Mompreneurship is a significant new trend in Canada as many new mothers seek to find a way to spend more time with their children while still earning an income. Traditional jobs can often take an emotional toll on mothers who want to balance their career with quality family time.
This week's Fortune Hunter is Darlene Martin from bijouxbead. She spent $75,000 getting her custom jewellery shop off the ground and is hoping to break even by hosting an event to showcase and sell her products which range from $100 to $1,000 each. Here is my take on Darlene's chances of being successful:
Is She Really A Fortune Hunter?
All the entrepreneurs we've seen on the show to date have been serious entrepreneurs trying to make millions from their companies. Darlene's goal simply is to break even on the $75,000 that she spent to launch the business. She has made $30,000 so far and is trying to get the other $45,000 so she can get into the black. Most mompreneurs are not, in fact, fortune hunters because the goal with setting up the business is to spend more time with the children, not put in the 16 hours a day that most entrepreneurs spend launching a new business. With enough time she'll hit breakeven – it's only $45,000 away – but if she wants to expand the company, she will have to overcome some serious challenges.
Get Distribution
To date Darlene has sold through three Toronto bases boutique stores and at invitation only parties. It's challenging enough being a new mom and starting a manufacturing company. To try and take care of the retail side on her own will not be a winning strategy. She needs to find other retailers who like her product and will help her reach her market so she can focus in on the production side of the business.
Do The Trade Shows
In the show you see Darlene go to a major trade show to see how her competitors are selling. She does a good job in finding out about their displays, prices, and key selling points. Instead of investing into becoming an exhibitor, however, she decided to run her own event in a gymnasium and invite a couple hundred of her friends. The result? $8,000 in sales instead of the $45,000 she hoped for. Darlene needs to get into the important trade shows to get the exposure she needs. The reason why exhibitors pay to join these shows is because the organizers do the work of bringing in the buyers. Targeted trade shows would also be an excellent way for Darlene to meet potential retailers and make important media contacts.
Change The Strategy
To Darlene's credit as a budding entrepreneur she realizes that doing shows herself won't work and can't scale. A lot of the success from being a business owner is learning from mistakes and Darlene recognized that something has to change. The new strategy? Focus on media coverage and getting celebrities to wear her jewellery. Along with planning to acquire new retailers, the change in strategy will provide Darlene with a far greater return on her time and help her business take off.
Watch the full show this Saturday, February 16th at 6:30 p.m. ET on CBC Newsworld. Learn more at Learn more at http://www.cbc.ca/news/fortunehunters/
What do you think of Darlene's chances?