The drive: What challenges have you overcome?
Apart from trying to manage my time, it has been great personal development for me. I always get a pit in my stomach when I post about my miscarriages; it’s still hard to think about, but I know if I talk about it openly, it all helps. I’ve had so many people respond by sharing their pregnancy loss experiences, which has been nice and just goes to show how many families have had a loss.
I knew nothing about setting up a business, so one of the first things I did was get a business mentor to keep me on track. I’ve also never been great with technology, so that has been a challenge. I’ve learned a lot about the internet, getting a domain, email hosting, building my own website, metadata, SEOs, and so on – all things I knew nothing about before. I even did a little bit of coding the other day and it worked, which made me laugh.
My current challenge is working on the sales and marketing side of things. Again, that isn’t something I have much experience with but it’s a great challenge for me and I know I can do it.
For better or worse: What are the pros and cons of running your own business?
The biggest thing is that I have complete control over something I am passionate about. I’ve set it up at my own pace, had a baby in the middle of it (which was very emotional for me) and work when I need and want to. I love learning new things and I like a good challenge, so I am really enjoying this journey so far. The businesses I am working with produce the most amazing artisan products and I want to do my best to showcase them. The hardest thing about running my own business is that there have been so many things I’ve had no idea how to do. I’ve found you must be willing to seek help when needed instead of spending hours trying to do it yourself. Having a 3-year-old and 7-month-old means time is not on my side, and I want to be able to enjoy my children as much as I can. They are only young once right! It is great to be able to work from home though.
Hopes and dreams: What next?
I hope Olga & Elle becomes successful enough that I can use the profit I earn from the miscarriage care packages to help with the aftermath of losing a baby by donating care packages to my local hospital. I think the support for women who have an early pregnancy loss is minimal, so that’s the area I really want to focus on in the beginning. Other than that, I want to keep progressing with sales and my own personal development and of course enjoy the fact that I am helping spread a little bit of aroha around Aotearoa.
Visit the Olga & Elle website to browse their beautiful range of care packages and gift boxes. You can also stay up to date by following them on Facebook and Instagram.
