Archive for Women in business

Mothers of Invention; An Inspiring Dive into Start Ups

March 20, 2012 First Shave, Networking, Women in business No comments

Here at Razor we love supporting new business ventures and our First Shave initiative gives us lots of opportunities to work with the most cutting edge and exciting upcoming brands. We’re more a bunch of girls, not suits, so positioning ourselves as adventurous, enterprising women, Claire, Amelie, Tara and I went along to this year’s Mothers of Invention event at the British Library.

With our ‘First Shave’ heads firmly on we set out to immerse ourselves into the mind-set of these budding entrepreneurs. What challenges do they face in launching a new brand and what concerns them most? How have successful entrepreneurs tackled these problems and what advice do they have for start-ups?

The Business and IP Centre at the British Library seems to have played a core role in supporting new start-ups. Since its establishment in 2006, it has assisted in creating approximately 800 businesses with a good balance of gender ownership.

The speakers were testimony that there is no template for the successful start-up. With over 56 years business experience between them (some enviably young), they were, as chair Emma Jones said “incredible women who have built amazing businesses.” These weren’t women who moaned about men and glass ceilings and maternity leave. The ‘g’-word was barely used: the women were there to talk business, not gender.

There were, however, some common strains of advice:

Research. Research. Research. Research

“Be incredibly well prepared…it just has to be done”

As Sophie Cornish from notonthehighstreet.com said, her overnight success was pretty much due to being the “right brand at the right time. For her, research meant knowing what kind of customers she wanted, and more importantly, what they actually wanted to buy, whilst enabling customers to get the ‘feel-good’ factor of supporting small retailers.

Research doesn’t end the moment the site goes live

Consistent knowledge of trends and changes means that notonthehighstreet.com can really stay on top and basically “targeting the right people with the right story” – a consistent brand profile and message enabled her to do this. With one straight, clear story, she was able to sell over 40,000 little products.

Being a great start-up doesn’t necessarily mean relying on the latest technologies or whizzy gadgets to do the work for you

Kamal Baran from the Authentic Food Company talked about how she succeeded in a bygone era (ok, 1985), when she didn’t have the Internet at her disposal. Her inspiration came from the kitchen and from the conviction that she could, and would do better than the average Joe mass-produced Samosa. Having a conviction in a product gave her, she said “the confidence to say yes”, and from this, her research stemmed- the competition was lame, the quality poor. Regardless of gender, age, nationality, or technological tools, she’s testimony that opportunities do exist with a little research and a lot of hard work.

Sometimes we stumble on ideas by complete chance

The non-conformist Tatty Devine duo is a swell example of going beyond a standard brainstorm session. By literally stumbling on their materials, and by being self-confessed clueless on setting up a business they went back to basics- asking strangers for advice (calling up Radio Kent for some sewing advice!), and against all odds, their scatty, disorganised, bit bonkers and slightly off the wall approach has been a success. Tatty Devine have also navigated the tricky issue of being small fish in a big pond – their recent popup shop in Selfridges, for example, enabling them to make a mark. Constant product development, too, has featured in their repertoire. Once the start up is, well, started up, it can’t be static. By mimicking the fashion seasons, publishing a book, alongside constant product development, the dynamic duo ensure that they remain, ‘out there.’

These women were representative that starting a start-up means… hard work. There’s no quick fix- the likelihood of networking your way to a multi-million investor is, alas, fairly slim.

 

Some key points that we really found useful…

  • “Be distinctly different by playing a different game” Christina Richardson of The Nurture Network really emphasised this. If the market doesn’t exist for your idea, make it. If you’ve got the interest and passion and conviction in your ‘onlyness’ thing, then make that idea a reality.

 

  • Brand everything: Spread your message- whether this is through collaborations (make friends!), social media, or just good old word-of-mouth. Build lasting relationships and make your mark. But don’t be afraid of innovation.

 

  • Networking: If this idea sends you into paralytics, relax. t’s not the be-all-end-all! See events as opportunities to boost your brand, and share your personality quirks- play to your strengths, not what you think others want to hear.

 

  • Take risks: Because really, what else are you going to do?

