Sometimes I look back at my journey and think WOW. I have come reallllllly far.Other days Im scrambling to tie a few bits and pieces together that resemble a business. When I first started I had NO IDEA what I was doing. AT ALL.Whats worse is that I didn’t really have anyone to ask as no one had really “mastered” online retail (and to a certain extent, no one ever will because the landscape changes so quickly- but I digress)Heres a few things I wish Id known when I started out….

You will work harder than you have ever worked

But it won’t FEEL like work. In fact it will feel like awesome. Even when you are tired, sleep deprived and have only eaten meals that can be microvawed in less than 3 minutes… for the last 2 weeks straight. Even when your hair resembles a birds nest, the neighbours are giving you disapproving looks because your front yard looks like the deepest darkest jungles of Africa and your family have put up missing posters.You will still want to work like crazy? Why? Im not sure but I can tell you it WILL happen.The thing about starting your own online store (or any online business for that matter) is that theres always 7 million more “little things” that need to be done. You will do them all, even if it takes until 3am.

Launched is better than perfect.

Over the past few years Ive learned to just “get shit launched” sometimes a sample is NQR, sometimes it doesn’t arrive at before a photoshoot or at all.. rather than spending your days waiting for the right moment to launch your new store/ new range/ new product to the world just launch it, start telling everyone about what you HAVE got to show them and then prefect the offering later.You can always add more products/functionality once you launch. Oh and cash coming in always makes things easier.

Even unicorns have shitty days.

For me, this realisation was life changing. Think of the person who’s business journey most inspires you, the one person who you would most like to be (other than yourself. Or Beyonce)Guess what… they still have shitty days, just like the ones you have, only theirs might have a few more 000,000 on the end.Social Media gives us the impression that when you are successful in business that everything comes easy. The reality is different. Oh and even Beyonce has shitty days, i mean have you listened to Lemonade?