Getting advice for your business

A journey that an entrepreneur takes is a messy one. There is no such thing as linear growth or linear momentum, it’s all over the place and to an extent that’s what makes it fun.

But as everyone will tell you ‘you have to speak to people’ you have to ‘get out there’ and this is what this blog post is all about – conversations.

Networking and talking to people is such a HUGE part of starting a company. If no one knows who you are or what you do, there isn’t much chance of any sales. However, talking to people about your idea when it is not fully formed has it’s dangers and I know this all too well.

Lucy Rose has been an idea and a start-up company for a little while now, despite not having yet launched. I speak to many people and each and every person gives their opinion on what the brand should look like, the price point, the consumer, the message, the packaging etc etc. Despite this all being extremely useful information to me, sometimes all it does is make the messy road even messier.

Different versions of the same business

Swimming inside my head are numerous different versions of the business. One where the RRP is low and the clientele are different to the other extreme where the RRP is very high. One where the business is called something different and has different values to the one I wrote down only yesterday. One where the business model is totally different to the B2C model that I’d originally taken as a given.

There are so many ways in which to monetise a business and so many different customers to target. Different price points create different revenue pots which creates different valuations which creates different investors. I feel like one of those small stretchy rubber yellow men being pulled in all different directions at times. And that leads me to a thought I had recently.

Stay true to yourself

I am the Founder of my business. I know it better than anyone. I understand the essence of the company which means that I should really be the one dictating the direction. I imagine so many people are swayed by low production costs to make the RRP as low as possible because everybody loves a bargain and this model can be scaled quickly and effectively. But what if that is not the essence of the business. What if we value high production costs because it means that the people making the product actually get to go home to a nice house and have a proper meal with their family?

There obviously has to be an element of profit otherwise you’re in the wrong business. But make sure your business represents what you stand for and what you believe in. For us, that’s high quality, high performance, top end materials with a focus on sustainability. Okay, the RRP will be higher than you’ll ever expect, but it’s what feels right.

Until next time,

Em x