Small Business
4 dangerous costs your business has been ignoring
Whenever you step into the field of business, you have to be very calculative about your expenses. Usually the product’s selling price includes the cost incurred during the manufacturing of the product, but there are many regular and petty expenses that the business needs to account for to ensure they attain profitability. These costs can include the employees’ salaries, promotional and marketing campaigns that are always budgeted for carefully. However, there are a few costs that many business owners ignore, to the detriment of their bottom line. The dangerous costs your business may have been ignoring could include…
Office supplies
There is a considerable cost that comes with purchasing office supplies if your business doesn’t get it right. These costs include papers, pens, staples and other items that can be purchased from a wide range of suppliers, and you should certainly shop around to try and get the best deal- you don’t have to put all of your eggs in one basket. Among the costlier of office supplies are printer cartridges. Printer cartridges can be expensive but are commonly used in every business in some form so there are options to lower your printing costs if you shop around. Negotiating the best deal on each and every one of these office supplies, from pencils to printer cartridges, and doing so regularly will ensure your office supply cost is kept to the absolute minimum.
Maintenance costs
Overheads are often seen as a necessary evil, and therefore office maintenance costs are often ignored. Office costs usually include electricity, heat, water, power back-ups, air-conditioning and cleaning and are usually in place once a business starts trading. These costs can be left to run at their starting rate for years after implementation, but there is money to be saved here. Looking at the costs regularly in order to negotiate the best deal may seem like a lot of work, but ignoring these costs can leave you paying over the odds, having a real effect on your bottom line. Twice yearly checks on maintenance costs are enough to ensure you’re taking care of your overheads.
IT Costs
Many businesses fear technology will always be expensive and without looking into the ins and outs of IT services, may stick with what they know, paying over the odds for a service they barely use, or that doesn’t help them do business better. Overhaul your IT Costs by speaking to various service providers and ask for their advice on what you need. There are a wide variety of options out there for every size of business and there are scalable solutions for every type of business, from ecommerce to marketing sectors. Cloud based solutions are becoming extremely popular, and you may be able to pay monthly for a solution that grows with your business, meaning you’re not throwing money away for a service you’re not using.
Staffing Costs
The temptation when business is booming is to recruit, but companies that think twice about the way they go about this will be better off in the long run. Firstly, you should consider whether you need someone permanently or whether this is a temporary busy period that can be coped with by either paying existing staff overtime, or by looking for a temporary employee. Another possibility would be to hire a freelancer for certain tasks. The freelance market is becoming an attractive talent pool where employers can pick the most qualified people for certain tasks and save on unnecessary employment. Secondly, consider recruiting without an agency if you need to take on someone permanently. Although businesses usually have a relationship with recruitment agencies, it’s entirely possible to find good candidates through social media platforms such as LinkedIn.
Whatever sized business you’re running, there are always costs that are ignored, so why not take a good look at yours today and start to improve your bottom line.
Start up Finances – How to get the funding you need
You have a great idea for your new business, and you need finance to get it off the ground. All the ideas are there, but when it comes to funding, where do you turn to? There are many places where businesses can apply for start up finance. Before you can do that, you need to look at the business model to find out which funding source is best for you.
Business model
A business plan is a must before you approach any would be investor whether that is the bank or grant funding. The plan needs to be airtight including all the figures and cash flow to show growth in the business and how you expect to achieve it. A really important element is to show how strong the financial side will be and how you expect the money to propel the company and sustain it long term. Investors need to see this is not a short-term business but one where they can continue to receive a growth on their investment. Let’s have a quick look at where you can get your start-up finance from.
Grants
Depending where you live and the industry you are thinking of entering, you can apply for a grant. These can be low-interest rates on repayments. Grants can be difficult to hunt out, and you will really have to do your research.
Banks
Banks have dedicated business teams that can talk you through your plan and then can offer you money. The only issue with going straight to a bank is you are limited to their products.
