What is a small scale business
A small scale business is a business that requires a small amount of capital to establish, this kind of businesses usually have a small number of employees or in most cases personally handled by the owner, and are referred to as micro businesses (this is a term used by international organizations such as The World Bank and The International Finance Corporations. The term "mini business" or "Bop business is a common expression for a single family operated business with few or no employees other than them). Adapting to change is crucial in business and particularly in small businesses not being tied to and bureaucratic inertia makes it easier to respond to the market place quicker. These proprietors of small scale businesses tend to be intimate with their customers and clients thereby resulting in greater accountability and responsiveness. Small scale businesses are common in many countries depending on the economic system in operation. Examples of these businesses are door to door, street retailing, small shop, market place etc. Before considering the effect of small scale businesses Ghana, certain things need to be looked on which will be clearly stated.
A small scale business is a business that requires a small amount of capital to establish, this kind of businesses usually have a small number of employees or in most cases personally handled by the owner, and are referred to as micro businesses (this is a term used by international organizations such as The World Bank and The International Finance Corporations. The term "mini business" or "Bop business is a common expression for a single family operated business with few or no employees other than them). Adapting to change is crucial in business and particularly in small businesses not being tied to and bureaucratic inertia makes it easier to respond to the market place quicker. These proprietors of small scale businesses tend to be intimate with their customers and clients thereby resulting in greater accountability and responsiveness. Small scale businesses are common in many countries depending on the economic system in operation. Examples of these businesses are door to door, street retailing, small shop, market place etc. Before considering the effect of small scale businesses Ghana, certain things need to be looked on which will be clearly stated.
Door to door
In this form of small scale business, goods are carried from one place to another, either by hands, by carts or by car, motor bike or door to door sales. I know of some guys who stylishly hawk with fancy small travel bag, putting some small goods like stock shirts, jeans, perfume and jewelries, they stop by offices, shops and home, and they make some reasonable sales everyday. Hawking is the most cheapest and popular means of trading goods. People who are involved in hawking are called either hawkers or itinerants or door to door.
Benefits of door to door business
1. You can start with small amount of capital
2. It provides door to door services for consumers.
3. It serves as a medium for advertising
4. Goods sold by hawkers are likely cheap.
5. Hawking serves as a stepping stone to bigger business.
STREET RETAILING
These are retail traders who display their goods along major streets or urban areas. These traders are different from hawkers because they operate from a particular point. Some of these retailers go as far as raising some structures in form of stores to protect themselves and their goods from rain and sun. Their products may range from clothing, to motor spare-parts, food items, cosmetics etc.
MARKET PLACE BUSINESS
This is a method whereby traders agglomerate in a common meeting place-local market to buy and sell goods. Each trader has his own store or lock-up-store. The amount of capital required for this type of business depends mainly on the type and quantity of goods sold. All form of goods sold in this type of market range from food stuff to hard wares.
SMALL STORES BUSINESS
There are small stores where goods traded found in front of residential houses of the traders own building rents purposely for that type of business. These types of small stores are found in both urban and rural areas. Their capital requirement depends mainly in the type of quantity of goods sold in them.
MOBILE SHOP
This are small trade businesses where shops are moved from one place to another in motor van, car, lories. Like hawking trade, they are moved from area to area or road to road selling goods and services to people. Mobile shops sell almost all types of goods and they reach consumer easily including those in rural areas. These shops use all sort of advertising methods like playing music, the use of microphones to shout their waves etc. in order to bring the existence of their goods to the knowledge of the consumer.
TIED SHOP BUSINESS
These are businesses that confine whatever they sell in common with what their producer supply directly to them. The manufacturer of these products sold in these tied shops, support machinery for the sale of such product. Tied shops sell single products like ice cream etc.
WHY THERE ARE MANY SMALL SCALE BUSINESSES IN GHANA
1. Lack of sufficient capital in the part of business that should be used in establishing large business organizations saving as a result of low per capital income.
2. Majority of the people in Ghana fall into low income groups who can only afford to buy goods in units.
3. Majority of the people in Ghana are in small scale business like hawking because they have opportunities to reach out with end users.
In this form of small scale business, goods are carried from one place to another, either by hands, by carts or by car, motor bike or door to door sales. I know of some guys who stylishly hawk with fancy small travel bag, putting some small goods like stock shirts, jeans, perfume and jewelries, they stop by offices, shops and home, and they make some reasonable sales everyday. Hawking is the most cheapest and popular means of trading goods. People who are involved in hawking are called either hawkers or itinerants or door to door.
Benefits of door to door business
1. You can start with small amount of capital
2. It provides door to door services for consumers.
3. It serves as a medium for advertising
4. Goods sold by hawkers are likely cheap.
5. Hawking serves as a stepping stone to bigger business.
STREET RETAILING
These are retail traders who display their goods along major streets or urban areas. These traders are different from hawkers because they operate from a particular point. Some of these retailers go as far as raising some structures in form of stores to protect themselves and their goods from rain and sun. Their products may range from clothing, to motor spare-parts, food items, cosmetics etc.
MARKET PLACE BUSINESS
This is a method whereby traders agglomerate in a common meeting place-local market to buy and sell goods. Each trader has his own store or lock-up-store. The amount of capital required for this type of business depends mainly on the type and quantity of goods sold. All form of goods sold in this type of market range from food stuff to hard wares.
SMALL STORES BUSINESS
There are small stores where goods traded found in front of residential houses of the traders own building rents purposely for that type of business. These types of small stores are found in both urban and rural areas. Their capital requirement depends mainly in the type of quantity of goods sold in them.
MOBILE SHOP
This are small trade businesses where shops are moved from one place to another in motor van, car, lories. Like hawking trade, they are moved from area to area or road to road selling goods and services to people. Mobile shops sell almost all types of goods and they reach consumer easily including those in rural areas. These shops use all sort of advertising methods like playing music, the use of microphones to shout their waves etc. in order to bring the existence of their goods to the knowledge of the consumer.
TIED SHOP BUSINESS
These are businesses that confine whatever they sell in common with what their producer supply directly to them. The manufacturer of these products sold in these tied shops, support machinery for the sale of such product. Tied shops sell single products like ice cream etc.
WHY THERE ARE MANY SMALL SCALE BUSINESSES IN GHANA
1. Lack of sufficient capital in the part of business that should be used in establishing large business organizations saving as a result of low per capital income.
2. Majority of the people in Ghana fall into low income groups who can only afford to buy goods in units.
3. Majority of the people in Ghana are in small scale business like hawking because they have opportunities to reach out with end users.
