The drive: What challenges have you overcome?
Being on my own is a hard slog. I love the independence but there is always that comfort in having a special someone to bounce ideas off and celebrate those milestones with. To account for this, I keep a close circle of friends who want to see me do well and support me with all my adventures. I also try to make time for my family scattered over mostly the upper north Island. I do my best with my busy schedule to keep in touch with them and, being family, they naturally love to slather me with support.
The biggest challenge in doing anything new is always our own mental blocks, be it self-doubt, anxiety or even just not being able to imagine myself in the position as a ‘boss babe.’ I never in my wildest dreams thought that owning my own business would be possible, but here I am. The way I got past and still get past these mental blocks is to focus on positive outcomes and ask myself questions such as: how would I feel if I succeeded in doing this? What would the future look like with this as part of my life? I try to imagine where I want to be and break down the steps into bite size pieces, which I can deal with one at a time – before I know it, I’m there. While struggling with the last part of my degree, my nana said to me, ‘How do you eat an elephant dear? Well, in small bites of course’. I’ve taken this advice into most aspects of my life and I always remember to start my daunting tasks with small bites.
For better or worse: What are the pros and cons of running your own business?
Venturing into business ownership has introduced me to the world of small business in New Zealand and the amazing community built around this. I was surprised when I began contacting other small business owners as suppliers. Their initial responses to my queries weren’t the expected ‘mmmm well ok, buy this or that’, it has been consistently – ‘congratulations!’ and ‘let me know if you need advice or anything I’m here’. I was completely taken aback by the way the small business community in New Zealand supports each other and raises each other up. It is one of the best unexpected things I have discovered about owning my own business.
One of the challenges of owning my own business is the realisation that it’s me, just me! I can’t fall back on ‘the company’ to sort things out for me, I have to handle my business and be accountable for all decisions I make. Fortunately, there are mentors and other kiwis that have been where I am, and are more than willing to impart their wisdom on me.
One of the positives of owning my own business is the realisation that it is just me! Everything that happens within this company I can make it so it suits my own values and ideals. There is nothing better than being able to share things with the world that are completely in line with your own values. There is no compromising or making allowances for things that don’t feel right in my heart. I am able to align this business with my genuine self and show my sons that they don’t have to do what everyone else does. It’s OK to go out on your own and try to change the world!
The biggest challenge of owning my own business is dividing my time between my boys and my business; there is never enough time in the world. I try to remember that my work will still be there tomorrow but my boys’ childhood won’t last forever, except in their memories. I want them to recall a childhood with an engaged and attentive mum, so my priority is always them, even if it means having a bit less sleep some nights.
Hopes and dreams: What next?
My background is in biodiversity and it is this first passion of mine for the environment, and my innate personality trait to fight for social justice, which drives my decisions in the brands I choose to feature in my collections.
My first goal is to ensure that every item in my huge collection is from reputable environmentally and ethically sound brands. This usually means sourcing from New Zealand – shopping local myself ensures I can support the environment and our own economy even further. This doesn’t mean my products are exclusively from New Zealand; I source some beautiful things from Bali and from Australia. I am a world lover and I believe it is important to support different cultures and the people who live here – to share an item and skill from another culture is something special.
My long-term goal is to be able to have my own physical shop, where I can open the doors every morning and meet my customers in person. I understand from being a tactile person myself, the important difference in being able to see up close and have a feel of the items I’m considering taking home.
Visit the Strangers Collective website to view their full range of beautiful products. You can also join their communities on Facebook and Instagram.
