• 21/07/2022
• By wizewebsite
• 513 Views

Friday the 13th was fateful for her. He is now the biggest seller in the country<

Your boyfriend bought you a sewing machine when you were expecting your second child, so you could sew him a little outfit. When did you first think that you could start a business in the field?When I sewed the first piece, I thought that I would try to offer it on the Internet, so that I could at least partially get back what I put into buying the fabrics. I liked the idea that I would be able to buy fabrics for my needs and it wouldn't cost me anything.

And did it work? The turning point came about three months after I started sewing. I already knew that due to the growing number of orders, I would not be able to do it alone and would have to find another seamstress to help me. That's when I realized that you can do business in this field and make a living from it. Only in hindsight did I realize that it all started on Friday the 13th and that it probably wouldn't be such an unlucky day.

How can starting a business be combined with caring for a newborn? I admit that it is very challenging. When I started my business, I understood that it is not enough to work eight hours a day as in a job. You have to work all the time. If it wasn't for my friend who supported me, I probably wouldn't have made it. He was the one who devoted much more to his son than I did and allowed me to get the company to where it is today.

What would you recommend to women on maternity leave who would like to start a business? Certainly, they should not be deterred from their dream. It is important to believe in yourself, and when a person gets into a situation that is not twice as enviable, they must take it as a moment to teach them something. Self-discipline is also important. I remember very well the times when I wanted to be with my children on the weekend, but I had to work. I justified it to myself by saying that I would be able to give them more in life, that I would help them start a better life.

You used to work in banking and have no education in the textile industry. Have you ever come across that this can be a disadvantage? How hard is it to master technology? I consider it my advantage because I don't follow the rules that are given. I often try different ways and still get the same result. I don't have the word "can't" in my vocabulary. And even though I hear this quite often from the workshop, I can come and show that everything is possible, you just have to want it.

Your team is almost entirely female, you employ mainly mothers. Is it more of a coincidence or a connection with the field or do you specifically offer jobs to women? In the past, I tried to employ men as well, in any case, I know that I cannot boss the male population. Or rather, few men can handle being bossed around by me. Because I think that women's power is incredible and men try a lot to make their work easier. This bothers me, so I have given up all my attempts to employ men. I prefer to employ mothers who value work and can do the impossible.

What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome since starting your brand in 2017? You faced bankruptcy twice... Combine work life with personal life. I own a business with my boyfriend, and I will admit that when I faced the collapse of the business, my relationship threatened to fall apart as well. In addition, one of our employees is a friend's mother, and it has not always been easy in this area either. We all had to learn to distinguish between work and personal levels. Fortunately, we have learned and I believe the worst is behind us.

What do you consider to be the biggest milestone in your business? It took place quite recently. I understood that I cannot approach my customers as a salesperson, but rather as their friend who, in moments when they are at a loss, can give them advice and provide them with a service that is not yet so common in our countries.

What did you do for? I stopped using my social networks as a sales channel and started creating a kind of community here where mothers give advice to mothers and share their experiences. Newly, you can also learn useful advice about motherhood on my social networks. We want mothers to consult and be inspired on our website. I got the impetus for this from the agency that deals with our marketing, and I hope that it was a step in the right direction.

You are the largest Czech manufacturer of children's equipment and consume up to fifteen hundred kilograms of hollow fiber per month. How many orders do you process per month? So far this year, we are averaging a thousand orders per month. However, we have several other projects in development, and I am preparing that in the second half of the year it will be once more.

What is the biggest trend in the industry right now? And have you noticed in the four years of its existence that it is changing? Individualism. The customer is becoming increasingly demanding. What the customer was satisfied with when I started is not enough today and is rather below average. I always have to have something extra in the menu that appeals to the customer, which he could not find elsewhere. Fortunately, the muse is always with me and if everything goes as it should, the second half of the year will be a big challenge for us.

In what? We are preparing a lot of news and things that are not yet in the industry. This applies both to new products and, above all, to the service we are preparing for the customer. We know that our products are more expensive, but they are of good quality and will last for several generations. That is why we would like to offer recycling of our products. I believe that this service has no analogues in the Czech Republic.

Your range focuses mainly on various accessories for cots, prams and bedrooms. Are you planning any new categories? I would very much like to plan, but unfortunately there are only twenty-four hours in a day. This year, I set myself the goal of offering the customer a wider offer. Even one that I personally cannot produce.

How should we explain it? I have contacted other companies whose products we will include in our offer. The customer will thus be able to choose from a wider offer. I believe that he will appreciate the purchase for one postage: If he is satisfied with our brand, he will follow my recommendation and try other manufacturers.

You have a total of almost 90 thousand fans and followers on Facebook and Instagram. What role do social networks play in sales?Absolutely crucial. Nowadays, it is impossible to do without social networks, and we owe most of our orders to them. Even my first completed order was through Facebook, and it is still our main sales channel today. Even though we have a sales website, more than fifty percent of orders still arrive to us via social networks. It is also due to the fact that our target group is women who like to chat and feel better when they can consult with someone else about their choice.

Are you inspired abroad? How does the business with children's equipment differ here and abroad? Well, I have to say that in this business I was not inspired by the borders and I dare to say that they would be inspired by us. It seems to me that every other woman here has a sewing machine at home, and many of them try to make extra money on parental leave by sewing accessories.So you are focused exclusively on the Czech language. Do you have an overview of how things are going abroad?Beyond the borders you will also buy products for cribs that we produce, but certainly not to the same extent as here. As far as exports are concerned, we are currently discussing cooperation in Germany, where almost no one sews. You can get the equipment there, but the selection is limited.

Will you continue to do your business? From your point of view, can you compare the advantages and disadvantages of the ratio of employee and business to your own shirt? If nothing major changes, I will continue as long as I can. I have already invested so much that I simply could not stop and I must say that sometimes it was not far. In terms of comparison, it is very different. When I started, I basically did it on my own, and I have to say that it was easier in many ways. Actually, in every way. I only had limited production capacity and what I could do, I did.

And today? Today I am in the position of an employer, the capacities are great thanks to my employees, but the responsibility for the running of the company, employees, product quality, etc. has increased disproportionately. Today it is no longer about me, but about the work for all the people in the company, to meet the deadlines, to maintain the first rank in this specific production. It is not easy, but soon as a company we will be approaching the first five-year plan and, I hope, not the last.

Did the covid crisis help you when the shops were closed? I think it has rather harmed us, despite the growth we are seeing. Our production does not work through brick-and-mortar stores and we solve everything either through social networks or through the e-shop. As lockdowns alternated with easing, tensions and uncertainty grew. Interest in our production also decreased, and there is still a slight feeling that people are not spending as much as before the crisis, because they do not know what will happen. But we are trying our best to keep the company growing and we overcame the crisis without any major problems.

Do you earn more than when you were in the bank? My friend and I said that we would return most of the money to the company to help us grow as quickly as possible. I was employed at the bank and every month I knew that a certain amount would arrive in my account. It doesn't work like that here, and especially I don't have it set up like that. At the moment, I would probably be better off financially at the bank. But the beginnings are difficult and it will take some time before the results come and I will be better off in the long term than as a bank employee, and I am ready for it.

Can you tell us what your turnover is?For the first quarter of this year, it is four and a half million crowns.