Picking a mentor

[Cms100]

Good afternoon everyone,

I'm not really sure what sort of thought process should go behind asking this question, so I'm just going to ask it in a vague way which allows hopefully some form of discussion to form.
How do you go about choosing a mentor when it comes to business? I know people suggest getting investors who know the industry you're in, so that you can grow the business with them involved. Realistically, I'm just looking for someone who's made their millions and have been there, done that, who has the capability and the patience to help nurture what I've achieved so far. That sort of person I'm not sure how to find or approach?

I'm a 30 year old who works full time in the Royal Air Force, with a lot of mental baggage (I suffered with severe depression, something that I refuse to now keep me down) and a past that I'm attempting to rectify (ex gambler but now all is behind me). I don't want to get too deep so I can message people privately if they're interested in speaking with me more, but the question here is obviously business related.
I own 85% of a business built in sports memorabilia memorabilia that I started myself, before bringing some investors in that work full time to help me with the business.

Year 1, I turned over £25,000 with a net profit of £500.
Year 2, I turned over £353,000 with a net loss of £60,000 (subsidised with a couple of loans)(my financial years are June-June).
Year 3, I am hoping to break even or again achieve a profit, but I'm a little concerned that I've bitten off more than I can chew. I've no doubt that being nervous about the amount of money flowing is a good thing, but I have a bit of anxiety on whether I'm doing the right things. We have almost finished building a website, with approximately £100,000 worth of stock to push through and sell.

There are varying reasons why Year 2 was a bit out of sync, but essentially I probably looked at expansion a bit too soon and it nearly got away from me.

I believe in the business model that I have, but I think because I started the business with absolutely nothing but ambition and hard work (I had literally ZERO business experience or awareness), there's likely better ways to go about what I'm doing. I've also made some absolutely catastrophic errors, which has led me into holes that I've struggled to get out of.

I'm looking to grow the business again under the guidance(hopefully) of someone who's been there and done it, to the point where I can actually afford to leave the military. It's taught me a lot of fundamental skills that I've used inside my business, but I think I'm at a stage now where I'm desperately needing to turn for advice.

Sorry if this statement is a bit all over the place and if it seems a bit like a plea - I probably need to learn how to pitch too!!!

Thanks all and hope you have a good weekend.

Kindest regards

 

[Ray272]

Very interesting post. All that whilst still a side hustle. Maybe you should just commit to it fully.

 

[Mark T Jones]

Your post seems to flit between mentors and investors - they really are quite different

Whilst you feel being broad/vague will encourage more responses, you will usually see on here that clear, direct questions get the best replies

Key question - what are you actually hoping to achieve?

 

[Mark T Jones]

To add

I believe there are organisations dedicated to helping ex-forces to start businesses - it's probably worth digging them out

 

[Cms100]

Very interesting post. All that whilst still a side hustle. Maybe you should just commit to it fully.

Hi Ray,

It's not that easy in the military, as my kids are in boarding school and they pay for the majority of it.
Maybe I'm a little tentative too, but make of that what you will. This is why I wanted a mentor because truthfully, I've learnt as I've gone along.

 

[Cms100]

To add

I believe there are organisations dedicated to helping ex-forces to start businesses - it's probably worth digging them out

Hi Mark,

Typing late at night probably didn't help. I should have said " I know people suggest getting investors who know the industry you're in, so that you can grow the business with them involved. However, I'm not interested in releasing anymore equity - I'd much rather confide in a mentor to help me develop. I'd sooner pay for advice over allowing someone in to essentially do it for me."

Regarding those organisations, this isn't a start up. My business is approaching 3 years in establishment and it's more business advice for progression that I'm looking for. There's a potential to go global, but I'm not sure when is the right time (if there is one), or how to even go about it.

 

[Clinton]

It sounds like you want a a highly experienced player who can guide you with growing / improving your business, someone who's been there and done that.

But you want to call him a mentor so you get his services for free.

Because that's what business is about generally - getting stuff for free.

I'd sooner pay for advice over allowing someone in to essentially do it for me.

Then why aren't you looking to hire a paid consultant?

 

[Cms100]

It sounds like you want a a highly experienced player who can guide you with growing / improving your business, someone who's been there and done that.

But you want to call him a mentor so you get his services for free.

Because that's what business is about generally - getting stuff for free.


Then why aren't you looking to hire a paid consultant?

