When I saw my industry foundering (RIP magazines), and took a U-turn into entrepreneurship, inventing a curated high fashion swap site, I knew nothing. Nothing about building websites, business plans, structuring a company, social media, investment rounds, e-commerce… I had no funding, no partners, no MBA, no experience, The only relevant thing I knew about was fashion (and, as a travel and food specialist, that wasn’t even official), and the only thing I had was confidence in myself and my idea. So, I had to embrace iteration. It was the only way to get this thing off the ground.
Now, 18 months later, with v.1.1 going great guns and the next phases underway, I think the baby steps approach was the best idea I never had. I get to study the market I created, and continuously refocus. I get time to understand exactly what my users want, and how we might supply it. I get to drive the roller coaster. Maybe best of all, I get to not beat myself up at the not-right-yet-ness of it.
It was actually Adelaide and Amy who first suggested I may want to go for proof of concept first; maybe don’t aim for an IPO within the year. That was a relief. It’s tempting to focus on certain signifiers of success—the mad money VC deal, the “10 Hot blah blah” lists, the DeLonghi espresso machine in your Flatiron HQ—but they’re just media candy. I had to admit: that really isn’t me. I’m not a 20-something boy wonder nor a serial entrepreneur powerhouse. I’m just trying something new that I believe in 100%.
Iteration means trial and error, adjustment and refocus. It means I can execute the #1 item on my business plan: Do Not Worry. Everyone has bad days. Every entrepreneur toils away thanklessly at times, feeling all alone and stuck. I vowed not to mind those days, to stay in the present and focus on the good bits. Sometimes I imagine myself looking back from the driving seat of my massive multinational megalith and being all nostalgic for the scrappy bootstrapping startup days. To make a girly analogy: why didn’t I revel in my gorgeousness when very young instead of being consumed with self-criticism? I would have had so much more fun. Business-wise, I’ve decided to have the fun while it’s fresh.
And it is so fun, seeing my idea become real, step by step. We don’t have a million members (yet) but we grew 650% in the first 6 months. We got great press (Daily Candy, NY Times T, Harpers Bazaar…). And the next iteration is way more than tweaking and debugging and blogging: we’re launching a big new direction early next year.
I know entrepreneurs with beautiful business plans, and interns and investor meetings… But no actual business. They’re so busy perfecting, they can’t make the leap into starting. So, I’m glad I knew nothing. Nothing has only one way to go. -
-Kate Sekules
Refashioner, a curated fashion site
@refashioner
***This was Best Business Tip #11. Read the other 99 Best Business Tips.***
