Though there are seemingly endless ways to improve your profitability and cash flow, most relate to either growing revenue or cutting costs and so we asked some very wise business owners and creatives to talk to us about how they think about which matter more.

Lauren Kitchens | Creative Genius, Fancy Cakes by Lauren

As COVID has changed virtually every industry and it’s really had an enormous affect on the wedding industry. Weddings scheduled in 2020, pushed their wedding dates to 2021. This more than doubled our gross revenue last year and we don’t see a change in the trend for 2022. The growth of revenue came out of nowhere and I was not prepared or even expecting this to happen. My challenge was to grow the business while keeping my profit margins steady and not over-working myself and my staff. As the revenue grew I wasn’t able to keep costs down like I normal can. Read more>>

Jesse Spade | Metal Artist

Of course I would love to grow my business, but it needs to be in a way that keeps me hands-on and adds to my personal income. I have no interest in being bigger if the added revenue only adds headaches and higher overheads, and keeps me out of the shop. I will always choose lean and conservative when possible. The easiest way for me to make more profit is to be efficient and spend less. Once that is mastered, then bring on the new revenue. To me, being a business owner is just a necessary evil to do what I do and not have to work for anyone else. I’m not very passionate about “business”. I’m passionate about my product. Read more>>