Growing one’s business in a new venture can be exciting, as it allows businesses to diversify and increase sales as well as their consumer base. And in the current circumstances created by COVID-19, many businesses are getting creative on this front. They are moving fast with temporary or long-term ventures to meet changing consumer demands.
MANY COMPANIES QUICKLY PURSUING NEW VENTURES
For example, retail giant Walmart Inc. is partnering with the Tribeca Film Festival to create the Walmart Drive-in. Many other companies have also expanded their products to include masks and hand sanitizer to meet the increased consumer demand for these products in only a short amount of time.
These ventures, like the Walmart Drive-in, might only be temporary. Regardless, business owners must be diligent and take care to measure the risks before moving forward, so they do not put their company in jeopardy or even face litigation.
THREE STEPS TO TAKE IN SUCH VENTURES
There are more than three steps business owners must take when pursuing ventures that carry their company’s name. In these cases, it is often wise for business owners to consult an experienced business attorney throughout the process to protect the business’s interests.
However, these three steps include some of the most critical issues business owners should evaluate in these ventures, including:
- Preparing operations: Inc. Magazine points out that one of the most common risks businesses face in new ventures is that they are ill-prepared to operate them. This could involve preparing the product or service, planning how to make decisions, hiring the proper staff and providing them with the proper training, having adequate funding, and planning for risks. Ineffective management of such new ventures can cause significant issues.
- Know the market: When expanding into a new area, business owners must ensure they understand what consumers expect in this market. For example, Walmart might be partnering with the Tribeca Film Festival, which is familiar with the movie market, but it is still an area outside of Walmart’s business as usual. Failing to deliver expectations in a new market can put businesses at risk of financial losses.
- Consider the brand: New ventures and growth can be good for a business’s brand, but it can also put it at significant risk. Business owners should take measures to protect the integrity of their brand as consumers have come to know it. This also often requires business owners to take steps to protect any intellectual property they might share in these ventures with new partners.
