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Sep, 15 2009

My hubby, my biz partner

When you feel you need a business partner to run your franchise, then instead of turning to an outsider why not partner with your hubby? You know one-another well, understand one other’s nature and needs, and are amicable too. Though your marriage is a s

In a marriage, you have already learnt to run the house together but if you think that the business life would be as easy and cheerful then you need to think again. Having your spouse as your partner can be of great help and can be enjoyable too but that may not be the case always.  Every coin has two sides and so does this relationship too.

The benefits

The secret of success of association with your companion, is to know when to team up and when to alter when things don’t work out. There are lot of couples who can’t even agree on what food to eat, let alone running a business. You should team up when you feel that it would turn out to be a positive experience.  Deepti, franchisee, Madame says, “My husband is helping me in my business. It is very difficult for a single person to manage a store and it is definitely not possible without family support.”

Therefore, teaming up with your mate will surely be of benefit to you especially when you are new in the field.  Some of the benefits include:

Pool of skills: If you are good at accounting while your husband does well in marketing, then you should handle your respective roles to make use of the best skills available.

Get resources together: When you join hands with your better half then you can also bring together your respective resources. Money could be one thing that can be clubbed together and put to use while contacts can be the other. You may have your contacts, while he may have his.  so they can be put to best use when required.

Better understanding: As you have been living with each other since you got married, you know the other person so well that you would know how he would react in a particular situation. This way you would help and offer support to each other in testing times.

Secrets of relationship: This business relationship may not work as thought of, if things between partners start getting out of hands. It is said that when things are good, they become better but if things turn bad they tend to get worse. So when things get dire between you two, you either work them out or you should know when to pull out. If you wish to make things work, here is what you can do:

Define roles and responsibilities: When starting the business, you should clearly define your roles and responsibilities. Both should be responsible for their own work and should have the last say in their respective departments. This would make the working more defined and clear for the employees as well. Vandana Jain, Franchisee, Cartridge World tells, “My husband also helps me in running the store. He helps me in accounts and some purchase decisions while I look after the sales.”

Be professional at work: You strictly need to maintain professionalism at work when dealing with one another, employees, customers and merchants. Practicality should not give way to emotions.

Maintain space in relationship: You should be able to maintain space in your relationship. Interfering in one-another’s work can lead to misunderstandings which can hamper the business operation. Jain says, “There is no disadvantage of working with my husband because he is not very interfering and whenever I need help or face hurdles I consult him and take his advice.”

Switching roles: You should be able to switch roles well. Once you’re home you should be able to resume the role of a couple. Work should be kept aside and attention should be focussed on things at home.

Generate an aura of competitiveness

Competition is said to be good if it’s healthy. You should work with the competitive spirit and try to bring out the best in each other.

Time management: When working in the same business it makes it easier to take care of work and your home. In case you are required at home then he can take care of work and  vice versa.

Winding up

Besides all that is said, it is only you who can decide if working with your counterpart is the right thing to do or not. Giving the whole prospect a thorough thought and discussing with your partner in detail will surely be of help in making the decision. So go on and take your pick!

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