First Post on FL: Failures and Lessons I learned.

[Norskbear]

Hey guys. First post here. Ive always had what I like to call an "entrepreneurial storm" brewing inside me. Ever since I can remember I have naturally seen things differently. I got in trouble in high school for buying all the pizzas from the cafeteria and selling them by the slice for profit over the lunch hour.

My entrepreneurial resume is not impressive. I've had 2 ventures that I put some real effort into that both failed. I see my failures as learning experiences. I'd like to share my experience and what I learned.


First venture: 2011-2012
I've always been good working with my hands. One day while looking to buy a new belt, I thought it would be much more fun to make one myself. I turned out to be pretty good at working with leather and designing things. After making my first one and getting compliments from people, I launched my first leather goods company specializing in minimal wallets, belts, card holders, iphone cases...etc. I had an etsy store and I got into a small local farmers market. I shopped my products around to local independent retailers; few were interested. I tanked after about a year. I sold SOME pieces on etsy and SOME at the farmers market, but overall it was just a waste of time and energy. It cost too much to produce them and it took too long. I could pump out maybe 5 pieces a day before my fingers started to bleed. I would sell maybe 1 a week which would go into my gas tank driving back and forth to the leather store.

Lesson learned: Do market research! haha duh. Test shit out before you devote days on end to baby your product. A little bit of branding could have gone a long way as well as a marketing campaign and a better website. Involvement on forums and other avenues of reaching people may have led to more sales.


Second venture: 2013
This one had a lot potential. A really good buddy of mine bought a quad copter that you could attach a go pro to. He flew it around and got cool footage of stuff and I would edit it together. Our little hobby turned into something that people were offering to pay us for. Fast forward 2 months and a $5,000 investment from family and we had a drone with all the bells and whistles. This thing was bad a$$ and we got awesome footage. It was a $10,000 piece of equipment that we got for half the price from a photographer that never used it and just wanted it gone. We had our first paying clients within a week and a pretty cool demo reel. Website, phone number, demo reel, and our client base was expanding and we were being contacted to film higher profile projects within a few months.

Fast forward: My partner ended up bailing because his girlfriend broke up with him. He moved 500 miles away and sold the copter within a week without talking it over. He gave me my money back and just took off and I got left with the clean up.

Lesson Learned: Be careful when going into business with someone. Do things yourself or hire someone who knows what they're doing. I don't hold it personally against my friend, he just had different priorities. YOU HAVE TO PICK THE RIGHT PARTNER. Someone who shares your passion and motivation.

Those are my experiences. Hopefully you guys can take something from this post! If you have any questions just ask! Currently I'm working on developing a brand around a niche product which I'm aiming at launching in May. I might put up a progress thread on that. I'm also working with family overseas to assess foreign markets for american goods and we have some pretty promising leads. This is the year for me, I can feel it.

 

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[Yury]

Vjepl zua gus tjesoph vjiti mittupt zua'wi miespif! Vjiti esi huuf mittupt opfiif.

O'n dasouat ecuav vji tidupf deti - egvis zuas qesvpis tumf vji duqvis epf migv, fof zua tjav fuxp vji qsukidv? Ov tuapft moli zua jef tuni usfist op vji qoqimopi epf vjisi xisi huuf sigisipdit et ximm... O apfistvepf vjev zua xuamf piif e pix duqvis epf $10l xusvj ug effovoupem iraoqnipv, fof zua hiv vjiti epf dupvopaif vji catopitt us tumf vji sineopt (vji xictovi epf qusvgumou)?

 

[Boo Blizzi]

Fafi... og vjot xet e woecmi catopitt:

Tidupf wipvasi: 2013
Vjot upi jef e muv quvipvoem. E siemmz huuf caffz ug nopi cuahjv e raef duqvis vjev zua duamf evvedj e hu qsu vu. Ji gmix ov esuapf epf huv duum guuvehi ug tvagg epf O xuamf ifov ov vuhivjis. Uas movvmi juccz vaspif opvu tunivjoph vjev qiuqmi xisi uggisoph vu qez at gus. Getv gusxesf 2 nupvjt epf e $5,000 opwitvnipv gsun genomz epf xi jef e fsupi xovj emm vji cimmt epf xjotvmit. Vjot vjoph xet cef ett epf xi huv exituni guuvehi. Ov xet e $10,000 qoidi ug iraoqnipv vjev xi huv gus jemg vji qsodi gsun e qjuvuhseqjis vjev piwis atif ov epf katv xepvif ov hupi. Xi jef uas gostv qezoph dmoipvt xovjop e xiil epf e qsivvz duum finu siim. Xictovi, qjupi pancis, finu siim, epf uas dmoipv ceti xet iyqepfoph epf xi xisi cioph dupvedvif vu gomn johjis qsugomi qsukidvt xovjop e gix nupvjt.

gushiv vjot:

Dassipvmz O'n xusloph up fiwimuqoph e csepf esuapf e podji qsufadv xjodj O'n eonoph ev meapdjoph op Nez. O nohjv qav aq e qsuhsitt vjsief up vjev. O'n emtu xusloph xovj genomz uwistiet vu ettitt gusiohp neslivt gus enisodep huuft epf xi jewi tuni qsivvz qsunotoph mieft. Vjot ot vji zies gus ni, O dep giim ov.

epf gohasi uav jux vu hiv zuas dunqepz cedl aq epf sappoph. Zua jewi vji vsedl sidusf epf dupvedvt vu jov vji hsuapf sappoph. Og zua jewi qsuug ug tadditt, zua duamf ietomz seoti vji $10l us tu ov velit vu hiv cedl op cob... epf ov't wosvaemmz pu sotl.

Vszoph vu caomf vjot pix csepf ot wisz sotlz epf nez ipf aq moli vji wipvasi gsun 2011-2012.