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.

Danielle Roper

The biggest issue I see in esthetics when it comes to profitability are a few things. First, competing with the medical side of the industry. Many MediSpas have capital to open their business and are able to afford luxuries like marketing and web development. There are a lot of independent estheticians out there and we are simply bootstrapping our business. We are trying to save money any way we can and that usually doesn’t come out of our treatment rooms. It takes us time to build enough money to hire on these professionals and that can mean we are losing out on profits. The second issue is the cost of time. Read more>>

Nadia Yacoub

Pilates equipment is renowned for its relatively high cost, attributed to the expenses associated with production and the use of premium materials to craft top-quality products. For large and heavy equipment like Pilates machines, both storage and shipping costs across the United States can be significantly expensive and pose logistical challenges. Read more>>

Lindsey White

I think inflation has touched every industry. However, I can only speak on the floral industry from my experience. Clients usually book me out a year or so in advance. It used to be much easier to gauge what pricing would be when their event came around. Now, things are all over the place. Since the pandemic, the pricing of flowers, floral supplies, hired labor etc, increases constantly and makes it hard to protect your profit margin. Read more>>

BRANDI SCOTT

The biggest challenge to profitability in the candle making business as a small business owner is how to keep costs low while material and shipping costs rise. When costs rise, business owners have to increase prices, and no one wants to do that. I’m a person who loves a deal and a discount, so I’ll usually make bigger materials purchases during sales and deep discounts. Read more>>

Maridalia Hernandez

It definitely is challenging starting a new business. As a sustainable fashion expert this is what I know best. The resell market growing so rapidly and is very saturated. When starting my new business venture with my husband, which we named A & M Vintage Shop we quickly realized we need to appeal to a bigger audience. We’re currently in the process of building our inventory, clientele and community. We decided that aside from vintage and designer fashion we also want to cater to collectors alike. People love a good collectible item and now we’ve become little curators of desired items. The competition is very broad as there are so very platforms to sell our inventory. Read more>>

Julianna Alexander

The biggest challenge in regards to profitability in my industry has been recent inflation of cost of materials. Inflation has forced my prices to raise in the past year and while I’ve remained profitable, I know sometimes those prices can deter business. At the end of the day, there’s no way to cut corners when it comes to pricing material and product however my speciality in Cupcake Bouquets and it’s high demand has been able to keep my small business thriving. Read more>>

Joe Lambert

The biggest challenge is there is just less money being spent on projects. Indie labels mostly just leave it up to the artist to pay out of pocket or a small advance. So if you’re a new artist starting out it’s very difficult to come up with the budget. Even major label project budgets are far smaller than 25 years ago. As a studio owner you have to run much more lean. You can’t buy a large format mixing desk, every fancy piece of outboard gear, staff engineers and assistants.. if your clients expect you to record and mix a 12 song record for 5 grand. Gear is more affordable for sure than in the past but depending where you are rents are high and there are many expenses in any business. Read more>>

Victoria Parker

The biggest challenge in the cleaning & co-hosting industry is people not wanting to pay what it’s worth anymore. So many people are struggling to make ends meet to where they are seeing other’s cleaning houses, businesses, etc and they see it as profitable so they attempt to do it. This makes it difficult because they get on the job and clean as they would clean their house – not the standard that our clients hold us to. They try to build up their business quickly by offering lower prices, like under $100 for a deep clean. Read more>>

Kid Vibe

It’s all about consistency & making things easier to navigate in the business world. For example if you’re a Hip-Hop artist trying to sell your music or content you need to have viewers & fans. How do you get those fans exactly? It’s by learning different processes and trying new things to learn what works best through trial and error. What works you keep it and you learn how you can use it to your best abilities. 75% of businesses hire people market their business so they make more revenue. If you can learn these processes on your own than you can take your business or hobby to the next level Read more>>