Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Marcia Topiwala. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Marcia, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?
I was at a farmers market one day and I realized that once I left there’s no way I’d remember the names of the vendors I’d shopped with. The farmers market website didn’t list all of its vendors, and many of the ones that were listed didn’t have easy-to-find contact information. I realized that if there was a website where local vendors could be listed it could be a very helpful resource, not just for farmers market shoppers but for folks shopping for gifts also.
The problem: I had no idea how to build a website! I spent some time shopping around to see if I could find someone to build it for me, but everyone wanted tons of money ($10K and up!). Uh… no thanks… not when I didn’t even have a vetted business idea. I didn’t want to give up, though, so I decided to see if I could build it myself. I did research, I took (online) classes, and eventually I got comfortable enough with WordPress that I decided to see what I could build. It took several months, but it was worth it.
The finished product (well, finished for now — there’s more that I want to do with it) is what you see today! It’s not perfect, and eventually I’ll find someone to make it better, but it’s a great starting point.
Marcia, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I’m a lawyer by trade and by day, and I’m a mom to two kids, but I also have an entrepreneurial streak. I love learning new things, and after my kids go to bed is my time to explore! As I shared before, I knew nothing about websites before I built Local Vendor Lookup. Rather, I saw a problem and decided to try to fix it. There are lots of directory websites out there, but none of them are focused on local vendors. Small businesses? Absolutely. But not our local friends and neighbors who have a passion and are out there working on their side hustles in the evenings, showing up to farmers markets bright and early every Saturday.
I’m proud of the website and the opportunity it presents to bring folks together. We all need gifts at multiple times throughout the year, and having the opportunity to buy local for at least some of those gifts, and support our friends and neighbors, means something.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
Yes! There are many wonderful books out there, but the one that immediately jumps to mind is The Portfolio Life. This book inspired me and challenged me in equal parts. It made me realize that just because I’m a mom and a lawyer, just because I’m 42, it doesn’t mean that I can’t learn new things and explore other interests. I would challenge everyone reading this to read the book — and if they don’t have time to read it, at the very least to sit quietly for a few moments and think about what they want to learn or to do. And then ask themselves: Why not do it? Why not do it now?
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
The cool thing about starting a website is that it isn’t (or at least, it doesn’t have to be) capital intensive. You need the domain name, you need hosting, you need to pay for certain plug ins — but you don’t need equipment, or a lot of space, or really anything. Even if you don’t know how to build a website today, if you’re willing to learn there are all sorts of free resources out there. It’s amazing, if you think about it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://localvendorlookup.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/localvendorlookup/
Image Credits
Sonny Topiwala