Growing your business: From start-up to scale up

Scaling up for success

Are you a thriving start-up, or looking to scale up your operations? Do you have aspirations to continue your business journey and really make a mark? As an emerging business you have great ideas with the potential to expand. But you face the same issues as any other company as you go through the stages of growth.

A close-up of a young businesswoman and businessman applying post-its to a window.

The four stages of business growth

Start-up

You have a great idea for a product or service with the potential to disrupt the marketplace. Your first hurdle is to raise finance to fund development and hone your idea. It’s also critical that you meet your tax compliance deadlines - at a time when cash flow is critical, you can’t afford to pay penalties.

Find out more about Start-up considerations

Early stage

Your business plan should outline your funding requirements as you grow and how you plan to allocate them. Attracting key talent is essential right now.  Depending on your objectives, there are different schemes that can incentivise the right people to join your business and help you create the foundation you need.

Find out more about Early stage considerations

Scale up

There is rapidly increasing demand for your product or service, but growth brings new challenges for your business. To ensure that you continue to thrive you need to continue to develop your products and services, reward and keep your key staff members and stay ahead of industry trends.

Find out more about Scale up considerations

Exit

Selling a business is one of the biggest decisions you will make. Choosing the right exit strategy can be daunting. To maximise the value of the sale, it’s vital that you’re in control of the process from the very start. It’s important that preparing for an exit starts early.

Find out more about exit strategies and considerations

How we can help your emerging business

PwC's specialist team provide tailored advice and solutions to emerging businesses at each stage of their growth journey. Whether you need help managing your tax affairs and cash flow or financing your growth plans, we are with you every step of the way.

We can help you understand the issues that impact your start-up or scaling business.

  • Our dedicated team have experience implementing tax efficient management incentivisation schemes for businesses of every size and across every industry.
  • We can provide support to ensure you never miss a tax compliance deadline. We can help you develop a customised plan to reduce the administrative burden of regular tax filings, improving cash flow in your business. 
  • PwC have developed a customisable Brexit impact assessment tool. It can help businesses determine their exposure and the major risk areas. This tool has been used by organisations over the course of the last 12 months with positive results.
  • Our global network provides you with access to international knowledge and tax planning opportunities. These are crucial when preparing to expand overseas and take advantage of new markets. 
  • We work with companies to ensure they keep up to date with the latest developments in the R&D and KDB regimes. We have significant experience of working with the Irish Tax Authorities on claims for R&D tax credits. 
  • We can advise you on how to finance your business, taking account of the likely need for phased funding as the business develops. This includes helping you with fundraising and availing of tax relief under the Employment and Investment Incentive Scheme. We can also advise you on how to structure your investment in the business to minimise tax leakage on a future sale or exit.

Contact us

Colm O'Callaghan

Colm O'Callaghan

Partner, PwC Ireland (Republic of)

Tel: +353 87 776 1711

Conor Meaney

Conor Meaney

Manager, Tax, PwC Ireland (Republic of)

Tel: +353 87 468 5112

Follow PwC Ireland