Hi Clinton,

Generally, I'm happy to pay but I'm not sure where to look. I'd happily approach people but I've learnt in the past that even when offering to pay, people have been really abrasive towards the idea (not me personally).

I don't want to pay some consultant over the internet who I've not met before. I want to sit down with someone, have a coffee and look them in the eye. I want to hear their story with business and learn as much as I can because I'm sure I can find a way to improve. If I need to pay then I need to pay, I'm not looking to be a crook or expect everything for nothing.

Thank you for your response though, if you've got someone or somewhere in mind for me to look, please let me know.

Enjoy your evening.

 

[m4hmo]

If you major expense is not the marketing eating into profits then I'm sure something can be done. You might have been a bit wasteful on the way up. Watch your numbers and don't set yourself up to be pressurised to sell X amount because your costs are now y. CUT THEM.

 

[Clinton]

Generally, I'm happy to pay but I'm not sure where to look.

Four decades ago, when I was starting in business, I needed a lawyer for a certain matter. I found one, paid him a lot of money and it turned out that he was rubbish.

Then I found another one, who also charged me a lot of money, and he kept missing meetings, fobbing me off, being most unreliable.

Then I found a third and he was also a disaster.

This was in the 80s and I had to find all these people without the help of Google, TrustPilot, LinkedIn and all the other tools you kids have at your fingertips, nor all the Action Coach type of organisations. We didn't even have computers or email.

Eventually, I found a lawyer who was competent, responsive, clued up.

Up to that point, I had spent a lot of money and got nothing.

My free lesson for you, the only free lesson I'm providing today: It can cost money, sometimes a lot of money in trial and error, to even find the right expert! That's just another cost of doing business. And if you can't find a suitable person to provide this service on payment, what makes you think you can find one who'll do it for free?

 

[Ray272]

Hi Ray,

It's not that easy in the military, as my kids are in boarding school and they pay for the majority of it.
Maybe I'm a little tentative too, but make of that what you will. This is why I wanted a mentor because truthfully, I've learnt as I've gone along.

Totally get that. My point is mentor or no mentor, at what point do you need to get to, to turn this into what you do. Do you not think that would be the first question being aimed at you no matter who you speak to?

If you want, provide the year 2 roller coaster it would be interesting to hear the catastrophic errors.

Yeah about that, learning as you go, best way to learn most here have likely been in the same boat and the internet has saved me countless times. Dont let the lack of not having a mentor become the reason for anything.

The first 4 years of business i honestly thought i was going to prison out of fear i had missed sonething or did not understand fully what i was doing.

Stick with this forum and people will contribute and help.

Was an issue recently with a change in how imports were being handled and 3 or 4 chaps here were all fretting, myself included and the government had zero answers. Members worked together to assure and confirm each others concerns.

It cost nothing and it is how this forum should be, to help one another. Start and end.

 

[Mark T Jones]

There is a lot of semantics and broad definitions here; which still makes it very hard to give good advice

My personal take is that a mentor is there to guide and motivate you as a person, not to give detailed or deep business advice.

Consultants come in many forms (and many abilities)

Again, a simplistic analogy - a generic business consultants is a bit like a GP; take an overview of your business, show areas that need attention and possibly point you towards people who specialise in that field.

Then there are specialists; so if you have identified marketing, then you need to speak to a specialist marketing consultant.

That will hopefully help to get you asking more focused questions.

Unfortunately, the whole consultant thing is a minefield - ranging from geniuses to outright crook; with varying degrees of competence in between.

A good starter guide to see if you are dealing with a professional is to ignore all of their claims & promises & pay close attention to the type of questions they are asking you

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

Whilst a mentor might help, you may not need one! If you feel you do, you could look somewhere like mentorsme.co.uk or speak to your local council.

You probably need someone who has general business experience and maybe knows a little about your product area (there won't be many, specifically, but could have general collectables experience).

I do have a question: why was there a loss in year 2? Was it because you invested in stock or something else?

Also, have the investors really helped you?

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

...and Marks' comments are spot on!

 

[Cms100]

If you major expense is not the marketing eating into profits then I'm sure something can be done. You might have been a bit wasteful on the way up. Watch your numbers and don't set yourself up to be pressurised to sell X amount because your costs are now y. CUT THEM.

It's a valid point. I think our biggest problem was keeping up with how much we committed to. We had to take a couple of business loans, one of which is now paid and the last ends in May.

