Common Mistakes to Avoid Before Entering a Hair Business Partnership

Aug 30, 2018

Partnerships and Mistakes Made

Statistics show that 80% of business partnerships ultimately fail. Despite this alarming number entrepreneurs and small business owners continue to enter partnerships. Creating the right business partnership can be professionally satisfying as well as extremely lucrative. Combining skills and knowledge, having more business capital, allowing greater borrowing capacity, and having tax benefits often outweighs the cons. However, like any other relationship working with a hair business partner successfully over the duration of your business means going in prepared with the proper foundation and groundwork in place. If you believe the best way to navigate the ups and downs of your new hair business venture is with a trusty partner or two, do yourself a favor and read common mistakes to avoid before entering a hair business partnership. Here are some common mistakes to avoid before entering a hair business partnership.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

Ignoring That There's No Shared Vision

Shortchanging the importance of a shared vision is a significant issue for building a solid hair business partnership. Starting a new business is exciting, so exciting that many entrepreneurs overlook incompatibilities with their new partners. You and your partner must work toward the same business goals and how to achieve them. Where you see your hair business is going in the future and the path to get there are apart of the vision that will drive your business to success. Being sure you and your partner are on the same page when it comes to your plan of action to achieve your vision and how your business goals are to get accomplished. You should determine in advance:

Your vision for your hair business Tip: Creating a Vision Statement together is ideal for this step.

A vision statement is an articulation of your hopes and dreams for the future, what kind of a mark you want to make with your business, and how to see it developing into the future. Your vision statement should provide guidance and clarity as well as stretch the imagination for the future of your hair business. You should:

Project 5 to 10 years in the future
Dream big and focus on the success of your hair business
Use the present tense
Use clear, concise language
Infuse your statement with passion and emotion
Align it with your business values and goals
Have a plan to communicate your vision statement

Creating the Wrong Partnership Business Structure

Sharing ownership and profits with a partner constitutes a legal form of business operation. There are many partnership structures, but the three most common business structure is a general, a joint venture and limited partnerships.

General Partnerships

General Partnerships form when two or more people agree to go into business together to make a profit. With a general partnership, you don’t have to put anything into writing or file anything with your state or local authorities. What distinguishes a general partnership from other partnership business structures is the joint liabilities of everyone in the partnership. Choosing a general partnership for your hair business will allow all partners to split all profits, managerial responsibilities and liabilities for debts in equal proportion amongst everyone. If you plan to share profits or losses unequally, this is in the legal partnership agreement to avoid disputes further down the line.

Joint Venture

A joint venture is a form of a general partnership that remains until a specific project completed or a particular period elapses that everyone agrees upon.

Limited Partnerships

Limited Partnerships have at least one general partner and one limited partner. The limited partner has limited personal liability. This means that partners are only liable for the business debts up to a certain limit. This partner is silent, contributes money to the hair business, and has no direct say in daily operations or running the hair business in the partnership. Limited partnerships also avoid “double taxation.” These partnerships won't receive tax at the business/corporate level. Instead, they are “passed through” only to be reported on the personal tax returns.

Let's Get In Formation, Limited Partnership Formation

Not correctly forming your limited partnership can be a mistake for everyone involved. Here are a few steps to form your Limited Partnership:

Picking a name

If you and your partner choose to name your business anything other than your personal name, most states require you to register a “Doing Business as” (DBA) name. Your county/parish or city also need this. Tip: Be sure to search your names availability before filing. You can search your local Secretary of State Office database to be sure your hair business name is not the same or too similar to another business. Also be sure to check out the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to make sure your hair business name does not violate any registered trademarks.

Draft a Limited Partnership Agreement

Although not mandatory in most states, this step is highly recommended. Since partnership legislation varies from state to state, partnership agreements allow for standard terms of a Limited Partnership. Be sure to check with your state's requirements. Elements to include in your hair partnership agreement:

1. Partnership Information

List the name of the partnership, location, when the partnership formed and the purpose of your hair business.
Who your partners will be and their capital contributions
List the partners, their addresses, and Social Security Numbers

2. Profit and loss distribution

Each partner “distribution percentage” which should reflect their share of partnership profits and losses, this must be clearly stated in the agreement.

Voting, Admitting New Partners, and Management Rules

Another common mistake to avoid before entering a hair business partnership is figuring out the rules on who is allowed to do what. You and your partners should determine who is going to manage the partnership, who can sign contracts, and rather or not partners will be receiving salaries for labor and services. Unlike distributions of profits, wages do not have to be made proportionately to the partners. Unequal partners should not have equal salaries if one partner is doing more work their salary should reflect such. Also, determining the voting rights of partners are a common mistake when forming a partnership. You should take into account different scenarios you will face. Usually, a simple majority vote of the partners will suffice on what happens and what doesn’t. A unanimous vote is necessary for admitting new partners, merging with another company, selling part of the hair business, or filing bankruptcy.

