The drive: What challenges have you overcome?
Whilst I have been pretty “lucky” to not come up against any major challenges that have really stopped me in my tracks, every part of having a business and doing something new for the first time is challenging to some degree. The world of parenting and having a product for young babies means I am working in a space that can be full of strong opinions (good and bad) and high expectations – for good reason! That’s exactly why the research for Jelley took as long as it did, and all the compliance testing required had every “t” crossed and “i” dotted.
In the early stages of the prototyping and sampling I made sure (and still do) I have a great network of parents who are everyday people like me, to be a sounding board and to make sure I have all bases covered. In business, you must be open to feedback as it’s what allows you to grow and change for the better. When I nailed who my customer really was, and not just every parent out there, everything started working together much more seamlessly from a marketing perspective, and that ultimately flowed through to consistent sales.
I will continue learning as something is forever changing and I fully expect there will be many challenges that come up along the journey.
For better or worse: What are the pros and cons of running your own business?
Isn’t the saying, “You avoid working for someone else 40 hours a week to work for yourself 100 hours a week”?
The biggest pro is being able to do absolutely everything your way, but on the flipside, the success of the business is completely dependent on every decision you make along the way. Sometimes we get it right, and sometimes we get it very wrong, but that’s how we learn and know to try things differently next time.
The biggest downside is that there will always be “something else” or “more” you could do, but simply no one can do it all, so it’s about moving the needle forward in bite-sized pieces at a time.
Hopes and dreams: What next?
I don’t know how many customers have suggested that we need to release an adult version of our sleeping bags given how soft they are, and whilst this isn’t really in the pipeline, you should always listen to your customers as you never know what your next big thing might be (and it might take you by surprise)! I’m keeping an open mind.
Visit jelley.com.au to find out more and to shop their silver fibre sleeping bags. You can also follow them on Instagram.