Franchise
Franchises can be bought into, or you can start a franchise and reap the benefits of selling on your business model. Banks are more amiable to lending money to an established franchise meaning you are more likely to get start-up finance from them.
Business Angels
These types of loans or investments can be really hard to source. Business Angels are businessmen or women who are looking to invest their money in other companies. They all work on their own contracts, so you need to make sure you read the small print and know exactly what they expect from you and vice versa.
There is a lot to take on board when you are first starting out in business. If the finance side of it is something that you know, you will need support with why not try finding a company that will support you and your business model. There are some great virtual CFO companies offering you just what you may need when it comes to your start up finances. When looking for a firm to assist you make sure you decide beforehand what you need from them. Companies can help check out your new business idea and see if it is actually something that will work and sustain you a life – monetarily and work/ life balance. They can help assist with seeking out finance, knowing where to look as this is their job. You don’t want a company who take you on then once the finance is organised, leave you – or maybe you do! If you want or need assistance further down the line to help ensure the growth of the business, find a team who you feel comfortable can offer you that.
Finance and accountancy are a major part of any business. These are the areas that can drive your company forward and upward. Make sure you have all the help and support you need in these key areas to make yourself a success.
Computer Password recovery and solutions business Ideas
Have you ever forgot your password to your laptop or computer at any time and didn’t know what to do or how to unlock your computer. Yes we all have at some part of time done this! People not only forget passwords to the computers at home but also it’s a regular occurrence at the office as well. Password recovery tools and file recovery is an in demand service due to the progress in technology and devices.
So what do you do if your forgot your password?
Well in the first instance many people would just call a PC help or support guy to recover access to their laptop or computer. Many people would just turn to google search and search for recovery tools or software or methods available to try and see if there is a way to re-gain access to their pc or computer .
The fact is that there is a wealth of information on the internet to do stuff, even how to recover or reset your password, but often these free methods are quite technical and also long winded, so much so that a normal lay person would not be able to follow or do it. Here is where paid custom software solutions which were specifically built for this task come into play and also here is where the business opportunity lies for interested parties.
Business idea for computer password business
The custom password recovery software is handy not only to users who are a bit technical savvy and who can reset the passwords themselves, but is also available for purchase or buying for a computer repair business or a person intending to start a computer password support or recovery business.
A person with little technology know how can easily buy this software for a one time fee and provide a password recovery service for a fee to other people as part of their business and can keep re-using this software once purchased.
Password recovery software
The software is available at http://www.unlockwindowscomputer.com [ Two software options provided below ] and can be used by a computer repair business for resetting forgotten Microsoft windows passwords. This program recovers access to your PC without losing any existing files on the pc or laptop.
This pass resetting software works on all windows computers including the latest windows 8, windows 7 and also older version of Microsoft windows. It resets not only user passwords but also admin / administrator passwords. Once you use this program to reset the existing pass you should be able to login back into your laptop/computer.
This custom software makes it a breeze to unlock a laptop or pc within minutes by just resetting the existing password and so no files are at risk of being deleted or lost. Click the above link provided for more details on how this software works.
Take this example below as a typical question asked for a lost password
I forgot my password for my hp laptop !
Question: I have tried everything to get into my laptop. The password I had set up will not work for some reason. Is there anyway I can bypass this and get into my laptop.
I bought a HP Pavilion Laptop Quad Edition – with Windows 7
Prod. No. – LXXXX 34-Bit
Please help.
I do have two boot disks that came with laptop. I have tried to use them to restart and recover passwords, but the disks don’t seem to want to run.
I am obviously doing something wrong.
Helpme
and Thank You
Sheila
SOME other popular enquiries in relation to lost passwords
1. How to reset Windows 7 administrator password? I forgot my Windows 7 password for my laptop.
2. I changed my laptop login password and unfortunately lost it, how do I recover it without files lost?
3. I bought an old Dell laptop installed Windows 7 and I don’t know the administrator password, how do I do?
Solution : Use Custom Password recovery software as provided above
With computers and laptops becoming things that people can’t do without in this century, resetting passwords or then recovering files and access to lost passwords and computers is becoming a regular necessity.