Again, learning point from my side, don't bite off more than I can chew!

I've certainly been feeling the pressure so I definitely think we have scope to cut costs somewhere, as we have a very pitiful amount of money going into marketing (if anything at all right now).

 

[Cms100]

Totally get that. My point is mentor or no mentor, at what point do you need to get to, to turn this into what you do. Do you not think that would be the first question being aimed at you no matter who you speak to?

If you want, provide the year 2 roller coaster it would be interesting to hear the catastrophic errors.

Yeah about that, learning as you go, best way to learn most here have likely been in the same boat and the internet has saved me countless times. Dont let the lack of not having a mentor become the reason for anything.

The first 4 years of business i honestly thought i was going to prison out of fear i had missed sonething or did not understand fully what i was doing.

Stick with this forum and people will contribute and help.

Was an issue recently with a change in how imports were being handled and 3 or 4 chaps here were all fretting, myself included and the government had zero answers. Members worked together to assure and confirm each others concerns.

It cost nothing and it is how this forum should be, to help one another. Start and end.

Appreciate the response and it actually helped me feel a little better haha! When it comes to business, I feel like a boy in a man's world. With my past family upbringing, lets just say the lessons on finances and dealing with money were skipped entirely! I Had to learn the hard way.

When it comes to catastrophic errors, I paid cash payments to football players for private signings. Often £25,000 at a time, sometimes more. Great at the time, but no invoices given back and I then became VAT registered. So I invested in stock, with a website pending so they're sitting in situ with a big VAT bill to pay. Very hard lesson to learn and a very costly one too - genuinely worried I was about to go to prison!

I'm trying to hold the mindset that if I do make a mistake, I won't be caught making it twice!

 

[Cms100]

There is a lot of semantics and broad definitions here; which still makes it very hard to give good advice

My personal take is that a mentor is there to guide and motivate you as a person, not to give detailed or deep business advice.

Consultants come in many forms (and many abilities)

Again, a simplistic analogy - a generic business consultants is a bit like a GP; take an overview of your business, show areas that need attention and possibly point you towards people who specialise in that field.

Then there are specialists; so if you have identified marketing, then you need to speak to a specialist marketing consultant.

That will hopefully help to get you asking more focused questions.

Unfortunately, the whole consultant thing is a minefield - ranging from geniuses to outright crook; with varying degrees of competence in between.

A good starter guide to see if you are dealing with a professional is to ignore all of their claims & promises & pay close attention to the type of questions they are asking you

Thanks Mark.

Apologies if I comes across vague. Often myself, I'm not sure the types of questions I should be asking.
Your information is insightful and very much appreciated.

 

[Cms100]

Whilst a mentor might help, you may not need one! If you feel you do, you could look somewhere like mentorsme.co.uk or speak to your local council.

You probably need someone who has general business experience and maybe knows a little about your product area (there won't be many, specifically, but could have general collectables experience).

I do have a question: why was there a loss in year 2? Was it because you invested in stock or something else?

Also, have the investors really helped you?

Thanks Paul, appreciate the feedback.

It's quite a tricky and somewhat clicky industry. I've reached out before but I may as well have just got the middle finger back!

Regarding year two, I paid cash payments to football players for private signings. Often £25,000 at a time, sometimes more. Great at the time, but no invoices given back and I then became VAT registered. So I invested in stock, with a website pending so they're sitting in situ with a big VAT bill to pay. Very hard lesson to learn and a very costly one too - genuinely worried I was about to go to prison!

1 investor, I allowed in through my naivety and quickly learnt that he wasn't there to the benefit of the business. Just wanted a quick cash in, which is fine, but not what I look for. The other brings in a revenue of approximately £10,000 a month and goes above and beyond for me. I know to some that's small game numbers, but I'm still very much a micro business so it's a big deal to us.

Between him and the website, I am aiming for an increase to £20,000 in direct sales through my website and £10,000 through my investor (he's now our full time sales director too). If I can achieve this, I'll be in a much happier place.

 

[Cms100]

Thank you for everyone's responses. I have actually put some thought into networking events and whether they would be worth looking into. What's everyone's thoughts on them? Could they prove of benefit or would I just be well out of my depth?

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

Great at the time, but no invoices given back

What does this mean?

 

[Mark T Jones]

Thank you for everyone's responses. I have actually put some thought into networking events and whether they would be worth looking into. What's everyone's thoughts on them? Could they prove of benefit or would I just be well out of my depth?

