HOW TO MAKE IT IN THE WEDDING INDUSTRY.

Posted on May 5, 2020 by thelittlelendingco

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Ok so I have no idea if I have really ‘made it’ but 7 years on I am still here, still loving what I do and making money (so its not just a hobby) so that for me means I am happy, content and still passionate about the future…despite the world right now because people will always celebrate love with their friends and family in one way or another and I cannot wait to get right back to working for my couples and creating their days.

(Also have I just totally just got away with the fact that I haven’t written a blog post for a 2.5 years! Life, eh!?)

I remembered I had actually written a post about starting a hire company and it was actually 5 years ago. I feel it’s still a good little read all these years later with some of my initial thoughts on ‘Could I run a wedding hire company from home?’

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But I want to share much more here today for those of you who have been reaching out to me about working in the industry and specifically setting up and running a wedding hire/styling company. I stand by everything in my previous post, please don’t quit your day job, it takes several years to build your brand and establish yourself, well at least it did for me and I have seen a lot of local prop hire companies come and go over the years, it is not easy. The hours are of course seasonal, very long and incredibly intense but if you cannot wait to get stuck into something new and also very rewarding with the most brilliant community of people this is a career move for you.

CONNECTIONS AND RELATIONSHIPS

First and foremost you won’t get far in this industry without working really hard to build a network of suppliers that are likeminded and have a similar vision as you. These people will become your friends, cheerleaders and help bring in so many recommendations and grow your business in the best ways through working together.

Work on getting to know local venue owners too and reaching out to them to share what you’ll be offering and how you can help their couples. Personally I will always work locally because its where I have grown my base and brand and don’t feel the need to travel to lots of far away venues.

FINDING YOUR IDEAL CUSTOMER

I have an ideal bride in mind when I write and post images or share advice for. She is my ideal customer and over the years I have worked out who she is, what she loves doing, where she loves to shop, dance and drink and what she wears. This so helps in keeping me focused and everything I do is then for her purpose. (I should have an ideal groom too but I don’t generally work with as many men directly with my communication)

I honestly believe if you work out your ideal customer you’ll become so much more successful as you’ll know which wedding blogs and magazines she’s reading, the venues she’s viewing and the type of product she’d love to hire.

YOU ARE YOUR BRAND

So many people ask about how to grow a range of products you know will hire out well. The biggest advice for this is remember you are your brand, if you really love a piece and could imagine it at your wedding/in your home its a good bet your ideal customer will too (if she’s anything like you, which parts of my ideal bride is a younger, cooler version of me!)

SAYING NO IS OK

Everyone says say yes to everything at the start of business, but honestly there is alot to be said for saying no. Anything that isn’t a good fit for you or your brand isn’t worth your time. Research suppliers involved with shoots before agreeing to them and don’t be afraid to not share images that aren’t fitting with where you want your business to be. Getting the right set of images out there at the start with a clear message of what you do will keep you leaps ahead and pushing in the right direction. At the start I fought alot with taking orders that we’re ‘bread and butter’ money orders to realising I needed to think bigger to get the right couples coming through.

BE PRESENT

Being present on social is so, so important at the start. Start networking and just keep showing up. It will feel like people aren’t seeing you but being consistent really is key.

THE PRICE IS RIGHT

Initially I didn’t have the right pricing at all and my time just wasn’t covered properly for deliveries, admin and the fact you don’t get paid out of season. This has all come with time for me but always reflect and adjust, sadly learning from mistakes and realising how many hours were spent on an event can help to grow and move forward.

STAFFING

In the beginning there was just no way I could afford staff but eventually you realise how vital they are. Rather than investing into more range pieces (my range is actually not vast at all, you’ll notice how many of the same pieces are featured in my weddings) I really advise getting admin assistance and more behind the scenes help with prop prep. This year was going to be a big year for me to step back from day-to-day in some ways and have more staff here to help so I am left to push and develop the business more. I am beyond grateful for all my freelance staff and the role they play each week.

OTHER SERVICES

I added sign writing and styling services after just a few years. I knew I had to branch out into more than just prop hire as I only offer small props. Offering big furniture pieces have much bigger return but having a large storage space with rent every month, large vans and paying two men to go to each delivery wasn’t something I wanted to have the responsibility of. I like working at home, all my stock is here and I have no external costs, this works best for me and has hugely helped in me having a full salary from Little Lending and means I can fit in work around my growing family.

DON’T LET DOUBT IN

Over the years doubt will of course set in; if you will make it, make a profit, finally work for a proper wage, be recognised in the industry, but only if you really want to succeed then you will. There will always be people out there who seem to have it all together (trust me behind the scenes they won’t) but all you need to do is keep visualising your end goal.

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Would love to know your thoughts on starting out in the industry, if you have experienced lots of stumbling blocks or if you are just loving the ride of growing something new?

Images Darina Stoda (Old office, new office is not ready for images yet!)

Penny x

MY 5 2018 GOALS.

