No Way To Start Business With Zero Money down. Impossible! Really? Here's How I Did It In Malaysia

There is no way somebody can start a business with zero money, right? 

That’s exactly what everyone thinks, right? WRONG!

So this is one of the thing that people usually don't believe me when I say it

Like, how is it possible that I can start a business with zero money?

So let me tell you a story about how I started my previous business.

My First Business: Nail Fiesta

So before SoapLab, I had a business called Nail Fiesta, whereby I was selling nail polishes from all around the world. You know branded nail polishes like OPI, Zoya, Essie, Orly etc

At that point of time, I used to be obsessed with nail polish and I blog a lot. 

I loved to do my own manicure and so I would snap pics and blog about it for hours (I was really obsessed)

Whatever I had, my friends’ ones or whatever, and I’d just take pics and put it there. And then one day, I decided I’m going to start selling it. My hobby was becoming too expensive so I just wanted to earn enough to buy more polish for myself.

So what I did was, every time I had a picture on my blog or pictures of my nails and so on, I would put there: “I’m taking a pre-order for this polish. Anyone who wants to order can just place the order and then pay me first, maybe 50%, and then I will ship it to them on a certain date.”

my blog where everything started

How I Started With Zero Cash

At that point of time, I used to import these nail polishes from the US and UK. 

It usually took about one to two months before I got the item. people were willing to wait because it was such 'rare item'.

So whenever people paid for the item, they usually paid half of it first ; which actually covered the full cost of the item when I was purchasing it from the US. (since I marked up x 2).

When I delivered to them, I got the remaining money.

That leftover profit was extra, which I continuously put back into the company to grow my nail polish stock assets. I started buying ready stock and keeping it in my house.

pictures I used to obsessively take

From Pre-Orders to Ready Stock

One year later, I had enough to order for ready stock  because I already knew what people liked.

So the ones that were ready stock, I usually charged much more compared to pre-order items. Pre-order ones were cheaper — maybe 10–20% off. Ready stock was higher priced because people didn’t have to wait. (so my mark up here was almost 3x)

I continued doing this for about seven years. And believe it or not, this very small business funded my wedding and even my early life after I quit my job as a pharmacist.

What This Taught Me

So what I’m trying to say here is; it is possible to start something from zero. 

You don’t need to put in cash if you don't have the fund. Just tweak it a little. 

But yes, if you’re not putting in cash, you will have to put in more time. 

That’s how it works. It’s either you give in your time, or you have money.

How You Can Start Today With SoapLab

If you want to start something like that today, you can actually just use SoapLab’s website. We already have a lot of pictures and a lot of free recipes.

What you can do is start taking pre-orders for these products. 

Tell customers you will send it to them after two or three weeks. 

Once you get the money, then you can order for them. We do take small orders for readystock products, or if you opt to DIY just simply follow the recipes. our mom for bases are so small that you can make even for one! Not sure how to calculate cost; I have all the videos showing cost breakdown here! 

Basically I have everything ready. Its just nak or tak nak buat Sahaja 

Why SoapLab Exists

That is the whole reason why SoapLab is here; to help people start their business from home, from small. 

I’m not asking you to buy 1000 or 2000 pieces before you even start. No, no. Save your money. Try little by little.

Trust me; if I can do it; so can you. it's not unique; people do it successfully. even big companies like apple takes preorder first. 

If you need help, you can always contact us, and from there, grow your business.

Love; Nisha