Kelly Hoppen- one of the most recognizable business women, an author and a celebrity interior designer is on a mission to empower young entrepreneurs who look forward to the beginning of a successful home improvement business. She has been a potential investor on BBC’s Den Dragon as well.
Her style is simply a fusion of East meets west. As she also won Britain’s Top Real Role Model Campaign in 2015, so Sandra Funk caught up with her to guide people about running their startups successfully; and here’s what the irrepressible lady revealed…
Be tenacious at all the times:
“Becoming an entrepreneur is pretty rewarding. Seeing your ideas becoming a commercial venture is an achievement beyond explanation. But sometimes, our ideas are the lifeblood of the business which fails along the way; because other people in our community do not share the same beliefs and vision.” She points.
Being tenacious is your real achievement, and especially for me, it is the difference between having an amazing idea, and turning that idea into reality.”
She advised, “If you are struggling to launch your own home improvement business, you need to carry a detailed research. It will help you minimize the risks and costs of setting up your company. The fact is, a potential entrepreneur will never go ahead to invest his money if he knows nothing about it.”
The key to success is; knowing your customer
She also focused on knowing customer needs, which is the center of every business’s success. Once you have the knowledge about what your customer needs, it’s easy to persuade him that buying from your company is in their best interest. Spend some time in grassroot marketing, and go out to talk with the customers before setting up your business and never forget to solicit their feedback.
While doing your research for a business, make sure you analyze the competition, because there are many entrepreneurs who think that they do not have a strong competitor, but that’s not true. You will find a lot of direct & indirect competitors in your entrepreneurial journey.
An Effective Teamwork- A Secret to Success!
We always heard a successful business owner say, “It wasn’t possible without the support of my partners and team members.” If you want to learn and grow, you need to get inspiration from your business community. Even if you are a boss, there is still a plenty of room for improvement.
She also focused on a point that, nobody appreciates negative criticism, but she always recommends young entrepreneurs to implement a 360- degree feedback system for your own benefits. By doing this, you will be able to find out the strengths and weaknesses of your team and you can perform a regular analysis to spot long term issues.
Furthermore she also suggests that there might be a possibility that you end up hiring a wrong candidate which may trigger a series of fatal consequences. You spend your time training him and then wind up choosing another person which may cost your startup a lot of money. But looking for a passionprenuer can be a good choice as they are fearless, create actionable plans, and they keep learning and growing (which smartly benefits your company).
Want to unlock your potential? Find Yourself a Mentor
Be open to learning. Let me get straight to the point, if you are lucky enough to find a good mentor, he will help you overcome myriad challenges and obstacles to make your dreams a reality. I will strongly recommend the role of a mentor to fast-track your career’s success. To be encouraged by someone else’s success, you need to choose the right direction to go the extra mile with your business. Observing how a mentor works and behaves will help you gain smart insights to make adjustments to your management style. Learn, observe, and watch that you will have to do it yourself eventually; because we all know great things never came from comfort zones.
Discover funding alternatives:
According to another rising entrepreneur Usman Khan who recently launched home improvement startup Renovaten, shared his opinion, “Money always matter for a startup, especially when you have to cover expenses without breaking your banks. Whether you are managing finance through a bank, credit card, friends or family, be careful.”
Kelly also emphasized on a point that, being stupid with your own money is just one thing. But when you are managing finance from members of the family, then treat it like someone else’s money. It’s similar to getting a loan from a bank. If you are not in a position to meet the timeline, it’s time to make a big decision, and one of which is to quit.
There are a lot of barriers that might come to your road of success, for instance, lack of enough money, proficient business knowledge, confidence, and people stopping you to take a leap and set up your own business. But the true key to success and happiness is overcoming those barriers effectively.
In the end, she motivated young entrepreneurs by her own example.
She says, “I have struggled with dyslexia and bullying all my life. But I didn’t let that define me as a person. We all have different things and fears to overcome, but it’s important to overcome those things for your business and career.”
Purpose- Not Just Profit!
Setting up your own business is a great adventure, but basic purpose should not only be to get financial independence, but to also getting recognition, self-discovery and learning to overcome the challenges. So it’s time to embrace the challenges and see the rewards it offers.
Good luck with your startup!
Author Bio:
Ambreen Sajjad is a technical content writer and working for Renovaten. She has a passion for helping people in all aspects of Digital marketing, Call center industry and home improvement etc. In addition to writing for different high profile blogs, she also provides SEO training and consultancy to fresh graduates who are looking to boost their career.