Passwords are nowdays used for everything from email ( Gmail , Hotmail , Yahoo email ) to tablets ( ipad , Note) to smartphones ( Samsung galaxy , iphone, HTC ) etc to secure your personal information on these devices and its handy to have a instant solution available just in case you forget or lose your password.
Given the number of devices that could need a password retrieval or resetting service in the future this is a possibly a good business idea that can be popular in the near future and there will only be more providers of software for this service as our appetite for more gadgets and technology services increase.
How to promote your pc password service or business
As in any business , marketing is a necessity and if you are starting a password resetting business then marketing your business or service is needed.
Promoting your service or password recovery business can be easy in this day and age. All you need to do is advertise your business via a website, get listings in local directory’s online and offline , yellow pages or do some ppc advertising to promote your local business or website.
You can get the password resetting software over here. Good luck!
The Benefits of Outsourcing Vehicle Maintenance
For a reliable and roadworthy vehicle, regular maintenance needs to be applied to ensure the safety of drivers is not compromised. Vehicle safety and reliability is a major concern for fleet managers, but the headache-inducing task of managing weekly and monthly checks on all fleets can be even more distressing – not to mention time consuming and costly.
The quality of the vehicle’s tyres, brakes, engine oil and fluid levels cannot be overlooked. Whilst some factors may seem irrelevant or easily delayed, it’s this neglect and postponement that will run the risk of fleet vehicles needing major maintenance. Poor vehicle management and significant expenses, combined with having to take your vehicles off the road screams disaster for fleet managers.
To alleviate the risks on your business and fleet vehicles, businesses are opting to outsource maintenance and vehicle management. As the day-to-day tasks of running your business add up, fleet managers are fast realising the positive effects outsourcing has. These benefits of outsourcing maintenance requirements are tied to measureable and intrinsic results. We take a look at how it’s a dependable solution to keeping your fleet on the road.
Gets You Back On the Road – Faster
One of the biggest benefits of outsourcing fleet vehicle servicing is your vehicle is being maintained by a team of qualified experts. Vehicle servicing may not be the core area of your business, but it is for someone else. Repairs will be arranged promptly and paperwork completed to ensure your vehicle is back on the road as fast as possible, in the safest condition with minimal productivity losses to your business. These guys know what they’re doing and will put their resources, energy and TLC into ensuring the vehicles are running smoothly.
The process in getting the vehicles roadworthy is fully managed, with minimal involvement required from you or your drivers. This ensures a time saving process for a fleet manager’s busy schedule.
Improved Company Focus
With less time wasted on worrying about regular vehicle checks, your company’s focus can stay on track for its core business. It’s easy as a fleet manager to get bombarded with constant quality improvements and enhancing your vehicles and this can chew up valuable time and money. Outsourcing vehicle servicing enables you to achieve your fleet’s goals and maintain more administrative and financial control.
Redirected Resources and Local Outsourcing
With the opportunity to redirect personnel and financial resources from non-core business activities to your company’s primary business, human resource productivity is significantly improved. Many companies opt to outsource because they don’t have the required resources within their own company from shop equipment to personnel, expertise and training. Getting a qualified team to take care of this will enhance driver/user satisfaction.
Fleet vehicles that are serviced locally will have the advantage of cutting down the time it takes for drivers to drop off and pick up vehicles. Most servicing companies will have a wide range of preferred suppliers to ensure you can choose one in a convenient location for local maintenance.
Managed Accounts and Cash Flow
Accounts are consolidated into one easy-to-manage monthly invoice when fleet maintenance is outsourced. Instead of drivers having to pay for their vehicle repairs at the point of service, it will be invoiced to your company workshop. Managed monthly accounts saves time with less paperwork and stress and ensures a smoother cash flow.
Vehicle servicing companies will carry all parts required for your fleet vehicles and inventory costs. No parts will need to be paid for by your business until it’s used on your fleet thus, increasing fleet utilisation resulting in increased cash flow and reduction in operating costs.
