Cum am devenit antreprenor

Cum am devenit antreprenor

“Antreprenoriat” – ce cuvant complicat. Ma bufneste rasul numai cand mi-l imaginez pe Vlad incercand sa-l pronunte. Pe cat de complicat e cuvantul , pe atat de simplu si frumos au crescut lucrurile in cazul propriului meu business. Pentru ca primesc multe intrebari legate de acest subiect, azi va voi povesti mai pe larg despre cum am ajuns antreprenor, cum mi-am ales ideea de business, cum am finantat-o, care au fost provocarile la inceput si ce lectii am invatat pana acum din toata aceasta experienta.

 

EN: “Entrepreneurship” – what a complicated word. It makes me laugh just imagining Vlad trying to pronounce it. As complicated as the word may be, as easy and beautifully have things grown for my own brand. Because I get a lot of questions on the topic, today I am going to tell you more about how I became an entrepreneur, how I chose my business idea, how I financed it, what the challenges were in the beginning and what lessons this experience has taught me so far.

Ce ciudat! In urma cu 5 ani, cand eram la inceput cu blogul meu de fashion, nici nu imi trecea prin cap ca pasiunea mea s-ar putea transforma intr-o zi intr-un business. Scriam si faceam fotografii pentru blog fara sa castig nici macar din el ceva la vremea respectiva, caci bugetele pentru blogging au inceput sa creasca semnificativ abia in ultimii 3 – 4 ani. Dar imi placea, publicul crestea si pasiunea se… intetea.  Incet-incet, am construit in jurul blogului o comunitate importanta de doamne si domnisoare interesate de moda la fel de tare ca si mine, care ma responsabiliza si care ma determina sa merg mai departe pe acest drum, pornit strict ca un hobby.

Dand timpul inapoi, imi dau seama ca o decizie extrem de buna a fost sa urmez cursurile de Fashion Marketing de la Artcademy, cu profesorii de la Mod’Spe Paris, timp de 1 an de zile. Pentru ca atunci am invatat ABC-ul lansarii unui brand pe aceasta piata, atunci am inceput sa am o gandire (putin mai) organizata. Cred ca sunt foarte multi designeri extrem de talentati, dar care nu au nici instruirea si nici abilitatea de a-si face creatiile cunocute si – foarte important – vandabile!

La finalul anului de studiu, aveam in plan lansarea unui produs care sa imi poarte semnatura si care sa se vanda prin intermediu blogului. Aia era tinta mea la momentul respectiv. Alti bloggeri internationali lansasera deja tricouri, pantofi sau bijuterii. Dar eu voiam sa astept pana in momentul in care am o idee  inovatoare, care sa merite cu adevarat sa fie pusa in practica.

Iar in luna de miere, plecata cu rulota noastra hai – hui prin Europa, s-a nascut si ideea de business. Mi-a venit din senin, fara sa ma agit, fara sa imi pierd nu stiu cate ore in fata unui laptop sau unei agende, cu pixul in gura, si sprancenele incruntate. Nu, ideile bune vin in momente de liniste, de calm. Iar in cazul meu se pare ca vin mai des cand sunt in masina si Radu conduce… dar sa nu divagam. Ideea mea, dupa cum bine stiti, era sa lansez “genti cu fete detasabile”. Stiam din primul moment cum vreau sa arate si cine mi-as dori sa le poarte.

Primul sfat: este extrem de imporant sa iti cunosti targetul. Si nu la modul general – femei, 18 – 40 ani, venit mediu si peste mediu , bla bla – Nu, sa o cunosti pe cumparatoarea ideala a viitorului tau brand in detaliu: ce preocupari are, ce muzica asculta, in ce magazine intra, pe ce cheltuie banii etc.

M-am intors din luna de miere hotarata sa lansez aceste genti cu fete detasabile. De la idee si pana la lansarea lor efectiva a durat 7 luni. Si aici vine sfatul cu numarul 2: o sa intalniti foarte multi oameni care va vor intampina cu un “Nu se poate!” rostit cu glas hotarat, mai ales daca veniti cu o idee inovatoare. Nu va lasati descurajati!

