Can you make a success of ANY business?

Recently, I have become a little disillusioned! I run a small furniture making business which has grown and grown in recent years. I feel like I have put my all into it - but I was speaking to a fellow upholsterer yesterday - and it would seem that there are two major issues moving forward...

1) there are very few people coming into the craft (making it difficult to find the staff!)
2) upholsterers' day rates seem to be the same across the board (meaning outsourcing work is futile as there is little / no margin to be had.

Yes - It is possible that it's just one of those "down" days - but I do find it incredibly difficult to make good money - even despite the fact that I work with some top designers.

It may be that you are just a little frustrated but sit back and be creative. If you cannot find trained staff, how about taking on an apprentice?
People only make “good money “ if they have a particular skill or niche market and can charge higher rates. So maybe you need to look for a second income stream like selling your own furniture.

What makes you stand out from the crowd...? Why should your prospects pay more for your kit...?
Why should I care that you work with top designers...?

Thanks...A secondary income stream is definitely something I have been thinking about. And, in actual fact, I am working on a design which I think has some real possibilities (I think!)...

I feel like upholstery is already pretty niche - but we can only charge so much due to public perception of what things "should" cost!

I don't know! If I can't find the people to make the products, then I end up making them - and then it's a question of capacity. Then it's not a scalable business, is it?

keposhe wrote:What makes you stand out from the crowd...? Why should your prospects pay more for your kit...?
Why should I care that you work with top designers...?

Good questions - which I have been asked before - And I often wonder what it is that makes us different! Well - I build good rapport with clients, go that extra mile, am sensitive to design...Maybe its about WHO I target??

mojo10 wrote:Thanks...A secondary income stream is definitely something I have been thinking about. And, in actual fact, I am working on a design which I think has some real possibilities (I think!)...

I feel like upholstery is already pretty niche - but we can only charge so much due to public perception of what things "should" cost!

I don't know! If I can't find the people to make the products, then I end up making them - and then it's a question of capacity. Then it's not a scalable business, is it?

As the saying goes 'if it was easy, everyone would be doing it'

The key thing I would suggest you do ASAP is to take a huge step backwards and view your business from the outside- as a business person, not an upholsterer - in reality its extremely hard and will probably require help from an unrelated person

Secondly, find a niche somewhere where you can add value - either real or perceived go a specific group of people

mojo10 wrote:
Good questions - which I have been asked before - And I often wonder what it is that makes us different! Well - I build good rapport with clients, go that extra mile, am sensitive to design...Maybe its about WHO I target??

Every business worries about pricing themselves out of their market, and then find they have been undercharging for years as nobody mentioned your price increase and you did not loose all your customers

There must be a good reason that top designers are using you, identify it and charge the right rate for the job

To be accredited as a upholsterer you may well need five years, but in the modern world accredited is not always needed, take some youngsters on for three years and train them up and tell them they are on full wages at the end

keposhe wrote:
Every business worries about pricing themselves out of their market, and then find they have been undercharging for years as nobody mentioned your price increase and you did not loose all your customers

There must be a good reason that top designers are using you, identify it and charge the right rate for the job

To be accredited as a upholsterer you may well need five years, but in the modern world accredited is not always needed, take some youngsters on for three years and train them up and tell them they are on full wages at the end

I see this problem all the time. entrepreneurs think that because you have plenty of work you don't have a marketing problem. A marketing problem is exactly what is causing the issues.

With the right marketing tools even the smallest business have the best opportunities to grow. It just they didnt know how to do that.

Last time i went to this masterclass conducted by Mr. Long Yun Siang my eyes is more open on what i can do to thrive in competitive market. I think every entrepreneur need to have these knowledge.

syrell_narc wrote:
I see this problem all the time. entrepreneurs think that because you have plenty of work you don't have a marketing problem. A marketing problem is exactly what is causing the issues.

With the right marketing tools even the smallest business have the best opportunities to grow. It just they didnt know how to do that.

Last time i went to this masterclass conducted by Mr. Long Yun Siang my eyes is more open on what i can do to thrive in competitive market. I think every entrepreneur need to have these knowledge.

Probably i haven't seen from different perspective yet. I am just surprised how you guys are able to give the opinions that i need.
Which masterclass is this? If this can make a change to my business i might want to consider.

mojo10 wrote:
Probably i haven't seen from different perspective yet. I am just surprised how you guys are able to give the opinions that i need.
Which masterclass is this? If this can make a change to my business i might want to consider.

It definitely an accumulated experience dear. Lot of failure, try and error. Finding whats right... I do need to agree that any business owner need some sort of knowledge before venturing into the business world.
Yup and Mr. Long Yun Siang is one of the people that we all need to learn from. He has been training business owner throughout asia Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia. Well also holder of Malaysia books of record for longest running business blog.

mojo10 wrote:

Probably i haven't seen from different perspective yet. I am just surprised how you guys are able to give the opinions that i need.
Which masterclass is this? If this can make a change to my business i might want to consider.

It can be done. If you are not born with it, you can develop it over time or through specific formula. This is the masterclass that i talked about https://roar-point.com/marketing-branding-masterclass/

Lets give an example of marketing method that is social media... some business are just paying for ads without knowing the right target and messaging. Even u don't need to use internet for marketing. Offline marketing is still feasible.

keposhe wrote:
It definitely an accumulated experience dear. Lot of failure, try and error. Finding whats right... I do need to agree that any business owner need some sort of knowledge before venturing into the business world.
Yup and Mr. Long Yun Siang is one of the people that we all need to learn from. He has been training business owner throughout asia Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia. Well also holder of Malaysia books of record for longest running business blog.

Yup unfortunately failing the first time could be very bitter and push people back. But if u have the knowledge and the right strategy u can minimize the failure and avoid unnecessary risks.