High-Quality and Approved Servicing
Once vehicle maintenance is outsourced, a team of experts will monitor the quality of any repairs and servicing done. Before any work can commence quotes are signed off by management, checked and approved.
Having repairs completed to the highest of quality by reputable people in the trade ensures money, and time, is saved by unnecessary work. Most companies follow the strictest standards in the industry and this quality assurance gives you a quick turnaround in repairs and improved reliability for your drivers.
Big Fleet Discounts
To further improve your cash flow, fleet management companies have the power to negotiate fleet discounts for vehicle repairs. These substantial discounts allow you to enjoy well-earned savings regardless of the fleet size.
Maintenance Alerts
These days, no one has the time to remember when their vehicle is next due for a service and when managing a fleet business remembering these things can be even harder. Email or SMS reminders are sent to all your drivers when maintenance is due so there are no excuses for services to be missed.
Servicing your vehicles on time is the most important factor to keep your fleet running in a perfect condition. This helps you to avoid nasty surprises and expensive repairs down the track by fixing any issues early.
Records and Reporting
As a fleet manager, your business is run with operational and financial goals to meet so having access to all vehicle operating costs, repair costs and turnaround, KPI’s and downtime is crucial. This in-depth reporting will be provided by the outsourced company after the completion of each job for you to update the fleet reporting system.
A clear picture will be painted on all maintenance and repairs completed across your fleet and this information accessible 24/7. Having accurate documentation will positively help in the resale of any vehicles down the track.
Reduced Risks
Above all, the safety of your drivers is priority so providing them with roadworthy vehicles is a must. The facility and vehicle risks associated with lack of maintenance operations is significant and includes various federal, state and local laws. Working directly with a trusted repair service will ensure your company is compliant with the fluctuating changes in regulations and technologies, and ultimately reduce risks and expenses for you and your drivers.
Author Bio
This article is written by Jayde Ferguson who writes for Fleetcare – Australia’s premier fleet management company based in Perth.
Small business and Hiring staff
Hiring a member of staff for a small to medium company can be a risky prospect, as you haven’t got the time or money, like larger companies, to go through a thorough recruitment process that allows you to pick the right candidate(s). The amount of people you hire represents how fast your company is expanding, but at the same time you obviously want people who are passionate about the role you are about to offer them and strive to work hard for your business.
Are you Equipped to hire new staff
Before you start hiring new staff members, you should take the time to think about why you need more help. You could find, when you do hire them, that they weren’t really needed in the first place, meaning you’ll have to let them go. An ordeal which is embarrassing, time consuming, and costs money, especially for a new business. When hiring new staff think about:
● Where would they be working and what would they be doing that you or somebody else might not be able to do.
● Is there space for them to work? You don’t want to hire anybody in a small retailer and you find it difficult to move around and do your job efficiently
● If you already have full-time staff, could some of them work part time so you could use their services more on days you’re more likely to be busy. If you have part time staff, could they possibly do full-time to make them more efficient to your companies needs
The obvious factor to think about when hiring staff is whether they share the same passion for your industry as you do (or should). This doesn’t mean hiring someone that has the same personality as yourself, but more in terms of hiring someone who would not be easily bored in their role and has previous knowledge or passion for taking up the position.
Advertising the position
It is important that when advertising, that you place the job in a medium that will be seen by the people you want to hire. There’s no point in wanting to hire kitchen staff and then placing your advertisement in the back of a phone magazine, you’re very unlikely to get a call back. Look into areas that have a high prevalence of advertising in your sector and are able to deliver on getting you the right candidate for the job.
Also, if you’re not trying to go through a long recruitment process then you might be better off not trying the larger spaces to advertise from, as you might receive hundreds if not thousands of replies which you’ll have to trawl through to pick your interviewees. Many people might use recruitment agencies to help find an employee, but to be honest it is usually a waste of money and time, as you could easily do it yourself, and in a shorter space of time.
