by Chia Sihan

It is immensely satisfying to think that someone or a company is relying on you for a particular service or product that only you can produce. The satisfaction and pressure doubles when you are the only person responsible for making sure that your company delivers the goods on time.

Welcome to the exciting and exhausting world of business start-ups. Some industry experts have commented that starting a design business is as simple as getting yourself a workspace and voila! Things can start a-rolling…almost. Below are some points for consideration if you’re thinking of jumping out of the rat race and joining the marathon of running your own design business.

The design business comprises of two different categories with distinct objectives. It is important to realize that the two may not coincide with each other, which probably explains why many design business never got out of the red and close shop after a year or two.

Nevertheless, a major plus point of starting a design business includes flexibility, whether in terms of operating hours, projects or manpower. What cuts the fun into half most of the time is the business aspect, which may seem commonsense to the more business-savvy and to others, just a whole lot of jargon and complexities.

The first thing about starting any form of design business is to recognise that it is not unlike starting any other business. Being your own boss means having to be accountable for every single detail, from creating a solid business plan, canvassing for start up capital, sourcing for a good and affordable location, establishing a client database and basically letting the world (or the corporate world) know you’re in business.

Once a business plan is in placed, it’s time to seek help from other professionals (accountant, lawyer, bookkeeper, secretary etc) to get your business up and running. It may be heartening to note that some of the best businesses in town start off, and eventually succeed by word-of-mouth. For any business to enjoy longevity, who you know is just as important as what you know.

Many new businesses face the problem of finding a good location, one that is accessible to clients and projects a professional image. The lure of working from home is tempting, where you can get projects and the laundry done at the same time. Besides, the troublesome concept of work wear doesn’t really apply.

Based on other designers’ experiences, this setup would work if there is an allocated workspace within your home that is segregated from the main living space. You need to be free from daily distractions and able to exercise some discipline in constructing a daily productivity schedule and sticking to it. Also, when your enterprise eventually gets on track and at some point is ready for expansion, you’ll be able to look forward to building a more spacious and comfortable workspace for yourself, and your colleagues perhaps, if you’re considering going into a partnership or outsourcing your workload.

It is practical to get legal advice due to a number of reasons. A new company, especially a sole proprietorship needs to have insurance protection to cover the property and staff welfare in the event that should accidents happen, the owner could rely on the insurance claims for some compensation. You also have to factor in equipment, furniture and some renovation costs if you plan to rent an office space. If you’re unsure of you want your office to look like, it would be wise to hire an architect. A good one would be able to work with you to develop a customised workspace and oversee the process so that you would not end up with a substandard office.

There is also the contentious issue of separating work from personal life, and in the initial stages it is common, almost expected that many business owners put in the hours to get their groundwork done. Once things stabilize though and projects start coming in regularly, one useful tip is to end the day by including unfinished work on the next day’s schedule, provided it is not due the next morning.

As a rule of thumb, keep in mind that information and resources are freely available most of the time, either from your peers or the Internet. Any who charges a consultation fee when you’re still looking for information is probably more interested in your money than providing good service. After all that hard work and research, you’ll be better off looking for someone who will spend time and effort to understand your company’s needs and goals.




Chia Sihan
TAXI Design Network


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TAXI would like to extend our grateful hands to Jorge Restrepo for contributing the very pretty banner above. A Colombian, this graphic/web designer also makes beautiful pictures. Check him out at his personal homepage.

We are proud to also say that Jorge Restrepo is TAXI Design Network’s gold member.

If you still can’t get enough of him, google him and be awestruck at his diverse talents and enticing eyes.

P/s: We love his name - Jorge Restrepo ...

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