Starting a Business

You have an idea for a business. Congrats! Before you leave your job and invest your hard-earned savings, make sure your idea is feasible. While it can be tempting to dive right in, some up front research and planning will ensure you’re ready to take the plunge.

Revisit your business idea by asking yourself these 7 key questions {pdf} or use our business idea checklist {pdf} to see the steps you may need to take to get to opening day.

Or, download our Starting a Business guide for tips on:

• Conducting market research
• Developing your competitive advantage
• Identifying your target customer, and more

A well-thought-out business plan explains to others your vision for the business, the gap in the market your business will fill and the steps you will take to succeed. Formally documenting what you want to do, and how you intend to do it, can make the difference between success and failure.

Creating a business plan on your own, however, is not always an easy task. Learn how to create a business plan or, if you’re ready, get started with the Business Plan Builder. It’s a comprehensive tool that guides you through a series of questions, offering resources and providing a framework for success.

Use the FREE Business Plan Builder to:

• Describe what your business will do and the needs it will meet.
• Outline your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT). Tip: Use a SWOT Template {pdf} first to make this easier.
• List your startup costs and ongoing expenses—the Cash Flow Forecast Template {pdf} can help you estimate.
• Describe how you will find and market to customers.

Knowing how much money you need to start your business and survive your first year is critical. And it’s wise to figure this out before you invest too much time or money into your idea.

There are two types of costs you’ll want to estimate:

• Startup costs, which are one-time costs such as security and utility deposits, licenses and permits, equipment, etc.
• Working capital, which is the money you need on hand to keep your business running and manage fluctuations in cash flow (for example, salaries, rent, advertising, etc.).

To learn more about these costs, see:

Tools to Help You Determine Your Costs

Estimating your startup costs can be daunting, but it’s beneficial to be as realistic and accurate as possible. These tools can help you identify your costs and get a more precise estimate:

Learn more about cash flow planning:

Rent. Utilities. Inventory. These are just a few examples of overhead costs your new business might have. Then there’s the good stuff—the profit you want to make. For your business to succeed, the pricing strategy you set for your products or service needs to account for both overhead costs and profit—as well as what customers are willing to pay.

Learn more about pricing and profit:

Starting a business requires you to make many decisions. And choosing your legal business structure is one of your most important decisions because it affects your taxes, whether you will have personal liability if something goes wrong and more.

In Canada, there are four main business structures:

• Sole proprietorship: You and the business are one and the same.
• Partnership: Two or more people own the business.
• Corporation: The business is considered a separate legal entity.
• Co-operative: The business is controlled by an association of members; often used for non-profits.

Learn more about these business structures and see which one may be right for you.

What do words like bootstrapping, angels and crowdfunding have in common? They’re a few ways you could fund your new venture.

Some options, such as business credit cards, overdraft facilities and business credit lines can help you establish credit under your business name and allow your business to build a credit history, which can help with qualifying for other types of financing down the road.

Get a run-down of six possible ways to finance a business—and keep in mind that you don’t have to choose just one.

Learn more about business financing resources: