Most local businesses, especially in the informal sector, operate unregistered or licensed either under ZIMRA or the Company Registrar. This is mainly out of fear of paying taxes and other related charges. Other small scale businesses are unregistered because they do not know how the registration process works. In both cases however, unregistered businesses miss the opportunities and benefits that come with being registered.
According to Innocent Mugwagwa, operations director at Spectip Investments, a business registration company, “registered business operators or service providers enjoy the benefit of accessing bank loans to grow their business.” He adds, ‘Approaching a bank as a registered individual or corporate shows how legit you are and your seriousness in business, it’s one the major requirements required to get a business bank loan.”
Being registered also gives you the benefit of being able to acquire tenders, depending of products or services offered. Large or medium cooperates that require services from other operators through tenders, require registered business entities or individuals.Businesses that can stand a chance of being offered tenders need not be big. They can be small scale farmers or tomato vendors, service providers like photographers, tailors, shoe and leather makers and repairers or any of your small business operating at a street corner. But if they are not registered they miss on business growth opportunities.
Becoming a registered business operator gives you a look of professionalism. Even a small business needs to look professional to its clients, operating in your small office, giving your customer a receipt and a business card indicating ‘registered’ gives assurance of professional services. It’s those small things that small businesses overlook and expect them to be done only by big businesses. Entrepreneurs tend to forget that small and medium enterprises are competitors of big businesses that are already registered. Despite offering a cheap service or product at a street corner, customers also want trust worthy and professional business dealers and service providers.
“For a business to grow it has to be registered, tax compliant and have a bank account,” said Mr Mugwagwa. ”All businesses need to be registered including SMEs, those in the informal market. Vendors can also register under public business corporations.”
Registering businesses further helps the growth of our country’s economy through the circulation of money paid through taxes and as a result becomes beneficial to everyone including our national services. According to the ZIMRA’s website, all individuals, companies, partnerships and cooperatives who want to venture into any business venture are required to be registered. These include omnibuses operators, taxi-cabs, driving schools, goods vehicles, hairdressing salons, informal traders, operators of restaurants or bottle stores, small scale miners, cottage industry operators, operators of commercial waterborne vessels used for the carriage of passengers for profit and fishing rigs among many other businesses.
To register a business, one needs to have a business bank account, then approach ZIMRA, Company Registrar office in your area or private registration companies for registration assistance.
