LEGAL

Launching with the end in mind

In the effort to shed some light in launching your business successfully and further providing a softer landing for and when the business faces challenges. We can all agree that it has taken the Covid-19 global pandemic for us to take a step back and reexamine many aspects of our lives and reflecting on what matters most. The traditional forms of operating a business are fast becoming redundant in the forever changing digital landscape. For instance, we see how remote working has now become a viable option as well as having seen a trajectory in the home services sector which has opened us to multiple streams of income in using the digital space.

Start-ups are said to be rising at the fastest rate in more than a decade, more so with the rise of social media, we are seeing more and more digital entrepreneurs.

Every entrepreneur needs a website and that comes with legalities. You need not have a fully-fledged website but you can start with a one-page and build as you grow.

Electronic Commerce (eCommerce) plays a vital role in our daily lives whether personal or professional.

Before the coming of eCommerce, the dominant form of commerce was the brick-and-mortar businesses

CEO of Bliss Director at Meraki Legal Co- Founder of Learned Friend and The Professionista

such as retail outlets that have at least one physical location. Brickand-mortar commerce still exists, but is quickly being replaced by eCommerce. In an evolutionary sense, most of the brick-andmortar stores are transforming into eCommerce stores.

So, what are the common “to-do’s” before launching an online business or electronic magazine just like MentHer?

When establishing an online company, the common preliminary steps include, considering the form of company to be incorporated (whether private, public or non-profit) as these are incorporated for different purposes. Incorporating the company with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC). The main constitutional document for a South African company is its Memorandum of Incorporation (MOI). Shareholders’ agreements are subservient to the MOI and are not filed with the CIPC. It is also possible to purchase a shelf company and subsequently make changes to it (directorship changes, share transfers, adoption of a bespoke MOI). What one must also consider are licences that a company will need to obtain to operate certain businesses, such as a bookmaker’s licence for instance. Further, considering the registration of intellectual property (such as trademarks, domain names and/or patents) especially in the information era. On incorporation, a company is automatically assigned a tax number by SARS for income tax purposes – so another important consideration is registering for the correct taxes as well as understanding the specific applicable thresholds. Businesses are governed by

contracts and an online business is no different. The parties that an online business can expect to contract with are similar to those with which a brickand-mortar business will interact and are largely dependent on the type of business conducted.

Over and above contracts required for the operation of any business, online businesses can generally expect to contract with:

- Developers, web, application and user interface designers and providers of various services required to provide digital products and services such as connectivity, hosting services, payment platforms and payment gateways. - Content providers, if the business will not be providing its own content. - Software providers and antivirus providers. - Customers.

It is advisable to seek expert legal advice when drafting these contracts since they can be very technical and the various laws that govern contracting on the internet, such as;

- Electronic Communications and Transactions Act (ECTA); - Consumer Protection Act (CPA); - Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA); - National Credit Act 2005 (NCA); - Regulation of Interception and Monitoring of Communications and Provision of Communication-Related Information Act (RICA)

Which need to be applied with understanding.

As an entrepreneur, I implore existing businesses and startups to put the importance of reflecting and reviewing their strategies to have the agility to positively respond to changing (and sometimes very challenging) circumstances such as the Covid-19 pandemic.