Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Rob and Jen Morris, Founders of Cupcakeology LLC., located in Sewell, NJ, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We are an online small business academy specializing in the food and brick-and-mortar retail industries. We help cultivate talented and passionate business-savvy entrepreneurs looking to turn their home business into a full-time brick-and-mortar store or mobile business by teaching them core business knowledge to build a strong foundation for growth and sustainability and financial literacy for wealth creation and financial freedom! Not only are we helping business owners start a business, but we're showing them how to sustain in the community for longevity and how to use their business as an asset for wealth creation!
Tell us about yourself
11 years ago, Cupcakeology started off as a home baking operation until we decided to expand, making it our full-time career after getting laid off from my job for the 3rd time. It was time to bet on ourselves! We are 1st generation business owners with no prior business knowledge, guidance, or access to funding to open a storefront, so we blindly bootstrapped our way from a small kitchen inside an office building to relocating into our dream brick-and-mortar store. Not realizing the importance of a business plan or how to write one landed us in bankruptcy after a bad business deal, and we had to start over. Prior to relocating, we taught ourselves how to write a business plan and follow it to business success.
Noticing the influx of business questions and inquiries from our customers and the community requesting mentorship from us, we decided it was best to create an official online business school teaching new entrepreneurs how to start, open, and sustain a brick-and-mortar business of their own! It's very important to us to teach those coming up behind us how to do it the right way and not have them fall into the same trap that we did due to the lack of business knowledge and education!
That's what motivates us each day to do what we do! There is plenty of business coaches out here helping online small business owners elevate, but very few are stepping up to become mentors to product-based business owners looking to open a physical business. That's a whole different ball game! Using our experience, expertise, and knowledge of turning our home bakery into a six-figure national business & brand, brick-and-mortar store & food truck, we've helped hundreds of new entrepreneurs gain the confidence to quit their 9-5 careers to elevate and open businesses of their own!
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Our biggest accomplishment thus far is proving to ourselves and our kids that it's ok to turn left and create your own lane, even when nobody else believes in you. The most important thing is that you believe in yourself and never stop believing!
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Jen: For me, one of the hardest things is finding the balance between creativity and the extreme passion for what you do; regardless of if you make money that day or not, you're doing what you do simply because you love it! But knowing that it IS a business, you must make money and turn a profit, or you'll be out of business! So, it's hard taking time away from the creative side to take care of the business side on a daily basis.
The hardest thing for Rob is keeping me calm when things get tough, lol! He's definitely more levelheaded than I am and able to think with more clarity when stuff hits the fan! That's why we make a great team!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Make big goals and get extremely clear on what you want. I mean, create some major goals that scare the crap out of you, even if you have no idea how you'll get there. Then figure out what your first step will be, and EXECUTE!
- Find a mentor or a coach! Someone who's done what you are trying to do and have reached the level you are trying to attain.
- Embrace the journey, failures, and all, and enjoy the process! Don't rush it! And don't be afraid to fail. Because if you never fail, that means you never tried anything new. And if you never try anything new, you'll never get a new result!
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.cupcakeologypa.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robjennmorris
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rob_jenmorris/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CupcakeologyPA
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-morris-6732ab69/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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