I guess you could call me an accidental entrepreneur. Growing up in Scotland, I always wanted to be a lawyer, so when I enrolled as a solicitor in 2011, sometimes appearing in 16 procedural hearings in one day, I loved it. During that time, I met a Canadian guy. One thing led to another, and by 2015 I was married and living in my new home – Canada.
As with most professions, I had to requalify to practice law here. While this was a time-consuming endeavour, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
As with most professions, I had to requalify to practice law here. While this was a time-consuming endeavour, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
Staying at home and studying gave me ample time to pursue other interests. My husband had a hobby business selling cellphone accessories from home, so I decided to help him out and list a few products on eBay in my spare time. Well, the products started selling – and fast.
Suddenly, that steadfast goal of continuing my career in Canadian courtrooms was wavering as excitement of the idea of building my own business completely took over. To my surprise, it didn’t take long for me to decide to put my law requalification on hold to concentrate on becoming a Canadian entrepreneur.
Suddenly, that steadfast goal of continuing my career in Canadian courtrooms was wavering as excitement of the idea of building my own business completely took over. To my surprise, it didn’t take long for me to decide to put my law requalification on hold to concentrate on becoming a Canadian entrepreneur.
Our first customers were all local retailers. We sold headphones and cellphone cases. As the market for cellphone accessories grew, so did our competition. We needed to diversify our sales channels, so we set up our own website and seller account on eBay.
As a consequence of building a wider consumer base, our purchasing power grew and we passed on the savings to customers. As our orders grew, we wanted to build a relationship with our suppliers in China. My husband and I decided to visit China and build a relationship face to face.
This was daunting as neither of us could speak the language but it was worth it. It allowed us to understand the buying and shipping process fully, start to finish.
This was daunting as neither of us could speak the language but it was worth it. It allowed us to understand the buying and shipping process fully, start to finish.
We now visit China every year to build on our relationship and expand on our knowledge of products. As a result, we are able to offer competitive pricing, which in turn has helped grow our sales.
Before long, our online sales gave us enough growth to warrant hiring staff to help manage sales. So, at the end of 2015 we moved our operations to two Toronto warehouses – one for selling products to wholesale customers and the other to sell to customers on eBay. This allowed us to tap into local traffic while simultaneously accelerating our online business. Our walk-in customers keep us abreast of market trends, whereas our eBay store gives us a platform for selling a wider selection of products.
One of our advantages is the amount of research we do before introducing products. Products that are new tend to offer higher margins so we rely heavily on stats and analytics to anticipate market demands.
Each year, we visit factories in Shenzhen, China, hoping to catch the next big thing. Last year, it was VR glasses and the year before that it was selfie sticks.
Revenues for the business have been climbing rapidly, and we now have several full-time employees, who are all new to Canada.
Over the next year I hope to increase our international presence by setting up a warehouse in the U.K. I would also like to help new e-commerce sellers with a course or workshop. And although it’s taking me longer than I thought, I still want to sit for the bar exam in the fall, just to leave the door open in case I ever want to return to my previous career one day.
Looking back, I would have never thought that I would quit law to sell stuff online, but as much as I love law, I enjoy running my own business even more.
It is exciting to work alongside an amazing team to realize the opportunities for growth that present themselves each day.
Nadia Shuaib is co-founder of Budget Electronics, a Toronto-based cellphone accessory vendor
MandiGoodly
11 days ago
"we now have several full-time employees, who are all new to Canada."
I wonder why no "not new to Canada" employees?
4 Reactions
jensg1
10 days ago
New to Canada people are more willing to trade their time for barely subsistent wages.
4 Reactions
Hide 1 reply
skier9
11 days ago
This has happened hundereds of of times in Canada over the past decades. Not sure what was so unique about this one. A business importing from China....whats the big deal.
Now if it was a new business manufacturing here in Canada with exports. then it might be worth the print.
This one highlighting importing Chinese made products.....not so
19 Reactions
Biggrey
11 days ago
It's a great little story. There is nothing revolutionary about it. There is nothing revolutionary about most things that don't win Nobel Prizes for Physics. You must have missed the parts about:
1. giving up something old for something totally new,
2. starting something more or less from scratch in a new place,
3. hiring people in her new country,
4. creating business opportunities for herself and others,
5. actually going to China or India for business instead of just talking or complaining about it (like very few of us have, try it someday if you want your eyes opened wide,
6. recognizing she doesn't know everything and adapting as the market changed,
7. having a backup plan
Sounds like the kind of immigrants we need, badly, IMO. Sure, nice if she had invented a ground-breaking product to manufacture in a defunct steel mill in Hamilton, but perhaps that is around the corner.
