Learning from Jarrod & Rawlins

It wasn't my intention to write about business topics in this blog but as most of you are aware, Square Art is a relatively new business and I try to learn as much as I can. And some of the things I learn is just too valuable not to share. The latest podcast I heard (the last one was on growing your business from art) was by BFM89.9 - the business station - on their "Open for Business" segment. Guess who they interviewed? One of the directors from Jarrod & Rawlins - one of my favourite places to eat!

Denis Rawlins shares with the listeners his experiences and things he learnt when starting this business. Here are some of the points I thought were useful for budding entrepreneurs:

• Suitability of location for your business depends also on your Brand (on how shopping malls weren't working well for J & R)
• Differentiation - stand out from your competition (and there will be competition!) by offering something different from the rest. In J&R's case, the idea of a deli and a restaurant in one place worked.
• Organization of the company i.e. who does what is important. 
• Learn from your mistakes!
• (This is a note to self) Find out the difference between licensing and franchising. (Licensing was mentioned briefly in the aforementioned podcast).
• Protect your brand.
• What he learnt: you can't be everywhere at the same time.

The last point is important, because Rawlins learnt this when he was just starting out at the business and I can relate somewhat to that now. When you first start out, you tend to start many things at a time. You will then realize you can't be there for all of them so you need to set up procedures for them and delegate it to someone you can trust. 

Listen to the podcast below:

Registering Your Business Online in Malaysia

Just did a short post on how to register your business online in Malaysia, which I have included as one of our main pages in this blog. A lot of online sellers don't yet know how easy it is to register online. This is especially useful now, what with all the news about the government taking action on "errant" online sellers who are not registered. 

Hope it helps you and all feedback/comments welcomed! :)

Growing a small business from art

We've just crossed a huge milestone recently which is to get our business registered. This was an idea being tossed around but finally came into fruition after seeing the reception we received from craft fairs, even from our friends and family.

Just like a flower, a business needs help to grow.

Being a new and small business, there are a lot of things we need to learn, such as how to sustain and grow this business. Therefore of late, I've been reading E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber and listening to their podcasts. My husband introduced this book to me when he saw my interest in starting my own business. So in this post, I'd like to veer away from our normal posts and share with all of you what I've learnt today about growing a business from art.

The podcast featured Tara Reed, an artist and author behind Tara Reed Designs sharing some of her ideas and tips for artists to grow their business. Here are some salient points I took away from the podcast.

1. Keep your EARS and EYES open for business opportunities & trends.
2. Think about LICENSING your art (not sure how it works in Malaysia though).
3. STUDY the industry you are getting into.
4. Create a SYSTEM that can make things more EFFICIENT.
5. DOCUMENT every task so you can "train a monkey" to do it.
6. Consider OUTSOURCING if you do not need to be doing what you are doing; think what gives more value to your business.
7. You cannot shoot for the stars if you're doing everything yourself; don't be a CONTROL freak.
8. Get out of your own way. Don't create EXCUSES or be AFRAID to try something new or ask for help.
9. Be FLEXIBLE. Don't have preconceived notions about your art or what your customers want.
10. Be OPEN to new ways to do things, don't stay comfortable in a routine. I.e. social media marketing.
11. UNDERSTAND who your market is.
12. Create emotional CONNECTION with customers to create LOYALTY.

If you are also an artist in Malaysia starting a small business, share with us what other tips or ideas you've gathered along the way. If you would like to listen to the podcast, click here.

Square Art is Malaysian small business being watered and fertilized to grow. If you would like to know more about us or our products, visit us on our Facebook Page or follow us on Twitter.