Let It Go! 3 Signs Your Business Is No Longer Viable

When you start a business it is all consuming in the way it affects every aspect of your life. It probably took a lot of research and financial investment to get your business up and running and you have probably given the running of your business as much attention as is needed by a new baby! In fact you could describe your business as “your baby”.

You believed that your business would succeed and you developed a business plan which showed year upon year of profitability and success. 

Suddenly, you begin to have second thoughts. Perhaps your drive has gone, or the business is not doing as well as expected? It is easy to become disillusioned and feel that your business is a failure. Remember though that lots of very successful entrepreneurs have been through exactly the same experience. Most of these successful business owners have a whole host of so called “failed” businesses behind them. Each business reached its natural end and so was either absolved or sold. One thing is for sure the skills gained during the process of starting a business can be used to further your future business plans. No time has been wasted, so brush yourself down, hold your head up high and move onto your next plan.

The decision to end a business is tricky, but must be done if it is no longer viable. There are signs that your business is not sustainable, some of which are discussed below.

Not profitable

It is normal for a business to run without profit for several years, whilst it becomes established. Costs relating to setting up the business such as the purchase of equipment will also cancel out initial profits. If you are still not making a profit after several years, or your predicted profits on your business plan are not being achieved, you need to take stock and reassess your businesses viability. Financial advisors would be worth consulting, as they can give advice on how your personal capital is being affected by your business. If you have put all strategies in place to give your business as much chance as possible to grow, it may be time to admit defeat and let it go.

Change in market trends

It may be the case that your products or services are no longer in demand, meaning there is no market for your business to grow. Trends change so rapidly and businesses need to keep up to date with developments, so that they know what the next “big thing” will be. If you cannot tweak what you offer in order to meet current demands it would be best to absolve the business. There’s nothing stopping you from relaunching another in the future. What you need to avoid is going into debt.

Loss of interest

Running a successful business requires passion for it to succeed, if you no longer love what you do there will be no driving force to move your business forward. Admitting that you don’t enjoy your product or service is the first step. If your business is profitable and viable you could sell up, otherwise it would be best to end the business to avoid going into debt.

Moving forward, it is good to know when to quit. You can use your skills in other areas in order to develop another business in the future.