Make sure you detail the objectives of the role in the advertisement and what skills you may want them to have, proofreading your work to make sure there are no errors. It’s deemed laughable and unforgivable if you’re attempting to recruit staff and you can’t even write out the advertisement properly.
The Interview
The interview is where you get to meet the people who are confident enough to reply to your advertisement, hoping their chosen for the role. For the prospective employee it can be a daunting and scary time, and your job should be to make it as comfortable as possible for them. If they’re not comfortable then you may not get the desired response from them that you want, making the recruitment process take longer.
Before interviewing, attempt to write down an employee bio of what skills or qualities you hope your prospective employee to have. List questions that are relevant to the job role and the important aspects they will have to learn in that position. Again, your aim is not to catch them out but to see if they can fit in the company and work well with you and others. You’ll know when you’ve found the right person, as they’ll most likely be really enthusiastic about the job, and have lots to say about the role and maybe even your business.
Always do a background check of the person you’re hiring. Any referees they have supplied to you should always have at least an email and phone number that you can contact. Speak to their previous employers and then make your final decision on this (if it’s positive) and take into account everything else you want from your targeted employee.
Although they want the job, make sure you outline what the role is about and what they will be doing. Tell them what you do and about the history of your business. It’s better to tell them this now, rather than later, so they can make a decision on whether they feel the role is right for them too.
You’ve chosen the right staff
Once you have chosen your new member(s) of staff, allow them to get on with the job, guiding them along the way and being there to help if it’s needed. Always respect those that work for you, since they are more likely to return the favour. It’s an obvious fact that disgruntled members of staff are unlikely to fulfil their role properly if treated harshly by their managers, so make sure you give them a reason to want to work for you.
At the end of the day, you’re the person who makes the final decision on who to pick for your company, but be aware; you may not always make the right one. Unfortunately people do lie on their CV’s to get jobs that they are not qualified for, you can prevent these people from being a part of your business by, as mentioned, checking their background, and hopefully, through it all, you’ll be able to choose your desired new member of staff. Make sure your staff are familiar with any equipment you might have at your store such as PDQ Machines ( Seen here at Seymour Direct ) or other payment, scanning and stock checking devices.
Business security | 5 tips for Small business password security
Losing passwords or getting passwords hacked can be easy for hackers and bad for business , However lost passwords can be time consuming to businesses if employees forget passwords and it needs to be reset
Password security tips for small business
Here are some tips on how to avoid loss of passwords and work time in your business
1. Use difficult passwords
Know what makes for a weak or bad password.
Because hacking attacks re becoming increasingly more common, you don’t want to use anything in your password that’s personal and easy to guess or remember. Keep in mind the following don’ts:
- Don’t use only letters or only numbers.
- Don’t use names of spouses, children, girlfriends/boyfriends or pets ( and if you do mix it up with numbers or something else).
- Don’t use phone numbers, Social Security numbers or birthdates.
Don’t use any word that can be found in the dictionary — even foreign words.
Try and mix up passwords with letters and uppercases and lower cases of possible if case sensitive
[Reset password at http://windowsrecoverpassword.com/ for any forgotten or lost laptop or windows computer password.]
2. Changing passwords at workplaces
To help remember the password at workplaces, use it immediately. Then log in and out several times the first day when you change it .Preferably don’t change your passwords on a Friday or right before leaving for vacation as you can forget it easily, Monday is a good day to change passwords as you will be using it all week , less change of forgetting it later. You could write it out several times on a piece of paper. This helps record it in your mind. Just be sure to shred the paper when done ( but remember to destroy that paper).
3. Use passwords with letters and numbers
Many online password generators are now available online , but also mix it up with some thing that you remember.
The best passwords are at least eight characters in length and use a combination of numbers, keyboard characters and upper- and lower-case letters. The longer your password is, the longer it will take someone or some software to crack it.
