RamsdenDesigns

Day 80

Twenty days to go. The finish line is definitely on my mind.

I’m back to blogging everyday, it’s nice to have that ‘I need something to blog about’ feeling. Today I had a meeting with my new consulting agency to discuss my business plan. It’s an absolute thrill to get advice from such knowledgeable people. I feel they completely get my product and where I want to go with it and it feels like a great fit.

We discussed Angel Investment, cash flows, my SWOT Analysis, marketing strategy and sales forecasts. What I found interesting was the suggestion of doing 3 – 5 different sales forecasts: minimum sales scenarios, likely and great scenarios are some I’m doing. And each needs it’s own cash flow analysis including a cash flow forecast that includes future expenditures for the business such as buying better equipment and large scale marketing projects.

I already have a first draft minimum sales scenario written up and we both feel it’s a completely achievable  goal and in fact the likelihood is that sales will be much better. Retail display options were also discussed and I now have a million ideas in my head. All of them suggested to me and all of them totally fantastic.

As promised I snapped my dehydrated fruit which will be used to decorate two of my bath bombs. Some I cut too thin and they didn’t dry well but it’s no drama to make more.

Friday is Little J’s birthday so I’ll be frantic for the next couple of days getting things ready for her birthday party on Saturday. There’s also the Made on the Left market on Sunday to prepare for as well. All my stock is ready I just need to make up signs and work out my display ideas but it’s still another huge job ahead of me.

Tomorrow, if I can I’ll be working on my business plan and making some bath bombs. That's not likely to happen but if I put it out there as jobs to be done…it may still happen.

Day 74 - 79

Taking such a long break between post wasn’t intentional. And I’ve actually had plenty to blog about but either the computer has been turned off or I’ve been out of town. My beloved computer has been shut down quite a few times this week. Thunderstorms make me very nervous and I get very protective of my delicate computer innards. Not that there has been much storming going on. The weather seems very undecided at the moment, does it want to rain or not? Yes, no, no, yes. The weather appears to have dual personalities at the moment.

I also visited my in-laws for a couple of days too. I get home cooked meals that don’t include packet bases or premade salads from the supermarket. It’s a real treat.

Sunday is the Made on the Left market (it’s also on Saturday but as I won’t be there that day there’s little reason to go so I won’t mention it). I LOVE Made on the Left. It’s always packed, there’s always a great energy and it’s always held in a pub…every point is a bonus. So I’m busy getting things ready and planning the perfect display. I’ve no idea how much stock to take so have decided to take everything.

Product development wise I’m having fun dehydrating fruit which will be the toppers for a couple of my new design bath bombs.

Strawberries for my strawberry scented bath bombs and bananas for the banana split bombs. This is pre dehydration, obviously. I loved how they turned out too. Pics tomorrow…I promise.

I’m also taking the bold step of trying to find Angel Investors for launching my business into the retail market. It’s a confusing process and there are absolutely no guarantees but thought I’d blog about what I do so other interested crafters can gain some knowledge from it. Whether I get funding or not Big B and I are working on plans to get my business launched anyway. It’s almost as if I’m working on two separate business plans; one for if I get funding and the other for if I don’t. Obviously the non-funded version has a longer time line to launch and will most likely involve me getting a full-time job to fund everything but it feels good to know it’ll happen either way.

Tomorrow is my first proper business meeting to work on my business plan with my consulting agency. I’m very excited about that and have been working on my plan already but really need help in some areas. Like what’s a market analysis? And how do I find out who my exact target market is?