20 Reactions
TbsDrummer
11 days ago
In reply to:
This has happened hundereds of of times in Canada over the past decades. Not sure what was so unique about this one. A business importing from China....whats the big deal. Now if it was a new...
— skier9
skier, the story is about opportunity. It's a counterpoint to the prevailing narrative that young people face a world with less opportunity than previous generations.
It's a perfect illustration of a woman who had the choice of pursuing her legal career (a traditional occupation) or a high tech enterprise that didn't even exist a few years ago. As you focus on only on the Chinese import angle, you make the mistake that many young people have made. You are accepting a false premise. The fact is there are more opportunities than ever. Bravo to this woman!!
It's a perfect illustration of a woman who had the choice of pursuing her legal career (a traditional occupation) or a high tech enterprise that didn't even exist a few years ago. As you focus on only on the Chinese import angle, you make the mistake that many young people have made. You are accepting a false premise. The fact is there are more opportunities than ever. Bravo to this woman!!
16 Reactions
skier9
11 days ago
In reply to:
It's a great little story. There is nothing revolutionary about it. There is nothing revolutionary about most things that don't win Nobel Prizes for Physics. You must have missed the parts...
— Biggrey
My friend who is part owner of a software company here in Hamilton joined this startup 20 years ago and was offered an equity position. This has grown to a firm of 50 employees and they export their goods worldwide. He took a chance and prospered. They have not been mentioned by any national media outlets or have ever seeked it out.
Yes I despise the Chinese invasion, from cheaply make products, to their atrocious environmental record, to their human and animal absense of rights. Google CHinese fur farms then get back to me....OK.
FYI I owned a small importing business for 20 plus years dealing with Europeans companies and have had to compete with Chinese companies. Sadly I saw some of my compeitiors fall from counterfeit Chinese products even after winning court battles. Hard to compete with a country with a near zero record on the environmne and more.
Nevertheless, what this woman did deserves applause.....just dont put her on a mantle with a medal draped around her neck..
8 Reactions
Teleology
11 days ago
In reply to:
This has happened hundereds of of times in Canada over the past decades. Not sure what was so unique about this one. A business importing from China....whats the big deal. Now if it was a new...
— skier9
What is unique is she paid for the article. This is not news, it is an advertorial.
fbbobby
10 days ago
In reply to:
My friend who is part owner of a software company here in Hamilton joined this startup 20 years ago and was offered an equity position. This has grown to a firm of 50 employees and they export...
— skier9
If the only news that was reported was when 'putting a medal around your neck' was a minimum requirement, there wouldn't be a lot to read in the paper. Point taken on China's record on environment and IP, but putting that on this entrepreneur is wrong.When I read the article, I was thinking of the many people that I have met that can't practice as a doctor, engineer, lawyer or other occupation due to the need to requalify here. What a waste of human capital.
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jasonfroth
11 days ago
Truly inspirational
mhastings
11 days ago
Great story.
benm
11 days ago
Junk arbitrage. Wow.
Congrats on your contribution to society.
Sid Siddiqui
11 days ago
It's not 'junk' if people are willing to buy it.
MandiGoodly
11 days ago
People buy junk all the time, it just takes a while after purchase for it to ripen to full junkhood.
1 Reaction
DGL46
10 days ago
In reply to:
Junk arbitrage. Wow. Congrats on your contribution to society.
— benm
And what's your contribution to society?
Trolling?
Angus S Miskers
10 days ago
In reply to:
Junk arbitrage. Wow. Congrats on your contribution to society.
— benm
could be worse: pro sports, something of no value whatsoever and wastes a lot of people's time too
Lamont Cranston
11 days ago
Its like the fireworks story a few weeks back..
TBlarney
12 days ago
Bravo
4 Reactions
angelo_vancouver
10 days ago
Hard work, self-reliance, initiative and now, financial success. This is everything despised by the increasingly powerful leftists in this country. The last thing they want to hear is a story about needing LESS of the state, instead of more
1 Reaction
Jul. 14, 2017 "Business lessons I learned from my childhood enterprises": Today I found this article by Brian Scudamore in the Globe and Mail:
Brian Scudamore is founder and CEO of O2E Brands Inc.
