Taking the Leap towards Entreprenuership

Four years ago around this time I had our First Pop-up event. Since I was still working, I needed to ask my then boss for permission to get out early to set up my booth. I couldn't back out since I had already paid for my space. I was expecting my boss to be encouraging since they too are small business owners, I was wrong. Image telling someone how excited you are about an accomplishment and they turn that excitement into a negative. Yeah, that is how they reacted, instead of telling me how proud they were and happy for me exploring my own ventures, they told me that starting a business was a bad idea because the economy was not stable and small business were in the decline. In other words, that my business would fail. I wish I could've just walk away from my job, but I still needed a steady income. They had no choice but to let me leave early every Thursday for the next 6 months so I could go to the market.

My first pop up event was full of emotions, I was happy, nervous, scared and excited because we weren't official yet. I am grateful the market allowed me set up my booth, they didn't ask for permits and I didn't tell either. I had less than 10 items on my table (some of which I still have because they haven't sold to this date). I remember setting up a mock up display at home. I had a foldable table, borrowed table cloths, a chair, home made printed business cards (I didn't even print my email of phone number on them) and a poster with the business name that I though would catch someone's attention. We didn't sell anything during our first night or second, I mean we were literally giving the mugs away, but nobody w

as interested. Each week, I kept adding more and more items to see if someone would be interested. We ended the market season with a financial loss, but I like to see that as an opportunity to do market research. During this time, I was able to get a feel for what my customers liked and disliked, but obviously, they were not my demographic since they weren't willing to spend a small amount for something that was worth much more.

If you are thinking or starting a business and think you don't have enough inventory, you feel that you are not prepared, remember that you won't know if people like what you are offering if you don't put yourself out there. Find a Farmer's Market that doesn't have too may requirements and are within your budget and try it, but don't give up if nobody is buying from you at the beginning, use that as an opportunity get to know who your potential customers will look like and practice your selling skills.

#mgcustomprinting #mugs #chingona #undocuprenuer #Immigrants #Businessowners #Dreamers