Small Biz - Love the Way You Earn
In 2013, I started my first competition prep. I had bought a suit from a designer recommended by my coach. When it arrived, it was nice, but wasn't cut exactly how I would have liked it, and quite honestly the first thing I thought was "I could so make this." I've been sewing since I could talk, everything from homecoming dresses to baby quilts... but working with slippery, sparkly spandex would definitely be a new adventure. (And by adventure, I mean nightmare! LOL) It took me about a year to get up the guts to actually try and make a suit. The first (OK, many) attempts turned out AWFUL. I'm talking TERRIBLE. The top was SO wrong, the bottoms were either grandma or thong... I was frustrated. How did all these designers make it look so easy? It's a FREAKING TRIANGLE TOP after all!!!!! Fast forward a few months, MUCH wasted fabric, and I had a pattern that was workable. I cut my first show suit, it was a dark turquoise (and is still available as a rental) and proudly wore it to my next show. I had no intention of turning it into a business, but once girls started asking "Where did you get that suit?!?!" my inner hustler came out. I realized that I could combine my love for fitness competitions, my passion for creating (specifically through sewing), and start something where I could even bring in a little extra money. JACKPOT. AmandaLouise Swimwear was officially born.
That was two years ago. Since then I've made over 100 suits (all by myself), built a decent online following, and learned A TON about starting and owning a small business. Through the trials and tribulations, I've found a new passion... a passion for helping others turn their passions into a revenue stream.
"I've found a new passion... a passion for helping others turn their passions into a revenue stream"
I'm pretty geeky (I'm an electrical engineer for my day job) so I love everything that comes along with running a business that is primarily online. The questions from clients recently have shifted from suit design to business design. Because of that, I've decided to formalize what I've learned in order to help others build businesses too! It'll come in a couple different forms, but here's what I'm thinking:
- VIP DAYS - This will be a full day exercise that is one on one with the primary goal of basically jump starting your business. I call it "6 Months in a Day" because that's about how long it took me to get all "basic" business stuff set up. Now having gone through it not only with AmandaLouise, but helping other small business owners, I've streamlined it down into a day's worth of work. Each VIP day will be customized for the client based on where you're at with your business and what makes sense, but here's an idea of what can get covered:
- Website Creation/Optimization (I've built all my own websites... for CHEAP)
- Email List Creation/Strategy (including freemiums)
- Social Media Strategy (build your following, content calendars, automation tools, etc)
- Product Idea Generation and Affiliate Setup
- Financial Goal Setting
The goal of the VIP day is for you to leave with an up and running business, with clear next steps and achievable goals in order to make it grow and flourish.
- Passion Biz Online Course - This will be an online course that is most of the content covered in a VIP day, but put into an email based series of workshops. You'll receive daily emails with "homework" to complete that will take you from ground zero, to a fully functioning website with a strong social media presence and clear goals in mind.
So, if you're looking to build a small business... maybe you want to offer fitness programs, or start a active wear line... but don't know where to start, REACH OUT TO ME! I would LOVE to help kick start your journey. VIP Days will be available pretty much immediately, and the Passion Biz Online Course will launch this Spring.
Are YOU ready to turn your passion into a business???