Today one of the topics promoted by the Mexican government is that of being an Entrepreneur. SME Universe (the portal for entrepreneurs) defines the entrepreneur as that person with the mentality so that their business is not a simple scrap but to turn it into a small or medium-sized company (SME).
A few decades ago, the term Entrepreneur was hardly known, and yet out of necessity or desire (entrepreneurial spirit, adventure, dream, etc.), small businesses were born, some of which became small, medium or large companies. Without having the data, I have the perception that the failure rate was much lower than that published by the Mexican press in mid-1999 in the opinion of the then delegate of the Ministry of Economy " eight out of ten businesses fail due to lack of professionalism in the first three years of its implementation. ” Obviously times have changed and today the chance of failure in a business is relatively great.
Much has been written about it and we find that the reasons can be many and varied and surely in each frustrated business some of the most common ones such as lack of experience, competition, mismanagement, lack of capital or lack of supports and thus an endless chain of reasons why a business fails. The truth is that those who live the experience recognize that apart from all the risks that are normally contemplated for those who want to start a business, there are some others that are not normally mentioned and that undoubtedly are important and influence the development or growth of a business.
Without a doubt, our country needs entrepreneurs to start their own business and since December 30, 2009, the Operation Rules for granting support from the SME Fund were published in the newspaper of the federation, however apart from all the risks inherent in Being an Entrepreneur, there are some others that are not normally mentioned like the following:
1.- The risk of the obligations
Although it is true, when starting a business we would like to have everything in order, it is well known of all the complications to do it. There are obligations for any business that if not fulfilled can give real headaches, for example:
The Tax Administration System (SAT) which, depending on its activities, marks a series of obligations such as the payment of taxes, which due to more effort by the government to simplify it, the truth is that at first it is something new for the entrepreneur and faces a series of complications that often have to resort to the services of an accountant, which implies a cost that, together with taxes, represents an important burden for the new entrepreneur. Remember that a small business can be subject to a fixed rate to simplify its payment, but on the other hand, even if the business has losses, it will have to pay the imposed rate. In other words, if your new business doesn't win, the government does. If you join a chamber such as the national small chamber of commerce (CANACOPE) where they supposedly advise you, process some permits and make payments to you, in the end it is the same you have to pay an annual fee and force you to pay the Mexican Business Information System (SIEM) with its corresponding annual fee to simply receive a sticker.
Later you will also have to be subject to the Law for the operation of commercial establishments and have all the permits in order, from the operating license to the permission to place an advertisement where in no way can you advertise wherever you want, limiting it to your property. This is not the case with big businesses where you can see your advertising everywhere.
What to say about the inspectors who visit it, the one from Commerce arrives to check the scale, the one from Health for the sanitary question and they all look for the same thing, any lack of regulation as if it were the objective or raison d'être of their work. Inspectors who in many cases show false morals when applying the law depending on the bribe or canonies they receive, in a few words you have to deal with corruption.
2.- The risk of unfair competition
According to the encyclopedia of economics, the term unfair competition corresponds to illicit competition, it is any commercial practice that does not respect the rules of the market game set by laws or established by commercial customs and uses.
Commercial activity that with deception or fraud aims to profit or cause harm to third parties (consumers, distributors and competitors). For an established business that complies with all its obligations, there is nothing more terrible than facing illegal competition, yes, the one that is outside the law and that is why its costs are lower and can offer the same product or service to lower price. Being outside the law is not only not paying taxes but also stealing services such as water and electricity or that which is advertised without any permission or is forcibly positioned in the best places.
3.- The risk of insecurity
By having a small businessNormally, you receive a visit from private security personnel who charge you a weekly or biweekly fee for just making rounds, which in no way ensures you avoid an assault, therefore requires an alarm that is normally offered by a company. of alarms for a certain monthly payment in addition to forcing you to have a phone line to notify you when the alarm goes off, I repeat, this does not assure you anything, it is only a deterrent to criminals, so it is necessary to take out insurance that covers theft or sinister of your goods or merchandise. And last but not least, there is still the possibility that he will be forced to pay a fee to organized crime to let him work. An additional risk is that by having a business you become a target for extortion.
4.- The risk of workers
Having a business normally requires help, this is initially provided by family members, but as you grow or if you do not have someone to support you, you will need to hire employees with great risk; You cannot make a mistake when selecting them due to the problem they cause, you will have to fulfill your obligations to the IMSS otherwise it can have serious consequences and finally there is a risk of ant theft from the employees themselves, which represents a high cost and is difficult to eliminate. to 100%. If for some reason the worker demands it, the small businessman takes all to lose.
The purpose of mentioning these other risks that an Entrepreneur may face is not with the intention of discouraging them, but rather to inform about what is generally not said but which is the daily reality in such a way that it will take time, money and a lot of patience to deal with paperwork, paperwork and more paperwork.
The Economist of March 03, 2010 refers to Yara Salem, a specialist in private sector development at the World Bank in a seminar organized by the Asia Pacific Cooperation Forum (APEC) that mentions: “ On average, each reduction of 10 days in paperwork it leads to a growth in the economy of 0.4% and sometimes even more ”.
The above should move the state to take measures that really support Entrepreneurs and make the already famous administrative simplification a reality, stop being an obstacle and become a real support, stop looking at the collection aspect to see the general benefit of the country and thus boost the entrepreneurial spirit.
Sources consulted
www.dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle.php?codigo=5129990&fecha=02/02/2010
www.economia48.com/spa/d/competencia-desleal/competencia-desleal.htm
http: //eleconomista.com.mx/sistema-financiero/2010/03/03/mexico-ejemplo-simplificacion-administrativa-bm
www.gestiopolis.com/20-consejos-desarrollo-nuevos-negocios/
http: / /www.jesusguerrero.com/2006/11/porque-fracasan-los-pequenos-negocios/
www.elsiglodetorreon.com.mx/noticia/459636.fracasan-80x-de-las-empresas.html