4. Change password periodically or on a regular basis
Your network administrator software or company can force your employees to change their password every so often. Microsoft recommends having users change their passwords every 30 to 90 days for added security, but encourages you to go with the smaller number. Some software does not allow you to use the same passwords consecutively
I think 30 days is a reasonable number here. You always want to side with caution when it comes to sensitive information.
5. Don’t reuse same passwords for other website
When your employees create weak passwords for their employee accounts and reuse these passwords across other multiple sites, new risks arise for your business.
An employee’s password compromised from another company’s data or website breach can open up vulnerability on your site and your company.
One option available for higher security is also for Businesses which can look into adopting two-factor authentication whenever possible.
Mortgage Tips and building you own Business
More and more Australians are taking the plunge and starting their own home-based businesses. There are currently over 1 million individuals operating a business from home, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. This number looks set to grow even larger with the easy availability of website building software.
The best website templates allow new business owners to create a professional ecommerce site from scratch, with little to no prior knowledge of web design. Recently there has been a surge in Real estate Start ups in Australia
However, starting a home business requires more than simply setting up a website. You’ll need to think of legal issues like registering for company names, business licences, and taxation. Using your residence as a place of business will mean that you must comply with all state, territory, and federal government regulations. To get started with this process, it’s best to contact your local council for more information.
At the same time, home business owners in need of a new mortgage may find that they face some unique issues. Applying for a home loan when you are self-employed can involve a completely different process than the usual one for salaried workers. There may be zoning issues that could affect your mortgage, as well as different standards for assessing your income. It’s best to weigh all these issues to finance a home that will be suitable for your business needs as well.
Choosing the Right Live/Work Property
One of the first unique challenges that a home business owner faces is choosing a property that provides adequate room for business needs. If you have just started up a basic ecommerce site using a Shopify website builder, you will most likely only need one spare room. However, those who plan on meeting with clients could need a full floor of the home. This could also impact your mortgage rates if a significant percentage of the property is used for commercial purposes. The exact percentage will depend on the lender.
How Lenders Assess your Finances
Every lender uses its own methods for assessing your income. In most cases they’ll look at your income using one of three basic methods.
1. Using the most recent year’s income – Although most lenders will use an average over a greater time period, some will only look at earnings from the past year to assess your income.
2. Using the average income from the past two years – Calculating the average income from the past two financial years gives lenders a well-rounded picture of your self-employed earnings.
3. Using the lowest income out of the past two years – If the most recent year’s income is lower than the previous year’s, it may worry a lender who will assume that this downward path could continue into the future. In this circumstance, they may use the lower figure out of the two years as the basis of their assessment.
To assess your earnings from a home-based business, lenders will look at your most recent tax returns as well as other expenses and financial information. Income from other sources, such as rental income, will usually be deducted from the figure that is scrutinized.
Low Document Loans
If you’re unable to find a lender who will help finance a mortgage using traditional methods like tax returns, you may qualify for a low doc home loan. These are available to home business owners who don’t have adequate financial proof available to satisfy income requirements. However, they usually require a higher down payment of at least 20% of the purchase price, and incur higher interest rates than traditional mortgages.
Five Common Strategy Mistakes
It’s easy to make mistakes in business. While big businesses may have the capital cushion to absorb most errors, small businesses don’t, and a mistake can finish a business before it’s managed to get off the ground. While overlooking a couple of figures in the ledger may be expensive, a strategy mistake can be fatal. So here are five pitfalls to avoid when you’re developing your small business strategy.
#1 – Marketing is NOT strategy
This is one of the biggest mistakes that new businessmen and women make. It may be intuitive to think of marketing as a big part of your strategy, but in fact it is merely a means to an end. A marketing-only strategy overlooks the fundamental points of a business strategy, such as projected growth, product development and other value-based considerations. Yes, marketing is crucial (after all, if people don’t know you’re there, they won’t buy your product!) but don’t let it become the all-consuming factor in your overall strategy. It’s a part, not the whole, so keep it in its place. This approach also prevents marketing expenses from escalating.
#2 – Size matters – be the biggest, be the best!