Sfatul 3: oamenii cu care urmeaza sa lucrati trebuie sa creada si sa iubeasca ideea voastra aproape (caci chiar la fel nu se poate) la fel de mult ca si voi. Trebuie sa credeti unul in celalalt de la bun inceput, altfel nu functioneaza. Ganditi-va ca eu luam la rand o multime de ateliere din Bucuresti, in speranta ca voi gasi unul care sa poata realiza prototipul asa cum eu il visam. Si ma loveam de tot felul de smecherasi, dornici sa o ameteasca pe “vedeta de la Pro teveu”, care sigur nu are ea habar cat costa o geanta, laptele sau cu ce se mananca viata in general. Daca puteti crede unii imi cereau 300 euro manopera pe aceeasi geanta pe care voi  o cumparati cu 300 lei acum. Si as fi putut accepta, ca sa ma scutesc de alte drumuri si alte negocieri sacaitoare la inceput de drum….si as fi dat-o in bara lamentabil. Sau poate s-ar fi gasit cumparatori si pe aceasta nisa. Dar nu erau oamenii mei, nu erau doamnele si domnisoarele care ma urmeau pe blog de multi ani si care stiau ca am bun simt, ca intotdeauna mi-am cheltuit cu masura banii munciti de mine, in 20 de ani de televiziune. Si iar ma intorc la sfatul cu numarul 1 si sa va spun ca e obligatoriu sa stiti de la bun inceput cui va adresati!

Dupa ce alti marochineri de prin Bucuresti incercau sa ma abrambureasca laudandu-se ca au lucrat pentru Prada (TOTI lucrasera, ceea ce era cel putin dubios…), am inceput sa maresc aria de cautare si am ajuns la Buzau, unde se produc si acum gentile mele.

Sfatul cu numarul 4: Nu iti trebuie o suma impresionanta de bani la inceput de drum, daca alegi genul acesta de afacere. Sigur ca eu aveam deja notorietate, iar asta a contat foarte mult la inceput. Dar daca produsul ar fi fost unul plictisitor sau dezamagitor, cu siguranta Moon ar fi apus de mult. Eu am investit la inceput 3.000 euro in materiale si manopera pentru primele 50 de genti, deschiderea unei firme, avocat, contabila, osim si alte chestiuni obligatorii la inceput. Daca tineti minte, nu aveam un site de cumpraturi, pentru ca am fost foarte rezervata in pronosticurile succesului. Ba chiar ma gandeam ca o sa raman cu astea 50 de genti pentru cine stie cat timp prin casa, si ca  toti prietenii mei, pentru orice viitoare ocazie, vor avea sa primeasca o…noua geanta Moon.

Sfatul cu numarul 5: la inceput, poti face multe lucruri de unul singur si cu un laptop. Eu verificam comenzile primite pe mail, eu le impachetam, eu chemam curierul, eu faceam tot tot tot. Si nu din economie, ci din dorinta de a trece prin tot procesul, pentru ca voiam sa fiu acolo, implicata in cele mai mici detalii. Sigur ca cele 50 de genti s-au vandut in primele zile si ca dintr-odata puteam vorbi de un “business”. Repet, nu aveam sperante la inceput ca se va mai intampla ceva dupa aceste 50 de genti. Dar uite ca am implinit 3 ani si am un magazin in mall care poarta sigla Moon by Dana Rogoz, am  o multime de produse lansate si inca multe altele pe lista de asteptare.

Daca nu v-am plictisit deja, va invit sa cititi continuarea povestii aici.

Conținut oferit cu sprijinul

EN: How weird! Five years ago, when I just started my fashion blog, I had no idea that my passion would one day turn into a business. I was writing and taking photos for the blog, without making any money at that time, because the budgets for blogging have only started to grow in the past 3-4 years. But I liked it, the public was growing and the passion…got stronger. Slowly, I have built an important community of women around the blog, who are just as interested in fashion as I am, who made me more responsible and who determined me to go further down this path, which started out strictly as a hobby.

