How To Start Business And Not Lose Money

Hi.
Good Morning.
Today ill be talking about how you can get started with your business without losing money.

Ive been in SoapLab for 5 years now and i realised that many who wants to start their business tends to get very excited in 'stocking up' on products. I was like that too:-)

i was working in a government hospital when i started my first online business; selling nail polish (called Nail Fiesta). I was very excited to sell them because i loved the colors etc. One fine day i decided to start a nail polish business so i could 'own' all the gorgeous colors available in the world.

When i decided to start the business; i purchased close to RM 50'000 of inventory (i took a personal loan for it). I was all excited to own it that i forgot one thing; How on earth was i going to sell it! On top of that i was in Sarawak! I cant simply put it in a shopping mall (because there wasnt any that time! Spring (swakian will know) just opened few months before).


And so i tried online but since no one knew i was selling it; no body bought it. I was devasted and i decided to quit. So now i was stuck with close to 10'000 pcs of nail polish, and a debt of RM 50'000.

For a year I was looking at the inventory daily and it was a daily reminder about what a failure i was. So finally; A year later; i got really angry and decided so start selling it online again. I studied a little about how to sell online and just did it. And guess what; less than 3 months later; i was making profit.

I was making way more than my salary as a pharmacist that time. It paid for my wedding, it paid for my home, it paid for almost every luxury i wanted. It was great! If i have to do it all over again; i will definately do it!

What usually happens is people tend to get excited with the products when they want to start a business. They love to buy everything in bulk, they spend loads of time beautifying the product (the logo, packaging etc) and finally; when its time to sell; they somehow cant do that resulting in quitting their business even before they started.

This happened to many people and i feel so sorry for them and helpless because i couldn't guide them better so i decided to write this post. Hopefully it would inspire some of you.

Heres the thing guys; you dont have to spend all your money on inventory!

I know that traditionally you always hear that when you purchase from factories you need to buy at least 10'000 pcs etc but in SoapLab; since you are DIY-ing; you can start by making only 10 products!

Most of our recipes are recipes to make 1pcs and you could go from there. Yes its a bit expensive when you make small quantity as that but it 'saves' you a lot of money in long term!

Imagine this. You want to sell a soap for example. If you get a soap from factory; Lets say the cost is RM 2/pcs. But you have to purchase 10'000. Thats RM 20'000 in inventory alone! But if you DIY, the cost is probably RM 7/pcs. But you make 10pcs first. Thats RM 70 only in inventory!.

But thats So Expensive/ pcs!

Yes it is. But this is because you are making only 10 pcs. When you purchase in bulk the price will get much cheaper. But you dont have to do it 'Now!'. You dont have to buy in bulk now.

Assume that the first few sales that you make is as a 'degree' you are paying to learn how to sell. Its ok if you are selling on losses initially.

When you know you can sell; and there is a demand for your product; you can always buy in bulk to sell. During that time; it will definitely be cheaper!

But What To Do With The Remaining Money?

Spend on MARKETING! market your products! Make people know your products. Organise events to promote your product, give samples to let people try out your products. There are so many things you can do to make people aware of your product.

Whats the Worst Case Scenario?

The worst case scenario if you made in small batches and cant sell; you probably 'invested' RM 100-200 in learning whats right and wrong in doing your business. But imagine if you bought 10'000 pcs and then you learn that you cant sell; you are stuck with that much inventory starring at your face everyday! imagine how bad you will feel during that time :-(

I Dont Know How To Make My Own Products

If you are not sure how to make; you can always browse through our recipes here. These are all tested recipes and if you follow the steps; you will be able to make a product. Start by making small amount first and go from there.

Or alternatively; SoapLab also has readymade services where we make the products for you. Unfortunately; since it doesn't make sense for us to customise to make 1 product (not cost effective for us); our min quantity is 10kg (roughly 100 pcs for 100g product).  To get free quotation; email us here.

How Do I Get Started To Make My Own Products:

1) Browse the recipes here
2) Contact us Here or purchase the ingredients in the recipe here.
3) Get your materials delivered to you.
4) Start Making
5) Give out samples and start 'Marketing' your product
6) Get feedback and improve. If everything is good; You can start making in big bulk according to demand.
7) Repeat with another product until you have the whole range.

I hope this post is beneficial for you especially those who wants to start. If you have any questions; please feel free to leave me a comment

Love;
Nisha