I developed a business idea which I know is a strong, feasible proposition but, with only having normal jobs, no mummy or daddy to hand in large amounts of cash and no major savings in the bank, I knew that I would need external funds to realise the plan.

Back in March I decided to learn how to be “investment ready” so that my business could grow with the support of some external investment from a bank, Business Angel, private investor or venture capitalist. I went to some excellent courses run by Connect Midlands to understand the process of writing a good, solid business plan and understand the business from an investor’s perspective.

It took me a good 8 months to write that business plan with a convincing proposition and a solid set of numbers to show investors. It seems like a long time, but I needed to:

• prove my market
• write realistic figures, but keep them ambitious to make it interesting
• learn the jargon

Well, I did go to the bank two weeks ago. Here are the lessons I learned:

• raising funds is a tricky business, even with a solid proposition and plenty of passion to make things happen.
• it’s close to impossible to borrow money from the bank if you are not prepared to secure the investment from assets, such as your own house.

I know everyone is talking about banks not lending but I must admit I was sceptical to believe this, as I fiercely believe that entrepreneurship is vital for the recovery of the economy and it should be supported by the banks.

As a consequence, entrepreneurs have the option of turning to investors/business angels. These investors receive many plans to review. I have now sent my plan to the Growth Investment Network (East Midlands) who have a range of investors in their network. I sent the plan as soon as I felt it was ready and I have to be open to feedback even if it’s hard to take. Fingers crossed.

I have to keep trying, and persevering, believing and visualising that I will be successful in raising the funds I need.

Labels: bank lending, business angel, business plan, fishbowl2, growth investment, investment ready, marcela, start-up finance, venture capital

It's always nice to get some positive feedback from customers. Here's some from the Wholefoods Market we recently attended.

In the roller-coaster ride of running one’s own business, I used to think that having a fantastic product would be enough. Mmmm... as you know, this is far from the truth. This probably accounts for the 1% inspiration bit. Because well, as I have discussed before, everyone expects you to be an expert in your business- and in a small business, if you are on a shoe string, and a one-man band, this means expert in everything, as I do it all. Is this the perspiration bit now? The 24/7, never switching off, being always on task? Reading the paper on a Sunday looking for relevant articles, e-mails late at night when it’s quiet, cooking, etc etc.. ? I think the perspiration bit is also connected with the resilience of taking the failures as lessons to be learned, to stand up after falling, to get on with it and persevere when things may not be as rosy as one would wish for.

But then we are in the 21st Century, and I would add another element. Yes, you had your 1% inspiration in your great idea, and you are working really hard, that’s your 99%. And what about the communication bit? I think this changes the 1%+99% equation. Nowadays, entrepreneurs are required to twitter, to tell their story, to shout out their values, and they are also allowed, and indeed expected, to drive their enterprises ethically. Green issues, fair trade, sustainability...

I think this is a great time to be an entrepreneur because it’s become the norm to have ideals and to communicate them effectively. I’m starting to try to learn how to communicate with people out there about what I’m trying to do – introduce new, adventurous flavours of food that comes from growers, local and far away, who share my passion for great food and respect for the environment and people. 21st Century communication media- what a great opportunity to relate with possible customers and, hopefully, make a difference.

Labels: communication, fishbowl2, marcela, twitter

I had always thought that the word “entrepreneur” sounded so glamorous. The truth is that you are “it”, from key decision maker and strategist to peeling garlic. When people ask me what my position is in my company I laugh- I’m the CEO and the cleaner. If you decide to start your own business without your finances completely sorted and can’t afford staff, you are in for a difficult time trying to do everything. Because even if you have a business plan that maps out inflows and outflows, there is always that extra marketing opportunity that you don’t want to miss, or that packaging that you had to buy etc... spend, spend spend. I left my job early on as I was still planning the business to throw myself fully into the project, and maybe I should’ve been more patient and kept my salary for a bit longer.

Having said that, somebody said to me at the very beginning of my business journey that I should just go for it and borrow 100k from the bank. Thank goodness I didn’t do that, though. Yes, life would’ve been sooo much easier, having a budget for machinery and packaging, maybe one or two part-time staff and a salary, but I wouldn’t have known how to spend it as well as I do now. Now, I have proved a concept, I understand things what worked or didn’t work and I know exactly what I need to do next. The only small detail missing is the cash itself.

So... this week has been about focusing on raising finances and boosting my sales. Looking after my key customers and revising my business plan so it reflects what I know now to allow me to get to the next stage. I’m off to the bank today and hopefully, the bank manager will like it and believe that I can make it work. Hopefully I will be able to raise the finances and afford to pay a member of staff and the machinery I need. Feeling positive. I’m not superstitious.

Marcela

Labels: bank funding, fishbowl2, start-up finance

Hi again...
Well, the packaging did arrive in the nick of time ready for launch at Selfridges. The labels arrived on Thursday but they needed to be applied by hand :(

So... because  my daughter was having a party, her and her friends were being entertained by a jewellery- making lady, I recruited an army of helping parents who came to drop their daughters off to help me stick the labels onto the tubs. Great! Next time you see a tub with a label applied, have a guess- was it hand applied (unlikely!) or was it applied by machine?

All that effort and work was worth it. Whilst at the tasting session in Selfridges, we sold out of 2 lines, people did enjoy the new products- including the Mole sauce(pronounced moleh- it’s NOT made with black rodents!).