Making a phoenix a success

Contrary to popular belief it’s not that easy successfully ‘phoenixing’ a business.  Trusting to luck or assuming things will somehow improve once the company’s debts are written off are recipes for disaster.

• You might find it difficult to get all the support you need from your bank, customers, suppliers or even key employees.  They could reduce the support they’re willing to give or even shun you entirely.  Insolvency is divisive, people tend to look after their own interests first and foremost: for example your customers could use the failure of the business to re-appraise what they do, how they do it and with whom.
  Ask yourself what support you need, and from where, for the business you want.  How can you make sure you can get it?  Should you use our Business Resuscitation Programme to get that support?;
• Although freeing a business of its debts deals with the symptoms of its problems, it doesn’t deal with the causes.  Identifying the real causes for the problems of the business often means real soul searching.  You will probably need to bring in more help and improve your own personal skills to eliminate weaknesses or blindspots.  A phoenix operation that merely does the same thing in the same way is doomed to fail.
  What are you going to stop, continue or start doing to make the phoenix a success?  Are you prepared to make all the changes you need to?  Do you have all the entrepreneurial, managerial and technical skills, in the right mix, to succeed?;
• There are major issues re-using a liquidated company’s ‘name’: a failure to deal with these in the best or proper way at best can lead to the business underperforming against expectations, at worst they can lead to personal liability for the debts of the new business and a criminal record;
• Obtaining the right level of funding can be a real problem.  Some banks won’t touch phoenix operations on any terms.
  How much money do you need?  Add 50% more than you think, then ask yourself how you are going to get it? Will my Business Resuscitation Programme help?
• You will lose some business, it’s inevitable.
  How much do you expect to lose?  What impact does that have?  Does it make the business more controllable, you more confident in the sustainability of the business or does it endanger its survival?

Only by fully investigating these issues with a firm interested in securing a long term solution rather than short term gain will you give yourself the best chance of things working out second time around.