Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Danielle Lobo, co-founder, and director of Lobo Worldwide Inc., located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

My business sells two types of items for two different reasons: baked goods and grocery products. My sister and I fell in love with baking when we were younger and started to hone in on our craft and became more serious about it until we realized we could make this into a business. We love creating new items and sharing them with everyone, and it’s definitely a bonus when you help make someone else’s special day great! Our customers range from anyone who needs baked goods for a special occasion or just some simple bread to eat with daily meals.

For the grocery products, this was a fairly new venture that we decided to take on due to the pandemic and its impact on some people being unable to access their essentials. We also realized that not everyone has the ability to access some stores, like Costco, due to their high membership fees, and consequently, end up paying higher prices for some products elsewhere. So, we decided that we’d create a business that supplies these grocery products for lower prices so that they are more accessible to people in Canada, the US, and India.

Tell us about yourself

The first thing that got me started working on my business was my passion for baking. I loved being able to create delicious and beautiful things with my own hands, and I wanted to share this talent with everyone. My sister and I were quite young when we started getting serious with it, but people still often asked us, “When are you going to start your business?”. Well, we definitely surprised some people when we decided to start in late 2019 when we were still finishing up high school. We’ve done so many orders since then, and I just love seeing all my customer’s faces when they see the baked goods for the first time!

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My biggest accomplishment has to be hitting a crazy high view/like count on many of our videos. Back when the pandemic first hit, I wanted to stay in touch with our following and look at growing it while we couldn’t take orders. Turns out, making and editing videos is very rewarding and definitely a learning curve in terms of shooting and editing them. Now, I look forward to seeing how many people viewed our videos and answering any and all comments that get posted. The largest view count we ever hit for a single video was over 200K, and overall we’ve hit over 500K this year. I can’t wait to continue creating and posting video content and seeing more people interact with our posts.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

The biggest thing for me is managing my time. I am a full-time undergraduate student with some extracurriculars, so when you add in a small business, you’ve really got to plan your time well, or you will be left scrambling to finish all your tasks. I set up a schedule with time for my school work and use a calendar to keep track of my academic commitments. Then, I pencil in where I have free time to spend on the business and what tasks require priority. That running list never gets over, that’s for sure. It’s also important to be flexible; being a small business owner means that you do run into a lot of problems, and things don’t always go according to schedule, so it’s important to be patient and rearrange your priority list if required.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Firstly, as I mentioned before, time management is a key aspect of starting and managing a small business. Make sure to plan out your time, even if it’s not blocks of time, and knowing what you want to accomplish each day helps with a priority list.

Secondly, don’t get frustrated if things don’t work out the first time. Be patient, go back, look at what might be going wrong, and think of potential solutions. Good things come to those who wait, and this is no different. It might take a little while before you start seeing profits, but as a small business owner, a lot of your pricing and budgeting is based on trial and error, and you’ll only learn through experience.

Thirdly, go out and ask questions to small business owners, potential vendors, potential partners, legal advice, and government entities. Starting a small business is fairly easy, but managing it as it grows might result in some advanced requirements. Doing this recon ahead of time really helps when there are problems that can be easily fixed but require some prior knowledge.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Be passionate about what you do. If you ever feel like you’re failing, remember why you’re so excited about your small business.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.loboworldwide.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/loboworldwideinc
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/loboworldwideinc/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/loboworldwide
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lobo-worldwide-inc/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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