Pricing your products and ensuring you have built-in sufficient margins to sustain your e-commerce business is one of the most important decisions you'll make. This brief guide will walk you through a simple process for combining standard markup pricing with market research, using a provided spreadsheet to determine the appropriate manufacturing costs, margins and pricing […]
Small brands often dream of the riches and success that will arrive when they start selling wholesale to big retailers. While it’s true that national chains can give you huge reach and volume, the relationship can come with high costs, especially for a fledgling business. I’m not suggesting that you avoid selling wholesale to big […]
Any search for business scorecards will bring up the balanced scorecard. However for many small businesses, the methodology may seem a little overwhelming and not particularly practical for a business with just a few employees. That's why I advocate a simple balanced scorecard alternative to get you up and running with performance tracking. When I came […]
While technically Indie Brands is a generic term that could describe any independently owned company, in popular use the term has come to represent a new breed of entrepreneur that is progressive, creative and not afraid to rewrite the rules of traditional business. These entrepreneurs are harnessing shifts in technology, manufacturing and human behavior to break through […]
If you're wondering about manufacturing products overseas, my first product run is a cautionary tale in how badly things can go wrong. I had been sampling my inaugural product - a diaper bag - for 1.5 years with 6 different factories. By the 3rd round with my chosen manufacturer, I finally got a great sample and […]
Are you considering or currently working with your spouse? Amy and I have experienced the full gamut when it comes to our working situation: first as employees, then with each of us running separate businesses, and now working together in the same business. For us, working together has been by far the best experience. Here's why:
No matter what business you're in, there are times when you just need a quick design done. However, if you're not a professional graphic designer, the process of getting from idea to a finished design can be cumbersome - not to mention costly. Who wants to spend a few hundred dollars on a graphic design […]
You’ve heard the term marketing automation. You may even have some inkling of what it means, but if don’t have a marketing automation plan for your business, you’re already falling behind rivals who have invested the time and effort into building systems that work for them while they sleep. For many small business owners, the […]
My first business failed. It was not a failure to launch and find customers. In fact, the business existed for over 13 years and we worked with plenty of clients, including well-known brands. At our peak, we had 12 employees and generated revenues of over $1,000,000 a year. But despite all that, we failed due […]
Have you ever had a great idea that got away? It happened to me just the other morning. I woke up before my alarm and immediately started getting all kinds of ideas about blog posts, headlines and copy. It was still dark outside and Amy was asleep beside me so I was alone in my thoughts. […]
Do you need an organizational structure for a small business? Before we had an accountability chart at our e-commerce business, roles were so fuzzy that essential tasks often fell through the cracks, leading to a last-minute panic. But once we had a written organizational structure in place, we saw a huge boost in our overall efficiency. While there are still a […]
When I first stepped into my role at our e-commerce business things were going relatively well for all outward appearances. Amy had created a successful line of products that were being sold in retailers across North America. Sales had been growing at well over 40% annually and the business was generating a respectable profit . But once […]