A common belief is that the bigger your company is, the more profitable it is. While there may be a small amount of truth behind that theory, it shouldn’t be the be-all and end-all of your business strategy. With greater growth comes greater expense, and just because a goal sounds good does not necessarily mean that it will be financially good for the company. A good fiscal balance is essential, so steady growth that’s sustainable and doesn’t put a strain on existing resources is more likely to succeed in the long term than rapid expansion and an attempt at market domination.
#3 – Growth is not a strategy
Following on from #2, let’s reiterate that growth in itself is not a ‘business strategy’ – it’s an aim or goal, yes, but not a strategy! The strategy part is how you achieve that growth, and again to ensure that it is sustainable. Don’t confuse strategy with actions. Strategy is your causation, and growth (if you do it right!) is your effect. The actions you take to achieve growth are part of your strategy.
#4 – Do ‘What you’re good at’ – your competitive advantage
It’s very easy to overestimate your business’s strengths and therefore skew your overall strategy because of the inclusion of incorrect or inaccurate data. Yes, you may be good at making product A, but if your customers want product B then making too much of product A is obviously the wrong strategy. Be realistic about your strengths and advantages, and remember that an advantage is often something more visceral, such as providing a better standard of customer care than your rivals. This gives you a competitive edge in that particular area of the strategy, but it also demonstrates that there may be other parts of the plan that need to be addressed for the overall strategy to work, such as making more of product B!
#5 – High growth markets are where the money is
High growth industries may look attractive on paper, but for small businesses it can be a case of reaching too high, too fast. Growth is also no guarantee that a business will be profitable, and may over-stretch a business’s resources and finances. It could also put your suppliers in control, rather than you. Nobody ever got wealthy chasing after a fast buck, and rapid growth is often followed by extremely rapid decline, especially if you can’t pay your suppliers and they end up cutting you off. Again, the key is sustainability, so ensure that your strategy revolves around the long-term, rather than short-term rapid gains.
Author Carlo Pandian is a management graduate and blogs about finance, small business and technology. He also writes tutorials on Intuit small business accounting software and loves sharing tips for entrepreneurs about how they can boost their businesses.
Business Start Up – Caroline’s Skin Care
Caroline’s Skincare is now a established skincare product in the market. Read how Caroline’s Cream Products was born and launched into the market
How I started my business (Start up story)
Twelve years ago I developed eczema on my hands so severe that when my daughter was born I couldn’t bathe her without excruciating pain. Nothing I used worked so I decided to develop my own cream to help ease the symptoms.
The cream began existence in my kitchen. I had aromatherapy experience so used that knowledge, along with a lot of research to create a healing moisturiser. After months of trial and error and many experimental batches, I found a workable formula that was filled with soothing, natural ingredients.
Business – Demand and Expansion
Not only had the cream improved my skin rapidly, the results it had with others in treating a variety of skin complaints such as eczema, dermatitis and psoriasis was incredible. Public demand led me to begin producing Caroline’s Cream in bigger numbers and founding my skincare company, Caroline’s Skincare Pty Ltd.
In 2003 my first batch of six bottles was taken by a local pharmacy. Now my cream is listed on the registrar of Therapeutic goods as a complementary medicine, I have two manufacturers and a distributor.
History of start up Caroline Skincare
Initially I had very few business skills as I’d left school at 15 and modelled for 20 years; I was computer illiterate – I didn’t even know how to turn a computer on! In fact I had no experience at all in running a business. But out of necessity I learned, especially as the business grew.
I also started with no working capital (I started with $5000 on a credit card and initially offered product on consignment for nearly six months) and it was at least six years before I drew earnings from the business. As demand increased it was necessary to continually pour the income back into it.
In 2006 I created an All Purpose Wash, which is based on the same formula as the cream.
In the past year my business has grown by 2000%. New outlets are coming on board daily, with my range now available in over 3000 outlets Australia wide, as well as being sent overseas to customers on a regular basis.
Guest post for Caroline Monet – Founder, Caroline’s Skin Care www.Carolineskincare.com
