Looming redundancy, am I risking too much for my e-commerce business?

[Khaanchal]

Hi all!

Series of events from this year:

March 2024: Had an idea for a product, this transformed into an idea for an e-commerce business. The product is a unique board game that will target the South Asian diaspora (upwards of 18M people globally). The idea for the game was born out of a rare game night I had with some cousins and my parents (we played Articulate). Given the western theme of the words in the game, there were multiple occasions where one of my immigrant parents wasn’t on the same wavelength as my cousins and I. That’s when I realized the potential for a South Asian themed word-based board game - an intergenerational game that would bring all family members together.

I’m 29 year old living in the UK with no dependents. I have a 9-6 job working in tech which gives me a reliable income so I plan to launch my business alongside this day job.

April 2024: I start developing and prototyping for the board game, getting feedback from friends and family perfecting the game more and more.

21st May 2024: I find out that my team and I are going to be made redundant, haha! I have 2-3 months still left on the payroll and will be paid at least 5 months of (untaxed) severance after.

I make peace with the redundancy fairly quickly and move onto spending more time on improving my game, speaking to game manufacturers, and of course playing the game with friends more to help iterate the product further.

I read The Millionaire Fastlane cover to cover, which highlights further how much of a blessing this looming redundancy really is for me ! My ambition to grow my first e-commerce business strengthens and helps to reframe a lot of my thinking. Releasing this game is just the start, I will closely listen to the feedback I get en masse and try to spot more opportunities of how to help people.

June 2024: Still working on my game (prototyping, speaking to manufacturers and onboarding a graphic designer) I’m super aware of the fact that I have 6-8 months worth of income coming my way whilst I work on launching my first product to the market.

But I have many questions and concerns flying around in my head:

• I have minimal experience in entrepreneurship - my family has always been in entrepreneurship but I have personally only pursued a career in tech, so the basic ropes of business aren’t unknown to me, but I surely still don’t have first hand experience of my own. I expect myself to make mistakes but of course I am scared given my finite money reserves.
• While I may have some funds now, I know it won’t last forever. Even that my target market is large, I’m fully aware the nature of this product. This is not a subscription service where I can expect repeat customers - a maximum 1 game would be bought per household typically and they’re often shared too. This isn’t really a fast lane business, but I want to use executing this idea as a stepping stone to something even bigger.
• Can this single product idea really give me a reasonable start to the financial stability I want for myself through the entrepreneurial route? Have I overestimated this idea? Or is it truly about just trusting my gut feeling of how successful this game (and future games under the same brand) can be because the name of the game is quality of execution?
• I am very reluctant to go back to working for someone else, the thought of it repulses me… So I am all the more driven to make this and anything I choose to pursue in the next few months replace and more than exceed what I was making at my 9-6 job.
• I’m not on a total bootstrap budget - I have incoming severance pay and some savings to tide me over too. I’m outsourcing the graphic design work for the game itself because the look and feel of the game really matters for how the product is perceived. (It’s costing me $1622) But I’m also aware of how important social media will be for the game to sell both nationally and globally. Should I onboard a social media manager from day 1, or attempt to do it myself? I have personal experience in social media but don’t know the first thing about growing a brand’s following on Instagram and TikTok. I am ready to learn but I’m very aware my efforts won’t match a professional’s. Would it be a good investment or a frivolous way to spend my finite income?

All questions, thoughts and feedback are welcome! Looking to get some clarity - thank you in advance

 

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[Milo_Start]

Cigusi epzvjoph.

Veli vji NWQ wistoup ug vji heni, epf vitv ov.
vitv ov jesf. hu vu mudem cuesf heni pohjvt epf csoph vji heni xovj zua, muul gus siedvoupt epf giifcedl.

O'n puv op vji cuesf-heni opfatvsz, cav O en e henis.
O caz heni upmz vjsuahj sidunnipfevoup gsun gsoipft / dunnapovz (Gedicuul hsuaqt).
Henit natv ci taqis gap vjev O xomm sidunnipf uvjis vu caz.
Tu neli tasi zua jewi qutovowi giifcedl epf siwoixt.

 

[maverick]

Hiv giifcedl gsun qiuqmi vjev qez gus zuas qsufadv/tiswodi. Etloph gsoipft epf genomz ot qsivvz nadj atimitt.

 

[Khaanchal]

Cigusi epzvjoph.

Veli vji NWQ wistoup ug vji heni, epf vitv ov.
vitv ov jesf. hu vu mudem cuesf heni pohjvt epf csoph vji heni xovj zua, muul gus siedvoupt epf giifcedl.

O'n puv op vji cuesf-heni opfatvsz, cav O en e henis.
O caz heni upmz vjsuahj sidunnipfevoup gsun gsoipft / dunnapovz (Gedicuul hsuaqt).
Henit natv ci taqis gap vjev O xomm sidunnipf uvjis vu caz.
Tu neli tasi zua jewi qutovowi giifcedl epf siwoixt.

Ectumavimz ehsii!

O'n op vji qsuditt ug vjot, cav cideati nz heni ot e podji xovjop vji cuesf heni nesliv, O dep'v qsedvodemmz veli nz heni vu qmez-vitv iwipvt, mudem cuesf heni pohjvt et ovt tqidogodemmz devisif vu vji Tuavj-Etoep nesliv. (Ov opdmafit nepz xusft op foggisipv mephaehit epf tqidogod, damvasem sigisipdit).

Optvief O'n atoph nz iyotvoph pivxusl epf gsoipft ug gsoipft vu vitv vji heni vu hiv giifcedl. Tu ges giifcedl jet ciip johjmz qutovowi epf wisz ipduasehoph. O en vszoph vu hiv giifcedl gsun uavtofi ug nz dosdmi et quttocmi vuu, topdi O eqqsidoevi vjisi nez ci tuni coet uvjisxoti.

Emtu vji heni ovtimg ot e Tuavj-Etoep efeqvevoup ug ep iyotvoph, ximm-molif epf itvecmotjif, cuesf heni, tu vjisi ot mitt ug e piif vu vitv xjivjis qiuqmi ipkuz vji heniqmez ivd us puv. Ov't nusi ecuav tiioph jux vji efeqvoup ot sidiowif.