Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Russell James, Founder of Eat Like an Adult, located in London, United Kingdom.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
My business is Eat Like an Adult. I teach healthy eaters how to get good in the kitchen. These are people of varying experience with cooking but see the value in homemade food. They'd love to feel more confident in the kitchen and do more without needing to rely on recipes. They don't prescribe to any particular diet.
Tell us about yourself
I started almost 20 years ago with raw food. I had acne from a young age and cleared it up with fasting and raw food. It was really great for me, but in more recent years, I started to want to expand into cooking whole foods and not feeling restricted to one diet. I still love raw foods, but I'm really enjoying the freedom to follow whatever feels good to my body. Healthy eating had such a drastic effect on my body that I feel privileged to share that and perhaps be part of someone else's healthy eating journey. That really motivates me. And, of course, I just love what I do. Being able to work on creative things every day is such fun to me.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
My biggest accomplishment as a business owner is probably getting myself out of a job and into my own business, being able to do what I love for people that love what I do. Even now, when a sale comes in, I remind myself that it's a real person seeing enough value in what I do to pay me. It's an honour and still feels like magic to me.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
Having to master all areas of the business. This is especially true if you're a company of one. When I need to go into Xero and answer all of the bookkeeping queries, when I'd much rather be creating a video for my latest recipe, it's a challenge.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Make sure you have enough money to see you through at least 12 months. For some people, that will be savings. For others, it will mean staying in your job as you build on the side. I love the philosophy of 'Ramen Profitability,' where you are profitable from day one, even if it's the smallest profit.
Focus all of your energy on building a product that solves a problem your customers have and will pay to fix. No amount of marketing can fix a product that isn't valued. Everything feels like a struggle with an offer that doesn't match your audience's needs.
Build an audience first by being useful. My mantra when building an audience is, "just be useful." I do that by creating recipe videos for free. As that's happening, I'm doing audience research to see what people are struggling with. It's a process that leads to uncovering a solution (product or service) that will help.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://eatlikeanadult.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eatlikeanadult
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eatlikeanadult/
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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