Brits expected to create record number of businesses in 2017

The latest information from this study found that it generally takes between six and nine months for any new business to achieve a profit, with 37% relying on savings and 22% on part-time income during this challenging time. Furthermore, 21% said they would be reliant on support from a partner with 11% dependent on state benefits or a pension.

Unfortunately, the first year of operations can prove costly for the majority of these new businesses - 80% of respondents said that they had considered quitting entirely due to family, financial or emotional difficulties. 37% said that loneliness or self-doubt had almost forced them to give up their business.

Many of the emotional difficulties that were highlighted by the respondents included rows with business partners (commonly friends or sometimes even partners) over the amount of time and money being spent on the business. 14% stated that a comment by a contact or loved one had affected them as a cause of doubt.

Despite all this doom and gloom, 87% of respondents said these negatives were only temporary, with 78% stating that their family lives had actually improved as a result of being self-employed and 83% would describe their business as a success.

Darrell Sansom, managing director at AXA Business Insurance, commented: “The emotional rollercoaster of starting your own business is rarely talked about. But it is very common for you or people close to you to lose faith at some point when your business is in its infancy.

“Keep the faith: our research shows that those who persevere do reap the rewards of doing something that truly inspires them every day and getting a good work-life balance too.”