Hanging out my Shingle........

Stuart Ablett

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Tokyo Japan
Yep the time has come, I'll still be at the Liquor shop, but I'm starting my own business. In the beginning, I'll be mainly working for the shop fixing stuff.

This is what has started everything.

The MILFH owns a small apartment house, it is only 4 small apartments. We had the roof leak badly, and one apartment was badly damaged, and the roof was fixed and the apartment was really nicely redone, the roof and the reno of the apartment cost over $50,000 :eek:

So, there are two more apartments that need fixing up, the MILFH says she has no money to pay to have them fixed, I have a buddy living in one, he just wants a cheap place to live, so it is OK, for now.

The other one, she says she cannot afford to fix it, it needs a new bathroom and new floors in the kitchen, and all new wallpaper etc.

I told her the materials to fix it up, on a rough estimate, would cost around $1500 to $2000. Right now the apartment is not rentable.

When fixed up, we will get between $500 and $600 a month. Makes sense to fix it up and then rent it, right?

Well, she says she does not have the money :rolleyes:

So, this is the offer, I'll pay everything myself to fix it up, my labor and the materials, then, once it is rented, she will pay me back each month.

She agreed to this, as even if I actually make some money, she, will stand to benifit in the long run, as six to eight months later, she will have paid me off and will be getting the money for herself.

To do all of this, I'll need to start a company, I will need to give her an invoice for the work for paying taxes.

Now, my question to you guys, what should I call my company?

I can call it just about anything I like :rolleyes: but, I want it to be all inclusive.

Calling it "Stu's Woodworking" won't do, as the rules for running a company here, in Japan, are interesting in several ways, one is, when I originally file, I have to give them an idea of what I expect to be doing, so if I put "Woodworking" then I'll be stuck if I want to, say, import tools, I'd have to start another company....:huh:

My wife thinks it is best to stick with our family name, so the idea is "Ablett Enterprises"

Anyone have any other suggestions?

Yes, this is a sort of stealth gloat as well! :D
 
Not knowing the details of how the Japanese system works, this is only a guess, but I think your wife may be right. My reasoning is that "Enterprises", alludes to many different ventures, and as to the question of exactly what you would be doing, you would answer that you would be investing in and developing a variety of ventures including service, construction, remodeling, imports, sales, and any other ideas you might want to include. If that would fit into the rule structure there, it should give you an umbrella to cover about anything you might want to venture into.

Good luck with it.
 
stu, cool you`re starting your own business! the "enterprises" thing would be a good umbrella name to use forming seperate llc`s (if you can do that in japan?) that would give you and your family two layers of legal protection should problems arise.....so in effect ablett enterprises would own "stu`s woodworking", "xyz tool importers", and "curlys remodling" it`s really not much more dificult to set things up this way than to do it as a sole propritorship......something to think about?......tod
 
Congratulations (I think) Stu. With the Japanese rules the way they are 'Ablett Enterprises' sounds like the way the go. A slight variation, that I prefer is "Ablett Endeavours''. Somehow, to me, one puts more of ones self when they are engaging in an endeavour than than they put into an enterprise.
 
stu, cool you`re starting your own business! the "enterprises" thing would be a good umbrella name to use forming seperate llc`s (if you can do that in japan?) that would give you and your family two layers of legal protection should problems arise.....so in effect ablett enterprises would own "stu`s woodworking", "xyz tool importers", and "curlys remodling" it`s really not much more dificult to set things up this way than to do it as a sole propritorship......something to think about?......tod

Well, I just talked to a buddy who is setting up his own business.

He said an LLC cost $5000 to set up, an LC cost $1500...... :huh:

Now he also said, that his accountant friend told him he can buy a used company, for a lot less than the $1500 to set up an LC, so we will both be looking into that.

The other thing I found out is that you can open a business, and then when and if the business starts to turn a profit, you can then set up the company. If the business stays small, then I just declare myself "Self Employed" and file my taxes that way, so, I will get it done, one way or another.

How about Dungeon Enterprises :D

We shall see.

Cheers!
 
Stu,

I understand you can set up a YugenGaisha for 0 yen capital but you will have to pay for the legal papers, about $5000. In the end of the first five years you need to turn a profit and have the required capital in the company account. Up to about five years ago Yugen Gaisha required that you have $30,000 in the company bank account up front to open your door for business. The government changed that rule in order to help new businesses start up. For a KabushikiGaisha the same rule applies but the capital needed at the end of the 5 year grace period to retain your KK status is $100,000.

Another route to go is to do a Aoi Kakutei Shinkoku where you simply file an independent tax return listing your business name, running costs, profits, etc. There is no capital required up front to maintain this business status.