What are you hoping to achieve?

What type of networking events are you thinking of?

 

[Cms100]

What does this mean?

Hi Paul,

As the transaction wasn't completed via the bank, they refused to provide a VAT invoice for me, which caused issues later on.

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

the transaction wasn't completed via the bank,

How was it done? A bag of cash?

hey refused to provide a VAT invoice

Are they VAT registered?

 

[Stas Lawicki]

It seems to me there are a number of different things you need help with and actually the starting point might be you. People are right to point out the distinction between consultant and mentor - finding 2in1 is rare and can be messy- but perhaps your starting point is to find somebody to help you plan and make decisions about your life and goals, rather than helping you turn a business into a beast you do not have the time or resource to manage yourself, esp if you are still serving.

I can imagine the stress you are putting on yourself to come up with the answers, which is pushing you from one idea to another. You need to stop. Figure out what you want and then make a plan to get it. If this means committing one way or the other and trying later, then so be it. If you have the resilience and capacity to juggle it all, then great. It appears though you have too much on your plate and if you're not careful, you'll go into overload.

I've had a real mixed bag of experiences with coaches and mentors in the past, mostly negative, and therefore perhaps separate the business from you for now, focus on the later, get that straight and on track and then decide sensible next steps.

Apart from anything else, if you're feeling under pressure or stress, you're unlikely to be thinking clearly about these things.

There is plenty of help out there, but defining the most pressing need will help you determine what takes priority - from what I am seeing, it's you.

 

[Gecko001]

My free lesson for you, the only free lesson I'm providing today: It can cost money, sometimes a lot of money in trial and error, to even find the right expert! That's just another cost of doing business. And if you can't find a suitable person to provide this service on payment, what makes you think you can find one who'll do it for free?

Good free advice. It seems to me that you are in a position where you cannot make any mistakes or at least are terrified of making mistakes. I have found that you have to have enough resourses to spare in order to be able to make mistakes, learn from them and moving on stronger for it. I would look at the detail perhaps more rather than thinking that there is some fundamental massive changes that have to be made. Look to how can you build that spare capacity.

 

[Deleted member 352941]

That's a tough road you've traveled. Have you examined why with such a great turnover you've made a £60k loss? The answer is critical as to whether you should even be moving forward with this business.

On the subject of finding a mentor:

1. Networking: Attend industry events, join business organizations, and as you've done here, participate in online forums to meet people in your field who may have experience and be willing to mentor you.
2. Ask for referrals: Reach out to your professional contacts and ask for recommendations for mentors who may be a good fit for your needs.
3. Look for mentorship programs: Many organizations, such as SCORE, provide mentorship programs that match entrepreneurs with experienced business mentors.
4. Consider paying for a mentor: If you're unable to find a mentor through free programs or personal connections, consider hiring a business coach or mentor who specializes in your industry. This could be a very worthwhile investment!
5. Be prepared: When reaching out to potential mentors, be clear about your goals and expectations for the mentorship. Come prepared with questions and a clear plan for how you hope to grow your business with their guidance.

I hope you find a mentor asap even if they just lend an ear and an eye for a short period to review why you're making such big losses and determine if it is worth continuing.

Good luck!

 

[MiekeClaerhout]

Hello 30 year old who works full time in the Royal Air Force

Greetings from a 44 year old who helps small business owners to get more customers and more money in the till

I would need to know more about your 'business built in sports memorabilia' to put my thinking hat on, but with what I'm reading here from you maybe this piece of advice is useful:

Many people who start up a business for the first time struggle (also financially) because they only 'play' the part of the 'passionate worker'. This IS the best way to start a small business, but it's definitely not enough. The role of the 'coordinator' and 'entrepreneur' is also crucial but often there's no awareness about those.

You can and will succeed in your business if you put time and effort in acquiring these 3 roles.

I uploaded a video about this topic yesterday (no not especially for you but because it's such a common reason for failing amongst new business owners) Feel free to look for it on youtube @MiekeClaerhout

Ah and about the consultant slash mentor: there are many mature and experienced persons out there who can be both for you. This might surprise you, but I've learnt in my career that often the best mentors aren't very visible online, don't have huge followings on social media, because they don't need it. They just want to share their 'business passion' with their clients and don't feel the need to boast about it online. Choose wisely.


All the best to you and your business,

Mieke Claerhout
Local Shop Guidance