YOUNG
CEOMONTHLY 1
ISSUE 6 | FREE
The Sister’s Wardrobe INTERVIEW WITH
Victoria Azubuike & Chanel Noye
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Foreword 3 EDITORIAL
editor@youngceomonthly.com Produced by: CEO Monthly Publications Design: GB Designs
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elcome to the 6th Edition of Young CEO Monthly, the magazine that aims to bring young known and especially un-known business owners from the age of 16-30 to the attention of the public. I hope that you had a fantastic summer break with your family, friends or maybe just yourself and now are refreshed to go and achieve the 2015 goals that are still pending. Talking about making goals a reality, in this month’s edition we would like to introduce you to a young ladies team who through hard work have brought their dream of setting up and running their own fashion business to life.
Young CEO Monthly is published by CEO Monthly Publications. Opinions and views expressed do not necessarily reflect CEOMP policy. CEOMP accepts no responsibilty for views expressed by contributors. Advertisements and reader offers are not endorsed by CEOMP.
We hope that their story will inspire you to go on an entrepreneurial journey and above all you’ll share it with your colleagues, friends and family.
George Boateng Editor
Quote
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“Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.” John D. Rockefeller
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Content Page 3 – Foreword Page 4 – Cover Story Page 8 – Business Advice of the Month Page 9 – CEO/Company Profile Page 10 – Classifieds Page11 – Reflections
4 Cover Story
The Sister’s Wardrobe
Chanel Noye (16) & Victoria Azubuike (18)
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hat inspired you to start your business and when did you start it?
Victoria: From the age of 11, I operated a weekly Saturday cake stall with my sisters on my estate in Islington. As the eldest sibling, I took the lead role and used my initiative to ensure we maximised profit, by monitoring sales of each item and adjusting prices in response to demand. I developed my planning and organisational skills, and my ability to mentor others from here I became interested in Business and I’ve always wanted to be my own boss. Chanel: Seeing the success and accomplishments of celebrities like Bill Gates really did inspire me. However, I formed part of my inspiration as I started thinking outside the box. I asked myself ‘do you really have to wait till you finish your degree before getting a professional job? Is there advantages to owning a business at a young age?’ Then I started telling myself ‘’I’m different, so let me show the world my differences’’. I can be young but age won’t stop me from having a business mentality. So, when I was 15, I decided (along with my partner Victoria), to build upon this company and change
the mind set of people about the young generation. To see that we are not all the same but have our own uniqueness and we help create benefits for present and future times to come. What was your background before starting your business(s)? Victoria: The Sister’s Wardrobe has been up and running now for over two years and before it I had just finished my GCSEs and was just going to start my A-Levels in Maths, Economics, Chemistry and Religious Studies. Chanel: Before I began my journey, I had just returned from Ghana where I have been staying there with my father for two years to have an experience of the African culture. I then came to the UK to continue my education where I chose my GCSEs subjects Geography, Music, Additional Science and Product Design along with the core subjects. What do you find to be the best thing about the industry your business is in? Victoria: One of the best things about the
5 Fashion Industry is that all the time there are new trends evolving which works well with The Sister’s Wardrobe. It allows to find new ways of advertising and selling our goods attracting new consumers we may have missed. For example, last winter there was an increase in the demand for scarves but especially for our Tartan designs as this was what was a must have during the chilly days.
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I really do like competing with myself, I would say I have a ‘never quitter’ mentality meaning I don’t like doing things until they‘re truly at the best of my ability. - Victoria Azubuike
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Chanel: One good thing I find best about the Fashion Industry is that we get to see the missing piece and how The Sisters Wardrobe is able to fill in that missing piece. Our aim is to stand out so we observe other fashion businesses and see how they continuously run things and how things are scheduled. We go by the rules set in the fashion industry, but we follow different procedures than any other company. As a wise man said ‘’if you continuously do the same thing over and over again, you will never see a difference’’. This is how we breakthrough!
do. This is why we use many social media networks from Facebook and Instagram to our very own Fashion Blog. By using these resources it allows us to reach different target audience we may if struggled to get. 3) Quality From our products to our adverts we believe the quality which we deliver must be to the best of our standards. As young people running a business if we really want consumers and investors to take us seriously to work must be produced at a professional level. This includes its material, how we manufacture the products and the durability. This is the same with anything when you believe in what you do you don’t just do anything anyhow but instead you’re constantly pushing yourself to produce the best and not settling for anything. This is because, quality is very vital and the aim is to make our viewers elative and continuously engaging in our updates. In addition, when there is quality this also helps us to avoid any refunds or complaints that can pull down the marketing process.