As I have been told the whole idea behind the KK status is that you are a heavyweight player and meant to be taken seriously in the business world whereas the Yugen Company is more like a Moma and Papa business.

Sounds like a good plan whatever you do Stu.
 
Thanks for the info Alex and the Japanese terminology, my lovely wife and I were trying to match up the English terms with the Japanese ones, and were not finding the answers we wanted.

I think I'll go with the last option mentioned unless I'm told otherwise by the accountant, at least for now, if we start to grow, we can look at that again.

Cheers!
 
The other one, she says she cannot afford to fix it, it needs a new bathroom and new floors in the kitchen, and all new wallpaper etc.
Speaking from personal experience... NO WALLPAPER!!! :bang:

So, this is the offer, I'll pay everything myself to fix it up, my labor and the materials, then, once it is rented, she will pay me back each month.
...
Now, my question to you guys, what should I call my company?

Sounds like you're going to be "Stu's Bank and Fix It Services".

Do be sure and get everything arranged and agreed to up front! :eek:

Seriously, hope you have fun with it. It does sound like it'll cut into your time at the L.Shop, won't it?

best wishes,
...art
 
Keep it formal

Stu

To echo Art's comments, make sure that everyone is in agreement as to the hourly rate that you are going to pay yourself. You don't want this to slip into the abyss of "honey do" work where you only get paid for materials.

Then, I would set up a time keeping system. Fill out sheets daily describing your activities (keep it to the nearest 1/4 hour)

I spent 15 years of my professional life consulting and managing a consulting group. We lived and died by our time sheets!

I'm sure the guys that do this for a living will really have some categories for you from real life experience, but some time codes that come quickly to mind are

demo

rough carpentry

sheet rock/plastering

cabinet installation

floor installation

tiling

finish carpentry

electrical

plumbing

painting

material acquisition (aka shopping)

Don't forget to charge mileage

You might consider keeping track of each apartment individually


I would have monthly project progress meetings, with a recap of activities/costs accrued to date and estimated future costs/completion.

Treat the MIL just like a customer during these meetings, don't do them on the fly, schedule a formal session, treat it like a business because IT IS A BUSINESS.


Best of luck

The adventure continues!


Jay
 
My business name is my name. Prentice Construction. More contractors in my area would probably start taking pride in their work if their name was on it.
 
Thanks Jay.

My wife and I are already making up lists of things we need to do and such to get this going.

I think the first project I'm going to do for money will be the Display Humidor, I'm sure the old gal will get sticker shock, but when I see they want $8000 US here for one that is MDF and seals that look like wood, well, whatever I make will be so much nicer, and so much cheaper too! :D

My lovely wife came up with a name................

"Handy Dandy" :eek: I added Corporation, as this is a wood often attached to names of companies here in Japan.

"Handydandy Corp" .............:dunno: :D
 
Stu,
congrats on the new shingle. I would definitely spell out in writing what you're going to get out of the deal with the dragon-lady. Thankfully my MIL lives with us and we get along just fine. I'd go with the Ablett Enterprises umbrella corp personally. That, or the filing of basic taxes scheme sound simplest.
 
Yes, I had to explain what a "Dandy" was to my wife, she just laughed :D

Even if I don't go the LLC or LC and just to the self employed filing thing, I still need to come up with a name.

Cheers!
 
Obviously your choice of name and other things are dependent on the culture there and the laws. Officially my Corporation is ACME Services Inc. I chose that as a generic name and because I was a big fan of the ACME Co. in the cartoons. :D But the main reason was here in the states I can set up as many DBA (Doing Business As) under the Corporation as I want.

My business is simply Horton Appraisal and Inspection. My dad started it and was established so I kept the name when I took it over. I would have chosen something more creative for a name if I had been in on the choice.

I have started a new Corporation and I chose the The KudzuPatch. It is a Real Estate related business. I wanted something that was different and hopefully people could remember. Kudzu grows all over the South and everyone knows what it is. Women (who typically motivate home buying) seem to remember the name and I get positive comments from them on the name.

For my woodworking, I stumbled up on the word Excelsior. thin curly wood shavings used for packing or stuffing These were used as packing material before Styrofoam peanuts came in. It was the perfect name for a Woodworking business I thought. (BTW I am not in business! It's just a hobby and will probably remain that way) I like the reflection back in time. It reflects my love of old tools especially hand tools and my desire to build with an old style craftsmanship. When I saw it I said that is it.

All that rambling and no real point. Other than just take you time and don't rush the name. Make sure it's something your really happy with. To me a name is a big deal.
 
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