As a kid, I used to help out at my grandparents’ army surplus store in San Francisco. They showed me the ropes of running a business, and I saw firsthand the freedom they had from working for themselves. It was my first taste of entrepreneurship – and I was hooked.
We moved several times when I was growing up, but my entrepreneurial drive always came with me. I have literally spent my entire life testing out new businesses, from selling contraband candy and rare hockey cards to building four home service brands. I’ve learned a lot along the way, but when I hit a roadblock, I still fall back on those early lessons.
Exploring entrepreneurship at an early age sets the foundation for success later in life. Here are five things I learned from my fledgling kid enterprises – and why all kids should be encouraged to give business a shot.
1. Customer service is king
My grandparents taught me everything about the inner workings of a business – from behind the scenes tracking inventory, to the front lines on the till. (Fun fact: when I was 13, I sold a leather jacket to a member of the band D.O.A.! Does anyone remember them?)
Above all, they showed me the importance of customer service. Treating people right was the backbone of their business and even spared them from the break-ins that neighbouring shops suffered. Decades later, at my own company, we’ve made people our number one priority. From customers to employees, our motto is “It’s All About People” – and I owe that to my grandparents.
2. Always stay one step ahead of the competition
When I was 11, a kid across the street started a neighbourhood car wash for $2 a pop. I realized he’d locked in on an awesome opportunity, so naturally, I started my own – and charged 25 cents less.
It turned into a pricing showdown: he’d drop another quarter and I’d go down 50 cents. When I reached the low price of 65 cents, he couldn’t bring himself to match it. I maintained my upper hand, providing the best bang for your buck in town.
Today, we stay ahead of the competition through our commitment to professionalism, by anticipating what customers want, and by leveraging new technology that our industries haven’t tried before. It’s about predicting the next trend and trying new things to ensure you stand out from the pack.
3. Don’t be afraid to take risks
In Grade 8, I skipped half of my classes and (unsurprisingly) flunked out. As a consequence, my parents shipped me off to boarding school – but they didn’t expect me to start running a bootleg candy shop from my dorm room.
To me, the idea was obvious: kids had to walk more than half an hour to get to the nearest store, so I figured I’d bring the candy to them. I approached the store owner and explained my plan, asking for a discount if I bought in bulk. He agreed, and I headed back to school with a full stock of goodies for my classmates. My store was a hit and for the next few months, I made a killing.
Unfortunately, my days as a candy man were short-lived; turns out it’s frowned upon to sling licorice for a profit at school. But I learned that success often comes from taking risks (and breaking some rules).
4. Create your own publicity
In the case of my car wash, I knew my price tag wasn’t enough to tip the scales my way for long (we were dealing with a difference in pennies and most adults paid us the full $2 anyway). I had to do something to make customers choose my business over my rival’s.
Figuring it was time to start an aggressive ad campaign, I made flashy signs from old plywood, and hired two neighbourhood girls to wave them around. Thanks to this tactic, it wasn’t long before we’d taken over the entire street with lines nine cars deep. By taking marketing into our own hands, we improved our brand awareness and grew our business.
5. Be patient
In university, I invested my entire life savings (and my girlfriend’s) in incredibly rare, French Upper Deck hockey cards. I had heard how popular they were and how much they were worth, and saw a lucrative opportunity. The Pittsburgh Penguins and Minnesota North Stars had just gone head-to-head for the Stanley Cup, so I bought a couple of cases and put classified ads in the Pittsburgh and Minnesota newspapers.
And … nothing happened. No one called. We’d used all our money and we were stuck with boxes and boxes of product. Just when we were really starting to panic, the phone finally rang. Much to my surprise, my first customer didn’t just want a single card or 10 – he wanted an entire case. In one sale, I’d paid back the initial investment. In the end, I made more than $60,000.
In any business, there will always be times when you want to give up. But all too often, people quit right when they’re on the verge of achieving their goal.
My card business taught me to be patient and push through – because if you believe in yourself and your vision, anything is possible.
IAwan
2 days ago
Its mean that you have experience of business and now you should start business in different countries.
http://www.earnmoney.pk/investment-ideas-for-people-having-low-budget.html
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