What three areas do you focus most on in your business? 1) Consumer Service In the past there has been times where I didn’t take consumer feedback on board and as I result problems occurred which could have been avoided. When you take time to understand the consumer not only does your reputation improve but more importantly you’re able to improve your interpersonal skills including the ability to listen effectively to others. This is what builds long lasting relationships and will keep consumers coming back. 2) Public Awareness As a small Business we believe that Public Awareness is the key in letting people understand who we are and what we
What is your work ethic like? Victoria: I really do like competing with myself, I would say I have a ‘never quitter’ mentality meaning I don’t like doing things until they‘re truly at the best of my ability. From time to time you properly find me looking at different blogs and websites which are doing better than ours and looking at ways on how we can improve The Sister’s Wardrobe. Looking at what
6 they do that works and adopting this to TSW. In addition, I think an really important thing when running a business is to learn to take on criticisms in order to move to the next level. I had friends telling me things I really didn’t want to hear about TSW however, these same pieces of advices are the roots of the improvements in the business. Chanel: When it comes to work ethic, I love getting the job done and getting it right. I am someone that uses originality and creativity in any idea I come across because, I allows TSW to stand out from other businesses doing what we do. ‘Tenacious’ spells the name of the company as I never give up when one idea does not work out. In this way we become stronger, bolder and wiser. How did you fund your start-up? Victoria: I didn’t have much to start-up the business but as the passion was there I knew it was possible to make this dream become a reality. So I decided to hit the streets and do the same thing I would do if I needed cash... Sell Cakes. I made around £60 and from there it was TSW time to take off… I guess another important thing I believe is that sometimes when you have an idea it’s better to just get out there and learn from your mistakes and just keep on learning. Chanel: It’s quiet interesting how larger companies started from small backgrounds. Before I joined to run The Sisters Wardrobe, my partner Victoria would sell cupcakes on the street and it gradually grew from there. I’m telling you it wasn’t’ easy but it will be worth it in the long run. One thing we take into consideration is that we should never accept life as it is. If an investor wanted to invest in your business what would they be investing in? The Sister’s Wardrobe is very new to the fashion industry meaning we are all about new ideas to help us grow and develop. We really strive on making things possible with the resources we have. TSW is definitely a business which one can trust that has the consumer at the heart of it and our team works hard to do the best we can in order
to exceed the expectations of our clients. Lastly, one will be investing in a business with a team who is ready to take on new challenges to make sure things are done effectively to be the best! What would you consider your main achievement so far in your business and personal life? Victoria: I think one of the main achievements from The Sister’s Wardrobe is doing something which most 18 years aren’t doing. I believe having a business allows you to grow as a person for example the values of resilience and to always persist through hardships have really been established in me. As there have been times when I have planned competitions and the results I wanted to see didn’t happen but, you learn just to keep going and focus on the bigger goal. Chanel: The advance in brainstorming ideas has to be the main achievement so far we have started to host competitions to enlarge the number of consumers viewing our social media outlets and other links. Personally, I believe I have achieved in so many ways as to being confident and having an optimistic mind about things. The best part is that I look past the obstacles and focus on my destination. What helps me to do that is to always remind myself why I joined Victoria in this new adventure. Where do you see yourself and your business in 10 years’ time?
7 Victoria: By this time I would love to have a wider team being part of the growth of The Sister’s Wardrobe I would love to open a store in London and also abroad. Apart from The Sister’s Wardrobe I would love to pursuit a career in finance either as a Management Consultant or a Broker. Chanel: Ten years’ time, I’ll be sitting behind a desk, running The Sister’s Wardrobe along with a larger team, who share the same goal as us. I would love for us to have branches global as, I do love to travel. I also see TSW creating their own magazine and receiving nominees and awards. This is the vision. What is your #1 advice to another young person thinking about starting their own business?
there have been many while running The Sister’s Wardrobe which has really been a struggle. Where the thoughts of quitting pop into your head but, I believe these are the times you’ll remember the most. In addition, when the hard times come (because they will) it’s so important to keep your eyes on the bigger picture and remember why you started in the first place! Chanel: One thing I’ll say is when you have the passion go for it, go get it! Never limit yourself. You’re able to do marvellous things when you put your mind to it. A key point concerning this is to be consistent and not allow peers or any kind of people in your life to influence you that you are not worth it and you can never be successful. Just take their words into mind, smile, and say ‘’Watch me’’.
Victoria: Be prepare for the hard times;
TheSisWardrobe_
The Sister’s Wardrobe
8 Business Advice of the Month
There’s no reward without risk.
by Steve Tobak | Author and Managing Partner, Invisor Consulting
“Everyone calls herself an entrepreneur these days, but if you’re not risking anything, you’re no entrepreneur. If you want to be successful on your own, at some point, you have to cut the cord. If there were an easier or safer way, everyone would do it. I’m telling you, there isn’t. Truth is, entrepreneurship isn’t really a “dip your toe in the water and see how it feels” sort of endeavor. If you’re not willing to go all in, you might consider getting a real job. But if you think you’ve got what it takes, these are pretty fundamental concepts you should strive to understand and embrace.”
