Our “I’m voting as…” feature series has brought together some fascinating insight regarding the opinions of business leaders around the country. Sean Mallon is up next.
Who are you and what does your business do
My name is Sean Mallon and I’m the CEO of Bizdaq, an online platform which allows small business owners to manage the sale or purchase of their business from start to finish, all online. Our platform has been successfully used by convenience stores to online ecommerce businesses. We have provided users with the knowledge and tools which to save them huge amounts of time and retain their hard earned money.
How has your business changed over the last five years
We were only established in 2014, however previously we ran a traditional model business brokers for eight years. The marketplace has changed hugely in the past five years with one of the key areas being that now over 98 per cent of business buyers start their search online, as opposed to traditional media such as trade or regional press.
The biggest change in recent years is the number of sellings choosing to “self serve” when selling their business (i.e. listing on gumtree) to avoid high fees and contracts.
What are your growth plans for the next five years
We are currently focused on changing the way small businesses are bought and sold in the UK. We aim to become the only place where businesses are bought and sold, direct between owner and buyer. This is a huge shift in such a stagnant industry however we are already making waves. We have had early approaches from the US and Australia who see our platform having huge appeal abroad, and we intend to enter these markets in the near future.
What kind of government would you like to see elected
As a digital business in the north of England, we would like to see a real focus on delivering some of the exceptional talent and skills found in the UK to other areas than London. Most of our users are aspirational and hardworking small business owners, and they have recently outlined in a report we undertook that their biggest headache is the complexity of accounting rules and the time spent on them.
We would agree with this sentiment and believe a new government must make it as easy as possible to run a business, affording more time for business owners to focus on their business.
Read other “I’m voting as…” features:
- DrPete Technology Experts CEO Peter Chadha
- Develop Training CEO Chris Wood
- OMS managing director Clive Ormerod
Do you think government in general is doing enough to support businesses of your size
Sadly not. We hear the same from many others both in our space and other industries. There have been many “quick wins” aimed at small business such as the National Insurance employers contribution however these feel rather fickle given that there are other issues that, if addressed appropriately would make a much greater difference.
Has the impending general election caused any uncertainty regarding how you run your company
As a business we intend to drive our company forward regardless of the barriers introduced by a certain government, or the uncertainty surrounding an election and so it makes little difference to how we have or will operate.
That said, it is inevitable that the “unknown” will subconsciously affect some decision making for many businesses, be it recruitment or marketing spend – so the sooner it’s over the sooner we can all re-focus,
In one sentence, please finish this line: Im voting as
I’m voting as a multiple business owner and entrepreneur who wants the strongest possible landscape for my businesses to succeed with the least amount of barrier to growth.
Read more from our general election coverage:
- Matthew Hancock: The facts should be checked before Labour starts to make wishes
- Chuka Umunna: We have to stop gold plating European rules and regulations
- What to expect in the upcoming 2015 general election
Do you agree with Sean Mallon Is there anything you’d like to add Please let us know in the comments box below.
