If you’re looking for practical advice on running a business, you’ll find a wealth of information online. But, what makes these interviews truly invaluable is the firsthand insight gained from the rough-and-tumble experiences of ordinary people who took bold steps to turn their ideas into reality. Each person has their own unique strategies that worked in their specific circumstances. Dive into their stories, and take away what you find useful!
You can read the detailed account of how Mainzsq, an electronics company, built their e-commerce business from scratch. If you’re interested in branding, there’s also a post that offers some ideas on how they built the brand of their online business. In this episode, we’ll share the wisdom that Abel, the entrepreneur behind Mainzsq, has gained from running and growing his business.
1. Differentiate your products
Continually research and develop new products to keep your offerings fresh and more difficult for competitors to imitate.
“Singapore is so fast that if you don’t find something new, you will never make it. In my university days, I was doing my project on Breadtalk for my final year project. I noticed that when he came up with the floss bun— that’s when the bakery became famous. One thing about gadgets is that you have to keep researching new ideas. Coz you see, once you put it up online, another person will put it up also. Very fast.”
2. Implement a cloud-based business model
Implementing a cloud-based business model by using tools like Dropbox can help you operate your business from anywhere, anytime, significantly increasing efficiency.
“My whole office computer is in my Dropbox. Because I’m always out of the office, you see, so everything has to be on hand. I’ve got Dropbox, SugarSync, Skydrive, 5gb each.”
3. Collaborate with large platforms for exposure
Collaborate with larger platforms, even if they provide lower profit margins initially. The early exposure can lead to more significant opportunities subsequently.
“The whole thing is to never say no to any form of business, as long it doesn’t make a loss.”
In the beginning, Abel used aggregating platforms such as Gmarket to sell his products, even though the profit margin was slimmer, because it brought the first waves of exposure to his business.
“I would say the strategy along the way was pretty much right. Even though we had to sell our things cheap, their database is strong. So, through them, we got more opportunities.”
4. Validate all business opportunities
Don’t turn down business opportunities as long as they don’t result in a loss. This approach can lead to growth and exposure.
“I would say that for a business, try not to say no to anything. As long as you make money, just do it. Just work hard, that’s all. I mean hard work and effort will pay off eventually. But it’s really hard work. If you weigh the effort-to-profit ratio, it’s imbalanced. But the results will come in eventually, seriously. So that’s how we did it, but it takes three years to actually start seeing results. There’s a lot — a lot — of hard work involved in this whole thing.”
5. Build strategic partnerships
Forge partnerships with other folk in the business ecosystem.
“I think contacts are very important in business. It’s who you know that’s important: not what you know, but who you know. I mean, the people you know is where it’s going to help you, you see. So I think, contacts are the most important thing. In business, you need to know the right people.”
6. Tune into your personal drive
Maintaining personal motivation is key in driving a business forward. It will keep you going even in adverse situations.
“I studied until… I think 28? I was still studying and living in denial because I had no direction. So I started thinking: How can I ever wake up one day in the morning and have the motivation to go to work? Because I hated going to work last time. But nowadays, I don’t even need to sleep, I just do work. I’ve become a workaholic until, like I totally miss my life man. Like public holidays, weekends, weekdays— all the same to me. Because still got to work. Really, got no time for any other things. And then, you see my friends are getting married and all. You just got no time because I started things too late, then got to catch up and all.”
7. Be thick-skinned to handle challenges
Embrace continuous learning, be prepared to encounter all types of people, and be resilient in facing various challenges.
“Everyday the brain is thinking. I cannot sleep in peace also. There’s a lot we need to learn — a lot of things. We started this business in 2010 with zero knowledge. I never knew this kind of knowledge before and I had no contact with these things, so everything was just… approaching people and stuff like that. You have to be thick-skinned, you have to see all types of people.”
Is it worth running a business?
“You know, it’s something. It’s a sense of achievement that you feel after all the hard work. For an online business to actually survive is not easy. We saw other sites that tried to hold on, and they closed after one year, even those big companies.”
Mainzsq not only survived, but thrived, and continues to grow with a track record that can only be built under the devotion of a true master of collaborative creativity. Thanks, Abel Neoh, for the interview, and all the best with Mainzsq!
Shopkeeper Stories is a photographic documentary of small business owners with their trades around the world, sharing their views on business and life. You can catch all the posts on Facebook and Instagram @ShopkeeperStories. Enjoy!
Enjoyed this post? You might also want to read the other two articles in this series:
… and lots more on Shopkeeper Stories!
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Thanks Nazish for the wonderful write up!! 🙂
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