCD-Romsnowofferedby
Complete Gardens allow users
to identify or select garden
plants by colour of leaf or flow-
er, soil type, aspect, height and
name. Andbylinkingwhenthe
plant is at its best to a calendar
function, the user can create a
gardendesignwithyear-round
interest.
Bromhallhasrecentlyco-de-
velopedaversionofthissoftware
onamemorycardforPDAsand
mobile phones.
“The PDA format allows
anyone to take our interactive
encyclopaedia into the wild
or just to the garden centre,”
hesays.Andtheversatilityofthe
system means that specific
groups can be catered for:
versions for allotment holders
and indoor plant growers are
already being planned. But can
the range be extended further?
“Absolutely,” says Bromhall,
“we haven’t even started on
the international versions yet.”
Complete Gardens
CD ROM Ltd
(01865 512561;
www.complete-gardens.co.uk)
SendyourquestionstoRussellSmithatindependent@businessboffins.com.Selectedquestionswill
beansweredeachmonth.Answersareforthegeneralguidanceofowner-managersonly;always
seekprofessionaladvice.ProfessorSmithisthefounderofOxford-basedBusinessBoffinsLtdwhich,
incollaborationwithOxfordBrookesUniversityBusinessSchool,deliverssupportprogrammes
tosmallbusinessesnationwide.IndependentandIndependentonSundayreaderscanenrolonthe
university-accreditedprogrammeatadiscountedrate;seewww.businessboffins.com/independent
Working Time Regulations
A set of rules that governs the max-
imum working times for employees.
In general, employees aged over 18
should work no more than (i) six
hours without a 20-minute break,
(ii) 48 hours in one week and (iii)
six out of seven days and 12 out of
14 days. Employees should also
have 4.8 weeks of leave per year –
four weeks to be taken as leave
with 0.8 weeks, either paid in lieu or
rolled over into the following year.
Recognise, Record and Reward
Many managers operate an annual
appraisal system in which they
review, with the employee, things
that went well or otherwise over
the year. This is bad management.
Learn to recognise what an
employee does well, or otherwise,
and set aside five minutes to record
that every week. Take corrective
action immediately for things that
don’t go well and be prepared to
reward employees for things that
do go well. Discuss performance
with employees every month…
not just once a year!
QMysmallbusiness
providesmewitha
companycar.Isit
advantageousformetohave
allfuelpaidforbythebusiness
aswell?
A
From 6 April 2008, the
cost of providing fuel
free of charge for company
cars goes up by more than 17
per cent. However, you should
speak with your accountant
about what would be best,
since that advice must take
into account you as the
employee together with you
as the business owner.
QIstartedmyownbusiness
lastyear.WhendoIneed
tostartthinkingabout
pensionschemes?
A
Immediately! Start by
learning more about
pension schemes and
benefits from the Government’s
Pension Service website
(www.thepensionservice.gov.uk).
Then speak with an Independent
Financial Advisor (IFA) – your
accountant will be able to sug-
gest one local to you. IFAs are
not linked to schemes from one
supplier and can therefore rec-
ommend the right one for your
specific needs. It would also be
sensible to look at insurance
options at the same time. Many
small business owners are under-
insured: remember that an acci-
dent or an illness could prevent
you from working and hence gen-
erating revenue from your busi-
ness. In addition, “Key Person”
insurance could provide money
for your business if you were
unable to work – money that
could be used to hire a temporary
replacement for you. Your
accountant will be able to advise
on these issues and recommend
a good insurance broker.
QIhavejustturned50and
havealwayswantedto
runmyownbusiness.
HaveIleftittoolate?
A
Absolutely not. An
increasing number of
people in your age group
are starting businesses, partly for
lifestyle reasons and partly to
generate additional income to
supplement pensions. PRIME is a
registered charity that runs a
national scheme designed to
help anyone over 50 to start a
business. Download the “Working
for yourself” booklet from their
website as a good starting point
(www.primeinitiative.org.uk).
In addition, visit their business
club website (www.prime
businessclub.com) for more
information about how people
in the same situation as you
have started businesses. PRIME
also runs seminars around the
country that are well worth
attending – call their helpline
number (0800 783 1904) for
further details.
QIworkasapart-time
employeeinmydaugh-
ter’sbusinessbutmy
sonwouldlikemetobecomea
directorofhisnewcompany.
CanIbeanemployeeanda
directoratthesametime?
A
There is nothing to stop
you holding both positions.
Assuming that your son
intends to pay you as a director
then you will need to decide
which employer – your daughter
or your son – represents your
“main source” of employment
and let your tax office know. It
would be sensible to have this
dealt with by the accountant
acting for your daughter’s
business since she is your
current employer.
ADVENTURESINMICRO-BUSINESS
Questions please#
Jargon buster#
CompleteGardens
CDROMLtdwas
foundedbyNeil
Bromhallin2002
Differentfocus:thewildlifephotographerhasbranchedoutintoproducinggardeningadviceCDROMs
12. businessmonthly THE INDEPENDENT
TUESDAY 4 MARCH 2008