Eden, Cumbria, The Lake District – A natural choice for business

Start Up Advice

Starting a business is both exciting and rewarding, this page aims to signpost you to the people and organisations who can help you in this process to help make your business dream a reality.

We have listed some information below that should help you when setting up your business:

  • To find a premises in Eden, use our Land and Premises Search
  • If you own or rent any business premises, you will need to pay business rates, however some small businesses may qualify for rate relief, find out more on the Business Rates webpage
  • You will also need to register your business with HMRC.  If you are self-employed there are also online webinars and email updates that you can access to help you with tax, national insurance, business records and expenses
  • From the rules on displaying your business name to offering credit, and from safety standards for toys through to ingredients listing on food packaging, contact Trading Standards and they will put you in touch with an officer who can advise you
  • Certain businesses (e.g. hotels, restaurants, entertainment, child-minding, pet shops, street traders etc.) require specific licences to operate and the Council's Licensing department can help advise you on the particular needs for your business
  • To find out more about your legal obligations contact a local solicitor or follow the HM Gov advice
  • If you are setting up a business that sells food or beverages, you will need to register with the Food Safety Team
  • Markets are an ideal place to test your products before investing in a larger premises such as a shop, markets take place in a number of our towns across the district. Find out more about renting space at a local market on the Council's Markets webpage
  • Although grants aren't as available as they may have been historically, our finance pages contain a wealth of information on grants, loans, crowdfunding and other finance schemes
  • Some businesses decide to become limited, to do this you will need to register with Companies House
  • If you would like to bid to provide services for local authorities, register your details on The Chest to keep up to date with the latest opportunities
  • Follow us on Twitter @InvestinEden or like InvestinEden on Facebook

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