We’re no business experts…. But we are entrepreneurs.
If you’re thinking of starting a small business or side hustle, we’d love to help out a little by sharing some of our experiences and lessons learnt. ‘Entrepreneur’ is an intimidating word. I suspect that most of us who have started a small business, or are planning to do so, don’t consider ourselves as such. The reality is, that no matter how modest your venture is, that is exactly what you are.
Entrepreneurship has been described as: “A person who sets up a business or businesses, taking on financial risks in the hope of profit” (Oxford English Dictionary)
For the most part, myself and my business partner Leslie, would probably call ourselves chancers, jugglers, students in the world of business, and above all, dreamers.
Our small business began with an idea that had been brewing in Leslie’s head for some time. I was lucky enough to be the one sharing the bottle of wine with her when she shared that vision.
To say that our (relatively) short journey has been a learning curve is an understatement. Don’t get me wrong, we don’t position ourselves as small business experts, but even if we can share one piece of advice that can assist someone who is thinking of taking the plunge, then our work is done.
We have made many mistakes and tried to learn from them. On the flip-side, our venture has been more successful in a short time than we could’ve dreamt of. We will also share those wins and how we made them happen.
Each week I’ll be sharing information on the key elements of starting out; everything from finding manufacturers, what insurances are required, set-up costs and profit margins, sales and marketing and a few other topics that will hopefully give you some insights and guidance. I’ll also be talking to fellow entrepreneurs who are making it happen to discover their top tips. I’ll be including links to quick online reads, great resources, and some podcast recommendations.
We would love to hear back from you with any questions, topic suggestions or simply to share your personal experiences and learnings.
We know that Proud Baby may not make us successful overnight, but the satisfaction of building a brand that is yours, and the gratification of getting those first sales is beyond any feeling I can describe. We hope you enjoy the blogs and some good take away points to help you to realise your dream.
With love from the Proud Baby team, Jill & Leslie.