Michelle Bennett, owner of Eastern Gifts and Things,
has gone from
secretary to business owner by using the entrepreneurial skills she
picked up from years in the business world.
"It's not that I don't enjoy
being a secretary," says Michelle. "It's
just that I always had a dream that one day I would own my own
business. Now I am doing both and life is pretty full."
"My boss, Johnny Johnson of CAM Solutions, has supported me
in my entrepreneurial endeavor and now that I work for him from home,
the flexitime has allowed me to develop this new business into a fully
fledged operation."
"Johnny is a great business man and I learned a lot about
running a demanding a business from him. He is a real entrepreneur, and
wants to see others achieve the same, it's a great
environment to grow and learn in," she says.
"I had long planned an online website that could offer a
cost-effective option for all home decor, kitchenware and
gifting requirements - delivered directly to
people's homes. Eastern Gifts and Things was born
out of
my love of interior decor, the Far East and my urge to
spread my entrepreneurial wings."
Michelle studied numerous courses including a three-year Executive PA
course through Intec, as well as a Higher Diploma in Business
Management through Damelin. She has also completed numerous financial,
management and accounting courses as well. She didn't have to pay for
them as these skills benefited her employer as well and they were
covered by the companies she worked for.
Michelle says she had to have start up capital to cover the first
shipment of stock and the website development.
"I also made use of the Umsobomvu fund which assisted
greatly YouthFund.co.za. Unfortunately the IT service
providers for the fund didn't do the best job of my site
Other than that, the fund offers legal assistance, marketing, branding,
etc for all entrepreneurs under 35. I just, however, would not
recommend
their IT services. Capital that I had to put is about R50 000 and
covers the stock, shipment and all other sundry necessities. I now had
to put more in (all from our bond) to cover the costs of redoing the
site. It is vitally important to make sure that your website developers
know what they're doing - I had no choice with the
fund, I had to use their preferred service providers. However, this was
not the best option for what I needed."
Michelle's products cater for a niche market of home
decor, kitchenware and gifting items not easily found in the
South African market, which she imports.
"Importing can be very risky and it is vitally important that
you thoroughly research your suppliers. Looking at the particular
country's chamber of commerce website to do research on your
supplier is a good way to start," she advises.
"When you receive the invoice from your international
supplier, they will tell you the exact volume and weight of your
shipment. You then pass this onto your shipping company, and they quote
you accordingly. They will even tell you if it would be cheaper to fly
the stock in, depending on how much you've ordered
- or if you need to maybe consider ordering more to fill a
container, which will then bring the costs down. They do ship part
containers (i.e. you will share a container with someone) but this is
extremely expensive," she says.
"I decided to go with an on-line store as opposed to a
brick-and-mortar shop, because it offered a lot of flexibility to me
personally, allowing me time to focus on my work for CAM Solutions, but
also making it possible to make my products cost-effective."
Michelle says that when developing an e-commerce site, it is vitally
important to ensure that the developers have experience in this kind of
site.
"Always ask to see references of three fully functioning
e-commerce sites that they have developed. It will give you an idea of
your developers modus operandi in terms of site design.
Working with developers who have not had sufficient experience will
cause unnecessary delays and frustration. If you
don't have a brick-and-mortar shop, your site will be your
sole option for purchases for your clients and it is therefore vital
that this be effective and easy to use."
The vouchers from the Umsobomvu fund cover about R10 000 for an
information site (just a normal site) and I paid about R7 000 extra to
convert that to an e-commerce site. I am now paying about the same to
have the site redone.
One of the struggles Michelle has had to overcome is delivering
purchases to her clients.
"Finding a courier company who understands your needs and who
can collect and deliver promptly is vital. Clients do not
want to wait months for their purchases, but would like to receive what
they have bought as soon as possible.
Courier companies can be very expensive. Some charge R70.00
for the first 2 kgs, and R25.00 per kg thereafter.
I eventually opted for a local courier company who charge around R50
for the first 5 kgs, and then R17 thereafter and it works
well."
"I will focus all my marketing efforts through
newsletters sent out on a monthly basis. These will show
products for sale, but will be filled with interesting information,
recipes, home decor ideas and so much more.
Clients, who register on the site, will be receiving these newsletters,
so it is important that these newsletters are kept interesting for the
clients to read."
"It is a risky venture starting an online store, but with the advent of
broadband really taking off, more and more consumers are opting to
purchase on line."
Says Michelle, "I feel that every aspect of my career has led
to me the point of being able to manage and run my own business.
Eastern Gifts caters specifically for the busy executive, bachelor or
anyone that is too busy to go shopping for home decor,
kitchenware and gift items. They can select their preference on-line
and the order will be delivered directly to them. It's also
an option for families and friends to purchase gifts for weddings and
birthdays when they're not in the same town. I have already
had some fantastic orders and I am expecting the business to grow
rapidly as more people become aware of what's on
offer."
