GROW YOUR BUSINESS

By Lana Ziskind

Lana Ziskind was born in Johannesburg, and moved to London 21 years ago. She currently lives in Hendon with her 6 children and their dog. She has had a very full career, including studying interior design, teaching aerobics, and working as a talent scout and casting agent. When she moved to London, she found the latter to be non-conducive to a Jewish lifestyle, and began working at ‘Rocket’, where she has gleaned over 20 years of experience in building businesses and brands. She currently holds the position of Account Director and works with the likes of Disney, Warner Brothers, Platform 9 ¾, Hard Rock café and Deliveroo.

Growing your business or building a brand is SO hard, especially in today’s world where we are so reliant on social media, algorithms and influencers. Don’t get me wrong - I love social media, it is the most incredible advertising and shopping experience. Gone are the high streets with gorgeous window displays and beautifully dressed mannequins - show me a well photographed blueberry muffin and I’m sold! I can buy a new bag without leaving my front room. But you can’t rely on social media alone to grow your business. Whilst running your own business may be hard, tiring and lonely, here are a few tips which I have learned along the way.

BRANDING

According to Wikipedia, a brand is ‘A name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of other sellers.’ Branding is important because not only is it what makes a memorable impression on consumers, but it allows your customers and clients to know what to expect from your company. It is a way of distinguishing yourself from competitors and clarifying what it is you offer and what makes you the better choice. Your brand is built to be a true representation of who you are as a business, and how you wish to be perceived. There is a structured process to branding. You must first identify who or what you want to be to your customers, then create your brand strategy to position yourself accordingly, and lastly you must constantly manage everything that influences this positioning. Branding is absolutely critical to a business because of the overall impact it makes on your company. It changes how people view you company, it can drive new business and increase brand value – but it can also do the opposite if done wrongly or not at all.

DEVELOP A STRATEGIC PLAN

Develop short-term goals: quarterly, semi-annual, or annual, and create a plan that will help you reach those goals, which should be realistic and achievable. Make sure you also work with the ability to stop, pivot and change direction. Make sure your plan considers the resources you may need: cash, people, equipment, inventory, and additional operating costs, and check with yourself that the end result will be a service or product that customers are looking for. Set the metrics you will use to monitor your progress towards attaining that goal and adjust your plans as needed based on how close or how far you are from your goal. If you aren't meeting your goal, determine why you are not meeting it. Is it a lack of resources? Is marketing not working? Are you targeting the right customer segment? And lastly, KNOW YOUR NUMBERS! What are your costs and expenses? The cost of your time? (Yes, your time is valuable too.) What are your margins and profits? Your suppliers and lead times? Know them inside out.

USE YOUR TIME WISELY

The most common example of this is spending time on tasks or areas of the business which are not your forte, or on tasks which are not money making and which will not increase good-will. Whilst it may be saving on the cost of hiring staff or outsourcing that work, it often ends up costing more due to it tying up time and energy, and more often than not, will result in a job done poorly.

Another example would be to take on work which isn’t a good fit for a brand. This can cause delays and disappointment, and whilst it may be appealing at the outset, it will often take valuable time that could be used to generate income elsewhere. Stick to what makes your business unique and know your worth! Growth is imperative, but will often happen organically and naturally without you forcing it.

FOCUS ON THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

A happy customer is a returning customer. What is a business without customers? Referrals and word of mouth is the biggest compliment a customer can pay to any business. This means that their experience in working with you was a meaningful and a memorable one. From buying them iced coffees, to a designer outfit for a client - your customer is always King (or Queen!). Let them know that you value them and the time that they have taken to engage with you. Acknowledge their referrals with a quick thank you note, voice message, or even flowers, and actually hear your customers when they give you feedback - be it positive or negative. Often, how you respond to criticism is remembered more than how you reward compliments. Listen to your critics, as whilst not always pleasant, it is an opportunity for growth. Constantly engage with your customers on social media such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, but also send out emails, make personal phone calls, offer discounts to returning customers, or create a referral recognition system. ASKING FOR HELP IS A STRENGTH.

