HOW TO PIVOT YOUR BUSINESS W i t h C o lin H u t s o n f r o m W h it e Moose
You might be hearing a lot of talk about pivoting lately - it’s a buzz word that’s certainly doing the rounds. Stories of gin distilleries producing hand sanitiser; five star restaurants serving takeaway meals; staging companies building work-from-home desks… Put simply, it’s about savvy small businesses making the most of a tough situation - turning it to their advantage when things don’t go according to plan. As someone who has reinvented his business model several times over, Colin Hutson is all about finding the silver linings when things cloud over, whether it’s the entire world or just changes happening within your customer base. “Consumers are wanting to change things and we’re having to rethink how we operate,” says the founder of White Moose, who began his business selling garden ornaments out of a suitcase. Now heading up a wholesale gifting and home decor business with an online store, Colin has seen twelve consecutive Life Instyle events and continues to evolve his business according to demand. “You just need to keep listening. The whole idea behind White Moose is to reinvent constantly,” he says. According to Colin, finding out the way you did things three months ago no longer works is a ‘fight or flight moment’. It could also be the push you needed to put your wildest dreams into action, such as setting up an online shop. “Especially those who have been in business for a very long time and haven’t operated in any other way before. I think this has been an incredible opportunity for many retailers to reinvent their wheel,” he says. 54 THE GOODS
