Have you ever had a friend look at a business and randomly throw out numbers that made it seem like that business owner must be making serious bank? We’ve experienced that many times, and know from conversations with operators and owners in those industries that their real profitability is often far, far less. The reason is often that there are unique challenges to profitability in almost every industry and so we wanted to create a space for entrepreneurs from across industries and markets to discuss the challenges to profitability in their industries.
Gabrielle Evans
A lot of people believe that when you start your own business things may tend to get easier and that is not the case. In the matter of profit it is a slippery slope. It’s a known saying that you have to spend money to make money but in most cases you will spend more than your return rate especially first starting out. Personally, when I put together events under my brand (4AM Lingerie) in some cases I may make more than expected but there are some instances where my profit may barely touch half of what was spent. Experience is the key word in this manner. Once we shift our minds to achieve accurate goals and turn down the greed that is installed within us just a bit you will see multiple streams of income flowing to the point you wouldn’t understand where it may be coming from. Substance builds profit and greed tears down character in the end. Read More>>
Linda Strappazon
The single greatest challenge to profitability in the book industry today is the overwhelming dominance of online retailers. Companies like Amazon have reshaped consumer expectations around price, selection, and delivery speed. Their vast warehouses and streamlined logistics allow them to offer new releases at steep discounts, sometimes even below wholesale cost, as a loss leader to attract customers for other goods. As a result, small bookstores face a harsh reality: they often cannot match these prices without eroding their already thin profit margins. Read More>>
Shayna Johnson
One of the biggest challenges to profitability in wedding photography is that most people don’t realize how much work goes on behind the scenes. It’s not just showing up and taking pictures. There’s planning, editing, answering emails, keeping gear in shape, learning the latest and greatest, paying for insurance and software—it adds up fast. If photographers don’t account for all that, it’s easy to end up working a ton but not actually making money. Read More>>
Liz Mula
I find that the biggest issue to profitability is that my industry just isn’t taken seriously. Years ago, it was a career people went into because they could control their own schedules and pricing, and yet it wasn’t difficult to get started. A Cosmetology license was all you needed–very little education leading up to that and very little people continued education once they got started. Now, you find more and more people who are more educated continuing to uplevel themselves and working to try to make this industry better, safer and more revered. But the general public still looks at our industry as working class who shouldn’t charge for their time. We spend about 15 minutes at a Doctor’s office when we are sick or in need of medication and yet we don’t blink at the price being charged at the end of the appointment. Cosmetologists can spend a whole day with someone correcting their color, fixing their haircut, sometimes texture, educating the guest and even listening to them talk about their problems and after 8 hours, argue that their time wasn’t worth the price they were charged. Read More>>