Business / CEO Profile 9
A man determined to restore engineering and technical innovation to high esteem in British society
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ir James Dyson, (born May 2, 1947, Cromer, Norfolk, Eng.) is a British inventor, industrial designer, and entrepreneur who successfully manufactured innovative household appliances and became a determined campaigner to restore engineering and technical innovation to high esteem in British society. Dyson attended the Gresham’s schools in rural Holt, North Norfolk. After graduation he went to London, where he attended the Byam Shaw School of Art for a year (1965–66) before studying furniture and interior design at the Royal College of Art (1966–70). In 1974 Dyson founded his own company to produce the Ballbarrow, a plastic wheelbarrow-like bin that rolled on a load-spreading ball instead of a narrow wheel. In 1978 Dyson, having grown impatient with clogged air filters in his Ballbarrow factory, built a cyclone particle collector similar to devices used in larger industrial plants, such as sawmills. He worked for the next five years, testing more than 5,000 prototypes, before he produced a satisfactory model that swirled incoming dirty air around a cylindrical container, where the dust was separated by centrifugal force and settled by gravity while the purified air escaped out the top. Makers of traditional bag-type vacuum cleaners showed no interest in Dyson’s bagless device, arousing in him a lasting antipathy toward conventional businesses. He sold the cleaner, known as the G-Force, to a company in Japan, where it became a commercial success and won a design prize in 1991. In 1993 Dyson opened a plant in North Wiltshire, and within two years his Dual Cyclone model became the top-selling vacuum cleaner in Britain. Dyson’s elegant and practical appliances went on to win many design awards and were exhibited in art and design museums around the world. He followed up the vacuum cleaner line with other products. Dyson’s design and commercial success lent authority to his quest to revive the spirit of invention in Britain. In 1997 he published Against the Odds (cowritten with Giles Coren), an autobiographical account of his persistence in the face of discouragement. The following year he was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire. In 2002 the James Dyson Foundation was established with the aim of encouraging young people to enter engineering through the awarding of prizes and grants. In 2009 the Conservative Party invited Dyson to propose policies to encourage innovation, and he replied in March 2010 with Ingenious Britain: Making the UK the Leading High Tech Exporter in Europe, a report that suggested, among other ideas, more freedom for universities to design unconventional engineering curricula and more collaboration between universities and technology companies. Dyson’s weatlh today stands at £3.2 Million | $5 Billion | €4.4 Billion. (Forbes) Adapted from britannica.com
10 Classified
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Time To Reflect 11
Thoughts on Entitlement by Victor Azubuike | pensivevictor.blogspot.com
ecently a lot of the thoughts coming across my mind R have been surrounding the idea of entitlement. The dictionary defines entitlement as the fact/belief of inherently having a right to something. Through my experiences and general reading I’ve come to the conclusion that what is paramount to our achievements and successes is not necessarily our circumstances (although I will be lying if they don’t play a role) but rather the mentality of entitlement we have in regards to a goal we decide to set for ourselves.
There are countless examples in history, where a feeling of injustice based on entitlement has brought about a significant change – from the uprising on the streets of Paris in the eighteenth century to the organised marches in the southern states of the USA in the 1960s the manifestation of entitlement driven by indignation and hope, has not ceased to set the wheels of reform into motion. What sparked the Civil Rights Movement was the indignation of African Americans at the fact that the equality they were promised through the US Constitution, the Emancipation Proclamation and the Reconstruction Amendments was being denied to them on a systematic basis. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights” – United States Declaration of Independence They were entitled by the law of the United States of America to equality but for one reason or another were being denied these rights. Let’s delve a bit deeper into this matter. Entitlement is something that we need to make sure that we develop and incorporate carefully into our lives. An excerpt of Outliers; The Story of Success cites; “That word (Entitlement) has negative connotations these days. But Lareau means it in the best sense of the term: “They acted as though they had a right to pursue their own individual preferences and to actively manage interactions in institutional settings. They appeared comfortable in those settings; they were open to sharing information and asking for attention … It was a common practice among middle-class children to shift their interactions to suit their preferences.” They knew the rules. “Even in fourth grade, middleclass children appeared to be acting on their own behalf to gain advantages. They made special requests of teachers and doctors to adjust procedures to accommodate their desires”. I think we should all realize that we are entitled to succeed, be healthy and to find happiness.
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