(1)A sole trader is a business owned by one person. They are usually small in size, Hairdressers, butchers, and electricians often operate as sole traders, solo traders often use their own savings, bank loans or loans from friends and family to help them start and finance their business. There are several benefits of being a sole trader. They keep all the profit they make for themselves and get to run the business as they see fit, making all the key decisions by themselves. It is also simple to start a business as a sole trader as there are very few rules and regulations to follow. (2)However, sole traders take on all the risks of starting their own business and have the disadvantage of unlimited liability, meaning that sole trader is personally responsible for the organization’s debt. This means that personal assets such as a car or house are at risk of being sold to pay off business debts. Moreover, sole traders tend to work long hours. This is because they have full responsibility for all of their business. To keep labor costs to a minimum they will often avoid delegating tasks such as purchasing or advertising to others, preferring to save money by doing the work themselves. Sole traders can only raise limited finance, they will receive money from family and friends or use their own savings. Partnerships can have a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 20 partners. Lawyers, estate agents, doctor and dental practices often operate as partnerships Partnerships can raise more finance than sole traders. Banks are more likely to lend money to an organization that has many partners than to a sole trader. Partners can share the workload and responsibility of the business between them. In comparison a sole trader has no-one with whom to share their workload and responsibilities. Partners may disagree and argue about the future direction of their business. In contrast, a sole trader has the advantage of being the only decision maker. Any profit made is shared between two to twenty people. A sole trader has the advantage of receiving all profit. Like sole traders, partnerships have unlimited liability. All partners have the worry of being liable for any business debt the partnership has. Unlimited liability can be a major disadvantage for sole traders and partnerships. Private limited companies have limited liability, meaning an investor only loses the initial stake if a company goes bust. In law, a private limited company is separate from the people who own it. Its finances are separate from their personal finances. Because limited companies have their own legal identity, their owners are not personally liable for the firm’s debts
What is one advantage sole traders and partnerships have over private limited companies?