Want to Start a Business with a Friend? Here's What You Need to Know to Survive

Kristen Doute, Katie Maloney-Schwartz, and Stassi Schroeder have worked together as SURvers for years, and now they've gone into the liquor business together. The three, who love to call themselves the "Witches of WeHo," have created their own potion (aka Pinot Grigio, but let's just go with it) and are officially in business together.

The three Vanderpump Rules friends took to Instagram to announce the partnership on November 14, saying: "Hey witches, may we have your attention. The Witches of WeHo have an exciting new project ... Do you love wine? 'Cause we do."

Why yes, we do.

Vanderpump Rules' leading lady Lisa Vanderpump also went into business with Tom Schwartz and Tom Sandoval, inviting them to be partners in her latest West Hollywood bar, Tom Tom.

Now, The Real Housewives of Potomac's Karen Huger and The Real Housewives of Atlanta's Cynthia Bailey are ready to collaborate on a new business venture together. The two talked about how they respect each other's busniess hustle (Karen recently launched her La'Dame Fragrance by KH and Cynthia has multiple fashion business and charities.)

"You have your perfume but I’m sure this is the first of many things to come," Cynthia told her, adding, "We should talk about doing something together."

Karen agreed so Cynthia promised to find them something to collaborate on. "We’re gonna figure out something together because I love being around other successful, powerful women. I can’t imagine what we’d come up with together."

Sounds great, right? Except when you venture into business with a good friend and everything goes wrong. Then you're bound to lose money — and the friendship.

So many partnerships, especially among friends, don’t survive, reports Forbes. “In fact if you research how to start a business with a friend, you’ll see that expert after expert likens business partnership to marriage: Are you willing to hang in there with this person through the celebrations and failures? The curveballs and the monotony? Can you accept that the little things about them that may annoy you now could only magnify under stress?”

That’s a lot to take on.

Forbes advised asking yourself the following to see if you stand a chance at a successful business relationship with your friend:

To what extent do you trust your partner?
How will they exemplify your brand?
Do they have a key skill or selling point you don’t?
Are they in a stable place in life?

Also trying a project together first may be helpful. “Along with envisioning what would happen if the company were to become wildly successful, you also need to think about what will happen if things go south,” said the report.

Restaurateur Vito Balsamo (who owns multiple businesses with friends, like New York's Dough by Licastri) told Personal Space that it's never easy starting — or running — a busines with pals. Although he's been successful at it, he's seen his share of ups and downs.

"It’s not easy," he said. "You need to consider the relationships aside from you and your partners. If your families are friends it can affect business.

"Business is tough enough," he added. "However, when you go into business with a friend and it doesn’t work out you not only potentially lose the business but the friendship as well."