Looking back I realize that taking the Fashion Marketing classes at Artcademy, with professors from Mod’Spe Paris, for1 year, was a great idea. Because that is where I learned the ABC of a product launch on this market; that is when I started to have a (more) organized thinking. I think there are many very talented designers, but who don’t have either the training or the ability to make their creations known and – very important- sellable!

At the end of the study year, I planned to launch a product with my signature on it, which I would sell through the blog. That was my target at that time. Other international bloggers had already launched t-shirts, shoes or jewelry. But I wanted to wait for the right time, when I would have an innovative idea, which would truly be worth to turn into reality. 

And on our honey moon, driving around Europe in our trailer, I had the business idea. It came out of nowhere, without any stress, without losing countless hours in front of a laptop or a notebook, with the pen in my mouth and frowned eyebrows. No, good ideas come in moments of calm and tranquility. And in my case they seem to come more often when we are in the car and Radu is driving…but let’s not divagate.  My idea, as you know, was to launch “clutches with detachable covers”. I knew right from the beginning what they should like and who I wanted to wear them.

First advice: it is very important to know your target. And not just generally speaking – women, 18-40 years, average and above average income, blabla- No, you have to know your ideal buyer in detail: what her favorite activities, music, shops are, what she spends her money on, etc. 

I came back from the honey moon with my mind set on launching these bags with detachable covers. From the idea to their actual launch 7 months went by. And here comes advice number 2: you will meet a lot of people who will tell you from the start and in a firm voice: “That’s not possible!” Especially if you come up with an innovative idea. Don’t get discouraged by them!

Advice 3: the people you are going to work with have to believe in your idea and love almost (the same isn’t really possible) as much as you do. You have to believe in each other from the beginning, otherwise it won’t work. Think about the fact that I visited many workshops in Bucharest, hoping that I would one who could make the prototype I was dreaming of. And I came across lots of wise guys, willing to scheme the “ProTV star”, who surely has no idea what a bag or milk costs, or life in general is all about. If you can imagine, some would ask for 300 euro manual labor, for the same bag you are now buying with 300 lei. And I could have said yes, to save myself the trouble of other visits and nagging negotiations at the beginning of the road…and I would have failed miserably. Or maybe I would have buyers on this niche too. But those wouldn’t have been my people, the ladies who had been following my blog for many years and who knew that I have common sense, that I have always spent the money I earned, in 20 years of television, wisely. And now back to advice number 1: it’s mandatory that you know who you are addressing right from the beginning!

After other leather goods makers in Bucharest have tried to convince me that they have worked for Prada (they had ALL worked for Prada, which was very bizarre), I have broadened the search area and I got to Buzau, where my bags are still produced at this moment. 

Advice number 4: You don’t need an impressive amount of money, if you choose this type of business. Of course, I already had the notoriety and that meant a lot in the beginning. But if the product would have been boring or disappointing, surely Moon would have set a long time ago. Initially I have invested 3,000 euro in the materials and the labor work for the first 50 bags, in opening a new firm, lawyer, accountant, OSIM and other mandatory stuff in the beginning.  If you remember, I didn’t have a shopping site, because I was reserved about the success. I even thought that I would have 50 bags lying around the house, and that all my friends, on any future occasion, would get a… new Moon bag.

Advice number 5: in the beginning, you can do a lot on your own with a laptop. I used to check to orders I got via mail, I used to wrap them, call the courier; I did absolutely everything. And not to save money, but because I wanted to go through the entire process, I wanted to be there, involved in the smallest details.  Of course the 50 bags were sold in the first couple of days and all of the sudden I could talk about a “business”. Again, I didn’t have much hope at the first that something would happened after these first 50 bags. But look at us now, 3 years later, I have a store in a mall with the Moon by Dana Rogoz logo on it, I have many launched products and many more on the waiting list. 

If you aren’t bored yet, I invite you to read the rest of the story here.

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