If you love baking and are good at it then you really could turn your hobby into a profitable small business. The key ingredients for a successful baking business, aside from the essential baking skills, are passion and love for what you do. Throw in some business skills too and you have an entrepreneur baker and business owner in the making. Are people asking you about recipes or requesting for you to make cakes for their special occasions? If the answer is yes, then you are already well on your way to making a business out of your hobby.
[continue reading…]
business skills
Flowers are timeless and have been used for centuries to express emotions. They play a role in all occasions, from expressing sympathy, to celebrating the birth of a new baby or showing love on Valentine’s Day. Flowers being closely related to emotions and occasions is perhaps the reason why the florist industry has been thriving for decades and why the need remains strong. The fresh cut flowers and plant industry is currently worth £2.2 billion in the UK, and to give some perspective that is £0.2 billion more than the music industry in the UK. The florist business industry is huge and comes with the vast opportunity to start a successful company.
Two brothers, Timothy McElroy and James McElroy founded their business as they struggled to find a dog sitter for their dog. They took inspiration from the likes of Uber and Airbnb to set up their business. Now, HouseMyDog is Europe’s largest online community that enables dog owners to find and book local, trusted dog sitters and walkers. It operates in more than 70 cities across the UK, Ireland, Spain, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Belgium.
Cat in a Flat founders Kathrin Burckhardt and Julie Barnes feature in our latest success stories, looking at entrepreneurs making a success out of a niche business idea. They discuss having complementary skills, marketing your business effectively, and attracting customers. Cat in a Flat has become an international business allowing customers to find cat sitters for their pets.
Anthony Main is the founder of an app development company called The Distance. Anthony has had an incredible and inspiring business journey, from dealing with business failure to making his business a success. In his success story, Anthony highlights everything from the lessons learnt from merging with another company to the skills gained from dealing with business disasters.
[continue reading…]
Jose Melico is the latest entrepreneur to join others in our success story series. Jose came up with the idea of Zypho when he was just fourteen. Zypho is a water heat recovery device that reduces shower water heating energy bills. Being energy conscious and thinking about a solution to a problem enabled Jose to come up with this winning business idea at such a young age. In his success story, the entrepreneur discusses having a solid team and the skills required to keep a business going.
Composing a formal document that will be scrutinised by peers and professionals can be a daunting task or a task one can learn and grow from after progressing with the tips necessary to advance their writing skills. Business writing is often a type of writing people avoid due to the difficulties one may encounter when faced with such a task. However, there are a number of easy to follow tips when taking on a business writing task that will allow people to confidently express themselves while maintaining a professional tone.
What is the difference between a good public speaker and a great one? What makes people want to know more about one person, and tune another one out? Although content, of course, has a lot to do with who listens to whom, something else that can make someone particularly successful at public speaking is confidence. Without it, talks can be impersonal, boring, flat, and uninspired, and all because the person giving the talk has no confidence in themselves, and what they are saying. To be a powerful public speaker, confidence is key.
Jordan Daykin is the latest entrepreneur to feature in our success stories. Jordan is the inventor and owner of GripIt, a plasterboard fixing capable of holding 250kg, as well as the CEO of VPS Group. He invented GripIt with his Grandad at just 13 years of age. He discusses his time on Dragons Den, inventing his product and his plans for the future.
[continue reading…]
In a recent survey conducted by the BCC (British Chamber of Commerce), it was found that one of the biggest issues that small businesses are facing is employing workers with the right skills. The small business workforce seems to lack certain skills which can hinder their chances of business growth. One of the factors that affected the confidence of small businesses during the early Brexit negotiations was the worries over the lack of skilled workers. Therefore, business owners together with the government need to create initiatives to upskill the British workforce.
Employees don’t leave the company they leave their horrible bosses. A great number of employees like their job but their relationship with their boss makes it difficult for them to enjoy their job. A lot of employees start the year by looking for new jobs and this is because they want to leave their ‘horrible boss’ behind.
[continue reading…]
Running a business is not for everyone, it requires certain skills and abilities to really be a successful business owner. To run a small business successfully, business owners will need to either be born a natural leader or hone skills and get qualifications specifically for the challenge of setting up and running a business. Although every entrepreneur is different, they will likely share a certain set of skills and knowledge which enables them to be successful.
Being a business owner and being your own boss can be a dream come true for many people. Breaking free from the shackles that can come from traditional jobs, can seem liberating. However, there are challenges that self-employed face, whether they are freelancers, entrepreneurs or small business owners. Running your own business can be very challenging as it will push you to your limits and force you to take control and display leadership.
The coffee shop business industry in the UK is expanding, and it is expected to be worth around £15 billion by 2020. This will see the rise of about 10,000 outlets in the upcoming three years. With room for you to thrive, opening a coffee shop now could be ideal for you. Coffee shops are well in demand with sleep-deprived Brits inclined to purchase a cup of coffee or two throughout the day. There is, however, the stellar competition that coffee shops owners will face from large chains such as Costa and Starbucks as well as the many independent coffee shops who are offering a unique experience to stand out.
[continue reading…]
Small business owners often don’t delegate when they can and when they should. Lack of delegation in a small business environment can lead to the business owner being overworked and over-stressed. Taking on everything may seem natural to you as a business owner and you may think it is productive, however doing so can really hinder your chances of growing and developing your business. Therefore, practice and take time to learn how to delegate in a small business environment . The art of delegation, as you will find, has many benefits.
[continue reading…]
Leadership skills are something that you need to acquire in order to run and lead a successful business. Everyone is not born a natural leader, and this is not necessary in order for you to be a good leader. You can develop leadership skills over time and through experience. It is important to invest time in developing good leadership skills, as this will help you be a successful entrepreneur and a good boss.
[continue reading…]
If you decide that you are ready to take on the world of franchising and want to invest in a franchise business, then there are certain things you need to consider. These include skills and attributes that make a good franchisee, choosing and buying the type of franchise, as well as actually running the franchise on a daily basis.
[continue reading…]
Starting a business is possibly one of the biggest challenges you will ever face in your life. It is a difficult task and the difficulty increases if you struggle to ask for help. You may feel you are not able to ask help from those around you because you are the boss, and you are expected to have all the answers. However you can get advice and help elsewhere, as there are experienced individuals who are willing support and guide business owners on their entrepreneurial journey.
[continue reading…]
In our latest success story, we talk to Temi Alanamy co-founder of a nutrition based app called Whatsinit?. She talks about the biggest lessons learnt and how having a partner can challenge you to do better.
[continue reading…]
Once you have surpassed the point of starting up your business you will want to start growing it. You can do this by increasing and improving your revenue growth, which will lead to an increase in profits, allowing you to expand by reinvesting in your business.
[continue reading…]