Exit Strategy

The most important thing to have written out in your partnership agreement is the “exit strategy” for everyone involved in the partnership. When going into a partnership everyone assumes everything will go according to plan with communication and all partners are performing their duties, but this is a common mistake you should avoid before going into your hair business partnership. This section should entail how to dissolve the partnership, some examples include:

Circumstances in which a partner can withdraw
How much of notice they must provide
How to distribute assets
What happens if a partner retires
If a partner goes bankrupt
If a partner becomes disabled or dies

Tip: You may also want to create a “someone else” clause. If the last three bullets above happen, the departing partners share of the business does not automatically get divided between the remaining partners. It is an asset that may be transferred by law to someone else (deceased partners heirs or a ex-partners spouse) that you don't want to partner with. If this is the case, you may insist on a buy/sell clause that specifies the other partners have the right to buy out that “someone else” in the event of a partners death, disability, divorce, bankruptcy or retirement. If you do go this route, you should specify the method of determining the value of the departing partner's shares. All things should spell out everything clearly.

Who Will be Your Registered Agent?

Some states require every business entity to have and continuously maintain a registered agent in their state. Your registered agent must be a resident or a business entity that is authorized to conduct business in your state. They also must have a physical street address in the state. Tip: If your hair business is in your state, you may act as your own agent.

File For a Certificate of Limited Partnership

Filing and completing a Certificate of Limited Partnership is mandatory. Depending on your state your filing, the certificate requires necessary information regarding your business. This includes entity address, agent name, and address, names, and addresses of partners in addition to other information. This certificate and the forms can be found online at your Secretary of State website.

Register for an Employer Identification Number

Also known as a “Federal Tax Identification Number,” an EIN is required to open your business banking accounts, to hire employees, or to make business transactions. To apply for an EIN, file an IRS Form SS-4 or apply via the IRS online application.

Obtain a State ID Number

Some states require you to file a state ID number. Like your EIN, this helps identify a business for tax purposes. If it is needed, they are available via your State’s Department of Revenue.

Obtain Required Licenses and Permits

Federal, State, and local authorities require permits and or licenses for specific companies to operate legally. A useful database of federal and state business licenses and permits are at the U.S. Small Business Administration website.

Obtain Insurance

Because each partner’s personal assets are at risk of being affected if sued for any reason. Since each partner’s personal assets exposed to the claims of the partnership's creditors, the best way to obtain protection is to carry insurance for the unexpected. You should discuss these and other types of insurance coverage with an insurance agent.

Property and liability coverage
Auto Insurance
Health Coverage

Rushing into the partnership

Too many partnerships are formed in the moment of enthusiasm and not thought out clearly. Each partners time commitment should be clearly understood initially. Be sure to stop and review the pros and cons of your new partnership before committing.

Going into business with your friend

Sharing risk and having complementary skill sets are some of the significant advantages of business partnerships. Going into business with your friend will always seem like a great idea however if personalities clash, your hair business may be headed for trouble. Agreeing on social things and business aspects are two different things. It is a good idea to look at your friend regarding someone you'd be working with nonstop. When you work with your friend, your relationship will change, its inevitable. But how it changes will be up to you.

Overpromising

One common mistake to avoid before entering a hair business partnership is overpromising and saying yes to get the deal done, or partnership is going. Being able to keep your word is one of the most critical factors in building a professional reputation, especially in business. If you don’t hold your word, people will not take you seriously, overselling yourself will ultimately stretch you to thin.

Lack of Communication

There are three kinds of communications. No communication, miscommunication, and over-communicating. There is no middle ground regarding communicating with your hair business partners. Do not beat around the bush with anything going on with your hair business partnership. Be honest and direct with your hair business partners.

Not using your individual strengths

Partners don’t usually make the time or put in the efforts to determine their individual strengths and weaknesses. One of the advantages of forming a partnership is using the skills and strengths of each particular partner. Designating the proper task/position for each partner will allow each partner to focus on your strengths.

Lack of Trust

An honest and open relationship between partners is a foundation of any successful business partnership. Given the shared liability of a partnership, unethical practices will jeopardize all the other members of the partnership. Be sure that you are starting a business with someone you can trust professionally as well as personally.

Find The Right Partner

As with any business partnership, it is imperative to have a comprehensive agreement put into place for issues such as finances, division work, and clear rules for every partner. A simple handshake and verbal agreement will not suffice when your hair business name, funds, and reputation is on the line. When done correctly, your hair business partnership can be very rewarding, but an unsuccessful collaboration can destroy relationships on a permanent basis. Be sure to avoid the common mistakes listed above to avoid before entering a hair business relationship. Have any questions? Please let me know! Have you ever entered a failed partnership, let us know about your experience. May your best hair days be ahead of you!