The Pros and Cons of Starting a Business with a Child Friend

The journey of a single entrepreneur is lonely – it's all on you, no one to bounce ideas off of, and rough waters require incredible personal drive to keep going. That's why getting a business partner in your new venture is often considered a smart move to reduce risk and spread the challenges. Two heads are better than one, right?

Finding a partner, however, is easier said than done.

Where can you find someone with the right skills, willingness to take on the risks and responsibilities of a fledgling business, and – perhaps most importantly – the integrity and honesty required for meaningful collaboration? For some, the first response is to look closer to home, to someone with whom you already share a strong bond and trust deeply, that is, a childhood friend.

That's what I did. I started a business with my friend Rihards, whom I have known since we were in elementary school. We sold our first business for six figures, and now run Supliful, a consumer packaged goods startup. Would I like to do it with someone else? No. But has it always been smooth sailing? And no.

From my 15+ years of experience running a business with my childhood friend, here are the three pros and the biggest cons.

Three professionals who start a business with a child's friend

Usually, a childhood friend is someone you know closely, and vice versa. This brings several benefits to the business partnership.

1. Realistic expectations and interactions

You know what to expect. You know each other's strong suits, weaknesses, boundaries, talents and motivations. At first, enlisting a friend may have drawbacks from a business perspective. However, knowing what these can be allows you to deal with them more effectively.

While a foreign partner may sometimes offer immediate direct benefits in the form of hard skills and knowledge, it is difficult to measure what they lack, which may cause unpleasant surprises further down the line. With them, it may take a long time to develop synergy and get on the same page.

Of course, it will take time to find the perfect synergy with a childhood friend, too. That said, the foundation should already be in place, which helps avoid growing pains. For first-time entrepreneurs, there will be a lot of learning, navigating and restructuring, and you need a flexible person on your team who is willing to adapt, change roles, and respond to new developments. This, in my experience, is easier to do with an equal, that is, a friend, compared to someone who is very specific about what they bring to the table, that is, an external partner.

Related: 5 Valuable Lessons for Beginner Entrepreneurs

2. Simple, honest communication

Every entrepreneur faces difficulties. Dealing with it in the most effective way is important for moving forward. In this case, in my experience, reliable communication is essential.

Honest communication, however, is not something you can take lightly. The business world, in general, and the startup space, in particular, have a certain song and dance, where failure is painted as a learning experience, challenges are called opportunities, and setbacks are just trials.

Yes, but sometimes, failure is just that – failure. And the best way to overcome brutal honesty. This is easier with a friend as a business partner than with another party. You can say things to each other that might be too difficult to say to someone else, allowing you to skip the charades and get straight to solving problems.

This freedom and ease of communication (and lack of pretense) extends to all aspects of the business and helps keep things both grounded in reality and moving quickly.

3. You are in the same group

Never underestimate honesty in business. Knowing that you are together and have each other's backs has gotten us through thick and thin—for example, having someone you can confide in without worrying about it being used against you or fully trusting each other to make independent decisions that benefit the company. big.

With a friendship, there is a level of trust from the get-go that can take years, if not decades, to develop with a foreign partner.

Related: I Started a Company With My Best Friend, and 10 Years Later Our Partnership Is Stronger Than Ever

The biggest disadvantage of starting a business with a child's friend

As anyone who has ever started a business with a friend will tell you, one of the worst things is that it will affect your friendship. In one sense, it may make it stronger than before. But it will also completely change the dynamics – something that not everyone is ready for.

Business challenges, financial pressures and differing opinions can test friendships in unexpected ways. Disagreements can be personal, and personal issues can permeate business decisions, no matter how united, aligned, or closed-minded you are.

Of course, in business, the highs are really high, and few emotions match the joy of celebrating a great achievement with someone who is a big part of your life. But the lows are really low, and, in such cases, the obvious honesty that is not a good thing can come back to bite you when everyone is down in the dumps and speaking your mind to each other no-holds-barred.

At the end of the day, there is a real danger of partnership taking the upper hand over friendship. The truth is that both must be nurtured. Striking the balance can be difficult, but no one is in a better position to do it than you and your childhood friend.