The Single Most Important Lesson I Learned AFTER I Sold My First Business (And Why Reading A Book On How To Swim, Won’t Make You A Swimmer!)
Back in 2005, I launched my first — and last — brick-and-mortar business.
It was a high-end gents grooming business, selling luxury shaving products in Glasgow’s most up-market retail location. Two years later in 2007, I was a Scottish ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ finalist. Then in 2011, I sold the business to Procter & Gamble.
Was the business a success? Well, not really if I look back at it in financial terms.
Over the 6 years of running the business, I probably made enough money to go on a few nice holidays…BUT…
What I did learn during that period was marketing. And it was the best thing I did.
I learned…
- How to create and build a brand…
- How to sell products online using Google AdWords when I launched an e-commerce arm to the business…(keywords were cheap back in 2006)
- How to use email marketing to send offers and drive repeat business…
- How to write press releases and do my own PR to acquire customers…
- How to build a website…
- How to use social media…
- How to sell…(I once sold a £1200 razor handle made out of Sterling Silver 🤑)
And many more marketing skills.
Yes, I had a degree in marketing. But up until then, I’d never applied it in a real-life situation.
So what’s the lesson here? You’ve got to do the work.
We can all read a book on ‘How to Swim’, but it’s not going to help you when you’re chucked in at the deep end for the first time.
So do the work. Take some risks and build valuable new skills as you grow. One day you’ll look back and be amazed at what you can do!
Read this post and more on my Typeshare Social Blog