 

Rhonda

A proud moment. In the pub.

July 24, 2011 General, Qualitative Research, Razor news, Women in business No comments

You know me – Little Miss Party Planner.  I may not be hot on bunting but my goodness I love organising a good party.

So after having said, time and again, to various of my researcher friends (who am I kidding, nearly ALL of my friends are researchers) that we should hold a reunion for The Research Business International, I thought I should finally put my money where my mouth was.

TRB (which then became TRBi) was founded by Wendy Gordon and Colleen Ryan rather too many years ago than I can possibly imagine.  Along with RI, they are probably single-handedly responsible for spawning the generations of thinkers and business people who have gone on to spread their passion for clever research.

In fact, my very first bosses, Judy Taylor and Andrea Berlowitz of Leapfrog Research met at TRBi and nearly all of MY personal research heroes were there too (or met each other through the company): Brian Donaghey, Sally Marsden, Jackie Laurie, Louise Lear.  And of course, my business partner Steve, was my boss at TRBi which then became Synovate.  So it goes full circle.

Anyway – on Friday night we all gathered at The Chapel Bar in Islington.  I told myself that 20 would be a good number but in the end I think we had nearly 50 people turn up.  From Wendy onwards, we covered pretty much every generation of the company’s life.

The success of the event meant masses to me.  I was so proud that Wendy turned up.  I was so proud to honestly say I knew people who came before me and after me.  It was a testament to the power of friendship, great leaders, great researchers and that once you find them – you shouldn’t let them go.  It reminded me that if you love your job, you can find inspiration from when you’re hired as grad right the way through until 11 years later (in my case) you can start your OWN company.  It’s fair to say that I don’t envisage Razor ever reaching the dizzy heights of global presence as TRBi (now Synovate) but I CAN say that I was part of an amazing researcher dynasty and that not for one second have I ever wanted to do anything else.

I still miss you Cruikshank St, Filthy’s, the Sandwich Man, Holford Mews, the sink in reception, the barn-like boardroom, the filthy toilets, the bulging fridge, Room 4, the mezzanine and under the mezzanine.

And now the challenge for me is to make sure that everyone who passes through Razor’s door has as valuable memories of their time with us as I had at TRBi.

What’s wrong with this picture?

June 14, 2011 Research magazine, Women in business No comments

I regularly check in to ResearchLive to check up on the daily gossip, stories, blogs, etc.  I follow Research on Twitter…oh yes, I’m there when the news breaks.

So imagine my disappointment when I logged on earlier this evening and was faced with the homepage below.

What’s wrong with this picture?

Of all those articles, contributors and subjects – they’re all men. In suits. 40+.  Acquisitions, mergers, money, power.

There is ONE image relating to an article by women and guess what it’s about?  Emotions.

I’ve got SO many questions whizzing round my brain about women in research, women writing about research, women in charge (or not) of reporting on research, women in general, women at Razor. I don’t know the answer – and it’s too late to start considering it this evening – but I just thought I’d throw that observation out there.

Chloe

Big girls blouses. More on women in business.

May 27, 2011 Women in business No comments

So, I love TED talks. I defy anyone not to.  I do have to admit though, as I stare at the backlog of 100′s that I’ve got saved up iTunes, that I do tend to skim the ones that are just a bit too save the planet for me.  My bad.

But ANYWAY – here’s a coincidence.  The one I just chose to watch was one by Sheryl Sandberg who was talking about why there aren’t enough women in business (see earlier post by me) and THEN I clicked the link that my sister sent through to The Fold’s new blog platform and lo and behold – there was the same one.

To be fair – their blog focuses on her brains and her beauty and I watched it thinking ‘yeah, I DO sometimes sit at the side of the room’ but hey – standout is standout.

So here is a link to The Fold’s blog which includes the video of Sheryl’s TED talk and their take on it…

http://thefoldlondon.tumblr.com/ (entry on January 28th 2011)

And stay tuned for our very own Tom Morgan’s contribution to AQR’s upcoming Q Fest – he’s turned being one a very few boys at Razor to intellectual gain by discussing what that might mean for him, his career, and whether a moderator who flirts wins.

Chloe