5 minute read
18 Months On
EIGHTEEN MONTHS ON Redline-ChanceCowie
Chance Cowie stepped into the world of Direct Sales 18 months ago after making a quick-fire decision to leave his job in Tenerife and move back to the UK
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fter a whirlwind A first few m o n t h s , learning the ropes and getting to grips with the industry, he found himself building a team of his own and setting up Redline. So where did it all begin? Chance opened up in Disbury in Manchester back in October 2018 with a team of just 5 people, and looking back he ‘never would have expected to be where he is today’. When you first enter the industry, it can be easy to look at other businesses with offices all over the world and think ‘how am I ever going to get there?’, but Chance explains that ‘it’s all about maintaining a positive attitude, having faith and staying as present as you can’. This mentality is something that Founder of ‘The Strategic Coach’, Dan Sullivan, promotes, explaining how: ‘getting trapped in their past is one of the biggest things holding entrepreneurs back in their lives. Yet it is the present that holds all the possibility, growth, excitement, and satisfaction of being an entrepreneur. Being present in the moment is an undeniable catalyst for success’. In this way, things begin to grow, naturally. This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t set yourself goals and work towards targets - this is all part of running an office - however, it’s all too easy to get lost in the idea of the career and drift off track. A healthy dose of ambition goes a long way, but only when paired with a strong work ethic and two feet firmly on the ground. Chance quickly found his feet in the field and this is where he really thrives. The business quickly started to gain momentum and by April 2019 his 25-strong team were hitting personal bests every single week. However, despite the team having grown by 500%, they were still working out of their original office space which was ‘literally the size of a broom-cupboard’. Time to move! The team transferred to a new space over in Ancoats just in time to celebrate their 1st Birthday. The physical space in which you are working can have a huge affect on your state of mind, so the literal shift to a new location came at the perfect time. The new office meant that they could start to concentrate on recruitment and soon they had grown the team to 43 people and were achieving over 200 weekly pieces. Fast forward another 6 months and Redline are looking to open another two offices by 2021. Despite the pause in proceedings due to the small blip of a global pandemic, the team have high hopes for the future and have used the last quarter as a chance to expand into a new residential division. Chance himself has been running topics at Amplify and used the time to share his experience of building a business with others; how to turn the genesis of an idea into a reality.
I caught up with the man himself to reflect upon the first year and a half of Redline…
I suppose lockdown has given everyone time to reflect upon various things, their career path being one of those. Did you expect to end up in this position when you first entered the industry?
Absolutely not. That’s what’s been so inspiring about this line of work - the rate at which you can progress! My life has changed so quickly and I am so grateful to be where I am today, running my own business and achieving things I never thought possible.
What would your advice be to anyone looking to move into this line of work?
I suppose my advice would be, ‘be a student’. I don’t mean that in terms of actually going to University, but I mean in terms of the mindset that you adopt; be curious, be interested, learn from others and tune into your selfdevelopment. So many people spend thousands of pounds on degrees that they’ll never use or think about again, just because they were told that that was the trajectory that they should follow, and I think that can stunt a lot of people’s potential in many ways. At the end of the day, this industry is a people industry; the skills learned here can be life-changing, not just in terms of the business side of things, but in all aspects of your life and I think it can be far more beneficial for people to step into a job and learn as they go, whilst making a career out of it, as opposed to following the traditional University path.
Last time we spoke, you talked about the importance of staying ‘present’, of maintaining a clear sense of perspective. Have you managed to stick to this as you've grown the business? It can be difficult to remain present as your company grows, so being able to hand responsibilities over to my team and business partners makes it a lot easier to focus on the things that you’re good at. In order to stay present, I’ve learned to delegate and therefore to not try and juggle everything at once.
What do you love about the industry? How do you stay inspired?
Everything! I love the highs and the lows, the variety and the pace of this industry. I keep myself inspired by continually setting myself challenges and goals to hit along the way. I think that’s important in order to sustain a sense of momentum.
What do you think has changed since lockdown?
That’s a hard question! Really, I don’t think much has changed in terms of how we’ve approached our work, which is a good thing! My mentality is very much along the lines of: where there are challenges or hardships, there are opportunities.
What are you looking forward to over the next few months now that things are beginning to return to ‘normal’?
The main thing I am looking forward to now is being able to give my friends the same opportunities that I’ve been blessed with. To be able to work and grow alongside your peers is a really fantastic thing and I love being able to facilitate that. It’s how I started out, so I want to be able to offer my skills to others now that I’m in the position to do so.