Posted on January 10, 2018 by thelittlelendingco

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New Years Resolutions. EUGH, nope I am really not going there this year. I am going to start this year a little bit differently, rather than resolutions and changes that just set you up to fail for me 2018 is about setting myself goals. Lovely big glowing goals that I can reach for. I know we’re like half way through January but its taken a bit of time to work out what I’d like for this year.

NEW

So some of you might have spotted from my Instagram that I will be starting something brand new this year. Mentoring. WOAH. Its something I’ve wanted to do for quite a few months now. I have lots of amazing ladies in the wedding industry get in touch to ask how I’ve started LL and how I run LL on a day-to-day basis. Now is the time not be afraid of newness and expanding into a new area for myself and the biz. I love working with creative, likeminded women and I’m so looking forward to working with them passing on my own knowledge, mistakes and experiences. So excited to get rolling with this, keep your peepers on my IG, its where I’ll share more info soon.

FOCUSED

Louise of Bloved Hive has always been there through the growth of LL. She got me thinking about a word of the year, mine is ‘Focused.’ This is for me to be really focused on who I am working with to grow LL and also moving my focus with more full styled set ups. I want to work with couples more closely and get to enjoy the process of designing weddings with them. This is when I am happiest.

CONNECT

I really want to make sure I keep collaborating and connecting with other suppliers in the industry. Hooking up and sharing inspiration and ideas with other women that inspire and motivate me is really important for my own momentum and drive.

HONESTY

This is something I hope to be with you, more open and honest on my social media. Sharing more of the person behind the pretty and the captions, it was lovely that so many of you recently on my IG stories wanted to see more of what goes on back here, so I’m going to aim to show you more of me and my LL life.

DOING LESS

A weird goal, but I need to make sure I actually do a bit less this year. More time for me and my family is a must.

What are your 2018 goals? Love to hear your thoughts on how I can achieve some of these goals. Hope you’re 2018 has got off to the best start ever.

Penny x

3 IS THE MAGIC NUMBER.

Posted on August 9, 2016 by thelittlelendingco

When you run a business people want to give you advice. All types of people in all types of businesses. So sometimes you end up smiling politely while thinking ‘Eh?’ while being fed their pearls of wisdom or occasionally you’ll end up stashing away some really valuable nuggets of girl boss gold.

One line I’ve heard more than just a few times is ‘You’ll know if you’ve made it when you get to 3 years.‘ So here I am 3 years into Little Lending, have I made it?!
Ok, I don’t really know about ‘made it’ because I’m really not a pro at anything business; spreadsheets may as well be in japansese and the thought of not writing everything in my paper diary fills me with fear…but there are a few achievements I’m going to celebrate as a home business owner this week.

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CONFIDENCE.
I’ve found it, in my creative abilities and plucked up the courage to add ‘Styling Services’ to our offerings over 18 months ago and haven’t looked back. I feel more alive on wedding day set ups that doing any other aspect of the business. And the fact our couples put their trust in me is well, epic. I also feel I’m now kind of priced right for what I do, too many times on this journey I’ve not made what I should have but I now know I need to charge for the work I do and the creative experience I offer.

DECLINE.
I have learnt to decline offers of collaborations that are not right for me and the LL brand. I feel my brand identity is pretty solid now and have worked out exactly what I like working on and what’s just not right. I feel my couples also know my style too so it’s important to keep true to myself for them too.

RELATIONSHIPS.
I’ve built up some amazing relationships that my business now relies on; with fab talented local suppliers and gorgeous venues across the county and beyond. I feel so blessed to have a support network behind me that I value beyond measure.

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CUSTOMERS.
I’ve had some incredible Lenders the last 3 years, that still today continue to support and encourage me. And that, feels amazing. These guys are the backbone and I love my super fan Little Lenders. Word of mouth is so powerful and when new couples get in touch because they’ve heard about us or seen us first hand at another wedding I know I’m doing my job right.

NETWORKED.
I’ve put myself out there, really out there. On all the social media I can, whenever I can. There isn’t a team here it’s still just me (a couple of cats and a helpful hubby) but I knew getting my name out there in Norfolk and beyond in the wedding world would help me reach people, and I’ve reached far more people than I could ever have imagined. Hitting 5K followers on Instagram was huge!

Yes, our time management is still all over the place and it’s all pretty chaotic back here when it gets to delivery days and I know I have a lot more graft to go to get this business in line but I’m doing it, every day I am doing it. And I always deliver to my awesome couples and that’s all me and I’m totally in charge.

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I was asked where I wanted to be 5 years from now with Little Lending and I couldn’t reply at the time. You’re ‘expected’ to reply with huge goals – a big nationally known company that delivers up and down the country; fleets of drivers and staff that run a warehouse full of stock. But you know what, actually I would still like to be enjoying it, being creative, and at the heart of my business being as personal as I possibly can. I still want to create and challenge myself with newness and I really still want to be based at home.
If this sounds like I’m afraid to grow or loose control, it’s not really that, I just like being a little company that connects and works with brilliantly creative couples and other companies. I never want to loose the passion I have right now.

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