Don't be shy to ask for help and advice out of fear of looking like you are not the expert. The truth is that you are NOT the expert - there will also ways be someone out there who knows more than you do. You are the entrepreneur and there will always be someone that is willing to share their knowledge, to help and advise. Meet with like-minded friends to brainstorm, share experiences and challenges. Often just talking things through can resolve the issue. Learning from others and their experiences will provide you with a map for growth. It’s in the exchange of information that others perceive your confidence in building a business and new partnerships are discovered. Find yourself a mentor, someone you can lean on, learn from, and whose experience you can tap into. The best part is that you can learn from their mistakes, you just have to be open to hearing them. Growing up, I never thought that I would end up in sales - I studied Interior Design for three years, but sales was never a profession I or anyone around me aspired to. However, I fell into it, and discovered that I was able to connect with people and that I loved the contacts I made along the way. I have been a waitress (selling food), a check out girl (selling groceries), a sales assistant in a clothes store, and I’ve sold gym memberships. I have been selling one thing or another since I was 12 years old (that’s more than 30 years!) and I still ask for help and advice from my mentors.

BUILD IN ME TIME

Working for yourself can be all consuming, and there is never an OFF button (unless you make one). It is imperative that you take time to switch off. Close shop. Step away. Stop! Take a walk and listen to a pod cast. Join a spin class. Meet a friend for coffee (but no business talk). Do something for yourself and be sure to enjoy the fruits of your labour. Working hard without being able to enjoy yourself can build resentment and lead to being unmotivated and despondent. And my final advice - love what you do and build on your passion. Good Luck!

B7AC TIVE

Defining Modest Activeware

By Zahava Mimran

When I decided to start exercising more, I had grand ideas of simply popping out of my front door, ready for a stimulating morning jog. On the first morning of my new exercise regime, I jumped out of bed, only to be hit (straight in my still untoned stomach) with the ‘What to wear’ dilemma. Leggings and flary skirt? Straight skirt with tights underneath? Snood, cap or fall? And what about my top? Pin up the neckline of my exercise t-shirt? Or just choose my lightest sweatshirt and hope that I don’t pass out from overheating... My lack of appropriate modest clothing (or that’s my excuse anyway - and I’m sticking to it!) put a damper on my exercise plans. It was back to the land of the flabby and lazy for me. Until I discovered b7Active. Batsheva Netzer, a London based mother of five, and a savvy businesswoman, is taking the Jewish exercise world by storm with her modest exercise gear. I met her to find out more about her products, her inspiration, and how she manages to do it all.

How did you start the business?

'I’ve worked for twenty years as a weight loss consultant under my company ‘b7diet’, where I have Baruch hashem helped hundreds of men and women lose weight. It originally started off as a face-to-face service, where clients came in once a week for weighing and support. I moved it online after I noticed that my online clientele were actually doing better than those with whom I was meeting face to face. I do all my weigh-ins and meetings remotely, which aside from being very effective, also allows me to slot in many more clients.

When Covid hit, as I was already online, it didn’t affect my business; however now I had five children at home - two yeshiva boys, and three whom I now had to home-school. Nobody knew what was going on, or how long it would last. For many of us, every day became a struggle to get through, and my motto at the time became ‘Everyone just hang on’.

The real blow, however, was when there was talk of the gyms being shut down. Going to the gym had become my outlet, my therapy session. I had previously only been a very sporadic gym goer, six years ago when my father passed away, I began to go regularly, and it had really helped to get me through those tough times. Now, in lockdown, I was once again struggling, and this time my father’s brother was very ill (unfortunately he passed away). It was very stressful - it felt like and I didn’t know how I would be able to cope without being able to go to the gym. I thought to myself, ‘I wish I could just stick on a skirt and go for a run’, yet I didn’t have any suitable activewear that would allow me to do this without drawing attention to myself. I was used to high-end, good quality workout gear and it was too hard for me to run with a regular skirt on top of my leggings. I also didn’t want the funny looks, and I didn’t want to have to go to remoter areas where I wouldn’t be so noticeable.

That’s when I decided that I wanted to create a company to produce modest active-wear, where women can put on something light, something actually made for exercise, which both looks good and performs well. So how did you go from idea to production?

