Setting up home salon

[zamosangel]

Hi everyone , ok I just wanted some advice, I'm going to be setting up my own home salon , my question is do I register it with company's house website? Also I've been told that my salon name can't be the same name as any other business , is this true? Sorry I'm learning everything , I wasn't sure if I had to register with company's house or if that was only for big businesses . Please help, any advice on steps to be taken would really help me . Xxx

 

[zamosangel]

Just wanted to ask again if anyone has any advice on this x

 

[asteropi]

Not sure what you mean company's house. Please explain that further
As to having an existing name, legally nobody can forbid you unless they've trademarked their name and logo, in which case it is forbidden yes. And even in that case If the 2 businesses aren't of the same nature, say Shellac for nails and Shellac for wood processing, then they can't touch you. Hell you could even pick a non-trademarked name, adopt it yourself, trademark it and then sue the others to change it...! Don't but just saying...! There are a couple of restrictions within same city or county etc, but you would be best to ask that at your local council

 

[zamosangel]

When I say company's house it's the uk register of business , it's on the gov website and it has a business name checker as apparently you can't pick a name that is the same or similar to another . This has confused me so much . Thank you for your explanation also as I've been struggling to find a name that's not already registered . Where would I find if a business has a trademarked name ? X

 

[asteropi]

When I was checking mine, it was on the government pages, ministry of trade. There you get links for the trademarked names.
You can trademark a name for different areas. For example a country, Europe, or international! Of course the fees are accordingly.
For example a salon would only care to be trademarked within the country limits. I wouldn't care for example if there was a salon in Germany or Japan with the same name. But companies like CND are trademarked internationally.

As to the company's house that you mention, well I'd never heard of it. But as I said every country is different and there bound to be some restrictions.
We have a similar restriction here and truth be told, if there is an existing name I adopt, and neither is trademarked, then the owner of the original is allowed to sue me for the stealing. However everything is relevant again. If I have a restaurant in Athens called 'Steak House' and I was the first, then my main concern would be that no one else in Athens has the same name. But would I really care if I found such a restaurant in another city? No! Because there would be no competition. On the contrary, I might have suggested a partnership. Come up with same recipes for example or a common website. Point is even though I'd be the first on the government list, and the other restaurant wouldn't even be on it, I still wouldn't have any reason to doubt their name or their right to it.
But perhaps a UK based geek would be better suited to help you. I don't really know if it's obligatory for you to register.
The best advice I could give you is that if you are truly setting this up as a business then you follow business guidelines.

However, I get the feeling that you are looking at it all wrong. You are struggling with the legalities instead of enjoying the process.
A name is not something you pick out of a list, it's something that you get to live with for the rest of your life. Would you pick your baby's name out of a list?

 

[BannerPenguin]

Hi everyone , ok I just wanted some advice, I'm going to be setting up my own home salon , my question is do I register it with company's house website? Also I've been told that my salon name can't be the same name as any other business , is this true? Sorry I'm learning everything , I wasn't sure if I had to register with company's house or if that was only for big businesses . Please help, any advice on steps to be taken would really help me . Xxx

To answer your questions;

If you are just setting up as a sole trader then you don't need to register with Companies House. That's only if you want to be a limited company.

Your name can't be the same as any trademarked name in the same 'class' which basically means industry. You can use this website to look - https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/intellectual-property-office

It's wise not to have the same name as anyone within a decent distance of yourself. Just saves confusion for clients and any possible threats from the other business as you could be seen as 'passing off' as them which you don't want.

 

[zamosangel]

Everything you have said makes perfect sense and is a massive help , yes I probably am getting wrapped up in the legalities as I don't want to get into any trouble . I've picked so many names that are personal to myself and my journey and evertime I've checked they are in use and so I have to think of something else, I can assure you I'm not going into the choice of name lightly as it means a lot to me, I will not just pick one out of a hat. This is something I'm thinking hard about , I just really dont want to put my heart and soul into making this business happen and then have it dissolved because I have not looked into the legal side properly .

 

[zamosangel]

To answer your questions;

If you are just setting up as a sole trader then you don't need to register with Companies House. That's only if you want to be a limited company.

Your name can't be the same as any trademarked name in the same 'class' which basically means industry. You can use this website to look - https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/intellectual-property-office

It's wise not to have the same name as anyone within a decent distance of yourself. Just saves confusion for clients and any possible threats from the other business as you could be seen as 'passing off' as them which you don't want.

Thank you so much !!! This is such a help!!!
Do you know who in the uk we have to register with ? I don't mean to come across over the top I just don't want to miss anything
I'm new to all this and this is a huge dream of mine after a life long battle so I don't want to leave any stone unturned x

 

[BannerPenguin]

Thank you so much !!! This is such a help!!!
Do you know who in the uk we have to register with ? I don't mean to come across over the top I just don't want to miss anything
I'm new to all this and this is a huge dream of mine after a life long battle so I don't want to leave any stone unturned x

You need to register with HMRC as self-employed

 

[zamosangel]

Thank you , I wasn't sure if I needed to register the business with anyone else

 

[Meira]

You'll need to check with your local council if there's any permissions you need from them, if you own your home get permission from your mortgage provider too, and also you buildings and contents insurer may not cover you if you are working from home. I had to switch our home insurance as Axa wouldn't cover us, I went with Balens it is more expensive but at least you know you are covered then.

Good luck, working from home is really great xx

 

[Holliexo]

Princes Trust website offers some fantastic information about business startups, broken down to make a much easier read than some others. You can also download a business plan template which gives you some indication of the kind of things you should be considering in your set up, for example pricing your services effectively (if you're 18-30 they also do a free course called the Enterprise course that consists of four day workshops on taxes/accounts/legalities/marketing etc)... I did this and found it a massive help, especially with the legal side of things!! also as mentioned have a good read on HMRC website and register as self employed (sole trader) with them. Company house is for limited companies and wouldn't be necessary for this scale of business (much more legal hoohaa involved). I'm no expert but hope this can help somewhat xxx