Profits differ from net income, and no where is there clearer than for small business owner-operators, artists, and creatives. Just because you have a certain amount of money left over after covering expenses doesn’t mean you’ve made profits. Why? Because you have to factor in the cost of your labor and the risk you took and so after factoring that in, millions of small businesses and artists and creatives are operating with little to no profit. However, it doesn’t have to be this way and so we wanted to create a space where sharp entrepreneurs and creatives could come together and discuss the challenges to profitability and potential solutions. If you have something valuable to add to this conversation that can help others achieve profitability, please reach out to us as we want to get your ideas in front of our readers.

Errigh LaBoo aka Neek B or Uneek

Appreciate you joining us today. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken Starting Bmore Than Dance is probably one of the biggest risk i ever took. I left my stable job working in the hospitality industry because i was extremely passionate about creating this environment for the youth of our city. Read more>>

Julianne JuJu” Taylor”

PRICING. What I see so often with the creative entrepreneurs that I work with is that we don’t charge enough for the value and expertise that we bring to the table. In particular– as women, we are socialized to undervalue the work that we do. Whether it’s a product or serviced based business as soon as someone gives an objection to our price/fees, we start back pedaling. Read more>>

Tony Natalizio

Like any industry there are many challenges to consider but competition is a major challenge. The screen printing and embroidery business is highly competitive, with many small businesses competing for the same customers. This keeps prices down and make it difficult to maintain margins. Market competition is a great thing and forces business to be creative and offer more value. Read more>>

Pedro Torres

I would say it is being consistent with the amount of clients one gets per month. Some months work is overwhelming while others can be slow so finding and booking jobs throughout the year is crucial to have a profit in photography. Luckily, I don’t just focus on one type of photography but I try to work in various different industries with each one requiring different skills. I shoot portraits, concerts, landscapes, food and drink, weddings, and products. Read more>>

Kim Trathen

Increasing profitability is the #1 reason small business owners come to me. I coach clients in multiple industries and I’ve seen the same issues across the board. The top 3 challenges for small business owners include: Read more>>

AnaPaula Gomes

The biggest challenge to profitability within my industry is how highly saturated the market is. Many small businesses are being launched daily, which is fantastic! With these new businesses, finding new and exciting ways to keep customers interested is a daily task and can be overwhelming some days. Getting caught up in the stressful hamster wheel of being “different” or stressing your competitors is not, in my opinion, a good way to run a business. Read more>>

Beth Patterson

The biggest challenge I see is that designers are being undervalued by those in and outside of the industry. Ever-advancing technology is furthering the devaluation of designers, and unless we do something to stop the decline, designers will become obsolete. Read more>>