Location Music Location
The old age golden rule for retail will always be location, location, location. This has proved true for a small centre on the main road in Bergvliet over the past 10 years. This centre is occupied by a Post Office and Video store. They have been around for a long time, but the other shops and especially the corner shop has seen a steady turnover of occupants every few years or months in some cases since we moved into the area.
The longest tenant was a Woolies food store that lasted a few years but just could not attract the foot traffic off a busy main road to its products.
Yesterday a new store opened up in the centre. Marshall Music, a specialist music shop offering a range of instruments, electronics and all the bits that go between them. I popped in to say Hi and welcome them to the area and took some pics of their new shiny store.
Interesting that they are a specialist store and do not rely on foot traffic for trade, so they should do well in the area and also attract new customers to the area.
So the question will be answered to, Does Location still remain important if you are a niche retailer? Time will tell for Marshall Music in Bergvliet.
Check them out on www.marshallmusic.co.za or onFacebook. Good luck to Michael McAuley the store manager and his team.
How to gauge your presentation
When presenting to an audience, how to you gauge the success of your speech? Can you look out over your audience and judge from their faces, or the amount of closed eyes and tilted heads? Or maybe from the level of applause, but then I have clapped hardest for people just as a relief that they were actually finished. Here are six simple questions that you can ask attendees to answer that will give you a clear defined appraisal of your presentation:
Can they repeat the main points?
Could they visualise the product/topic you spoke about?
Will they remember you and your topic by tomorrow?
Could they relate what you spoke about to their own lives?
Did they respect you and your topic?
Did they want to talk to you afterwards?
Using these as indicators, your presentation should be topical, easy to remember, focused, use live examples that your audience can relate to and end with a clear call to action.
Alive Cafe – developing that creative spark
Nestled in the Muizenberg village lies a small yet distinctive venue geared at that inner creative we all seem to share but may not be willing to let out. The Alive Café is an artistic studio, theatre and live music venue. They aim to open the door for each person’s creative spark by offering the experience of participating in a collective hub of creativity.
Are you ready to be funded?
Successful funding for small businesses, is a few and far between activity these days. No longer does a thick business plan and a smile get you good credit with your bank, a start-up grant, and funding from the local government agency. Becoming fundable as a business requires a number of key activities to be engaged and completed. These include, but not limited to the following;
- a reputation of achievement, perseverance and entrepreneurship stop
- a solid financial model around your product offering
- having achieved a proof of concept milestone or at least a plan to do so in the near future
- a well written plan for your business that contains all the required information
- a financial history that is void of red flags and black spots
- at least one referral in the funding environment from somebody who actually knows you well
- a product offering that is unique either in design or execution
- a support team of coaches, mentors and colleagues who have achieved successful business growth and finding either themselves or with past clients
- an ability to be scalable to national or international markets
- a personal profile and presents that exudes confidence and entrepreneurial ability
Putting all these together is not something one does over a weekend or even within a month. Building up a fundable business can take anything between nine months and five years. Is important to get yourself known in the local markets by joining various programs, entering competitions, and participating in workshops and events. Once you have built a reputation of participation within your sector people will get to know you for who you are and begin to understand the full impact of your business venture, this makes it a lot easier to get those all-important referrals and links to key people in the industry.
It is also important to understand a little about the theory of financing. It is important that you know the difference between the various funding models the content of a term book, how repayments work and the differences in the various equity versus profit models.
It is also important to understand what type of financing you are looking for and where to go for financing. Shopping at the wrong financer for your money will not only results in no loans but also make you look incompetent.
If this is something that you are interested in pursuing for your business, then please feel free to contact us, and we will assist you in this journey.
Can successful board games still be produced in SA?
Today I met with Rene van Huyssteen, the creator of an exciting board game Yunomi (pronounced You Know Me). Rene came up with the idea of a new game almost 5 years ago and has been able to develop, manufacture and sell his game across South Africa.
This is no surprise when you consider that Rene sought out the assistance and guidance of Calie Esterhuyse, the creator of the now world famous 30 Seconds. Calie also hails from the Western Cape and has sold over 150 000 copies of his game since its launch.
So the question; can board games still be developed and sold in today’s market of mobile and tablet apps and online games? The answer is a resounding YES. There are still people, families and groups who prefer to enjoy each other’s company around a good game that does not require batteries or wifi.
We are currently working with Wayde Holland who is in the process of developing a new game concept that should hit our shelves by Christmas next year. (no pressure Wayde)
I can assume you have played 30 Seconds, give Yunomi a try, you will not be disappointed and keep a look out for yet another successful board game to emerge out of the Western Cape soon.