‘I’ve always been into fashion, so I didn’t find the design aspect a problem. I still have the first sketches which I remember sketching at two am one morning during lockdown. Once I had the design, I needed material, and I needed a company to produce it for me. I remember spending hours and hours online, usually in the middle of the night, searching for production companies which sounded legitimate and trustworthy. Eventually, I came across the company I work with today. I honestly do not remember how I found it – it was really massive Siata Dishmaya. It’s a UK based agent who works with a Chinese company to manufacture sportswear (China was the only country open and out of lockdown at the time – they’d already finished their lockdown at that point). This agent has chains in Beverly Hills and Los Angeles, and I remember phoning their headquarters to check that the company was trustworthy.

From there it was a matter of a great leap of faith, a thirty percent deposit, and production started! For me, working on my active wear became my creative, fun outlet during a very dark time. And of course, it provided me with running clothes! I actually had to speed up my launch and opened up earlier than I had planned to when the second lockdown hit and gyms once again closed, so that I could accommodate

women returning to outdoor exercise.

How did you set up the company?

'I created b7active as an online company, and it was very much a family lockdown project. I remember discussing it one day at the Shabbos table, and my daughter said, ‘We always discuss these things but will it ever happen?’, and I said, ‘Yes I’m going to make it happen!’ My eldest son who was home from yeshiva at the time was studying computer science, and he set up my website for me. My second son does all the social media, and he helps me to reach out to companies when I need it. The system we set up is extremely automated so that when a customer creates an order the only thing that I have to do is to print out the prepared label and package the item, and UPS come to my house nearly every day to pick up orders which we send all around the globe. That leaves me to get on with the design and production, and of course my husband helps me with all the spreadsheets, accounts, and that side of things. With my other business – b7diet, all the information is confidential so I can’t take help from anyone outside the business. It is so important to me that b7active is a family business, where I can have the help and support of those closest to me.

For my initial investment, I took a Boris bounce back loan and used that to set up the company, and I reinvest the whole

time. I had a few investors who were interested in the business, but I turned them down as I wanted to be able to do things myself - I didn’t want any pressure.

Tell me about your products?

'I design each and every piece from scratch, which is the fun and easy part for me. After that, I have to select materials, and perfect the different elements. I’m very particular that the product performs really well; when I work out and the piece that I’m wearing falls down, feels itchy, or when the seam doesn’t sit right, it really bothers me, so I try to ensure that everything I produce is perfectly made. My products are definitely high-end, however I do try to keep the pricing as affordable as possible, although it does cost me more to produce as I go through an agent instead of dealing with the company. At the beginning, when it came to choosing materials, I was a novice, so they would send me materials that they recommended, yet often I didn’t like the sample, and I’d send them fabric compositions from activewear that I had found performed well. Now I know my materials really well, and I can just touch a fabric and gauge the quality of the blend.

Originally, I had just intended to produce a skirt. I started off with an A line skirt that blends beautifully with leggings so that it’s hardly noticeable. However, I then received a lot of requests for a skirt that is actually noticeable, so I made a flary skirt, which comes with a pocket in the waistband and is also weirdly flattering. I was surprised at how complimentary it was when I tried out the sample – it somehow just narrows the figure.

When I realised that I can’t make a business out of just skirts, and after receiving a lot of requests, I designed matching leggings for the skirt. It took a long time to find the right material for them; in the end we went with a compression material which is great for cardio, and it’s also very good for the legs and veins. As the leggings match the skirt, they blend in perfectly when you wear them together.

For an exercise friendly head covering, I designed a cap without the usual hole in the back, so that the hair doesn’t show through, however some people found that it still didn’t give the full coverage that they were looking for. After a little brainstorming, I came up with the perfect solution. I took my t-shirt material which is absolutely fantastic for exercise; it’s super light and absorbs all sweat, and I used that material to create a band. I designed it to be thinner at the front, thicker at the back, and voila - you have

an absorbent sweatband which you can wear under the cap to give you full hair coverage (or even with your band-fall). Its absorbency means that it also prevents the caps from getting sweaty.

What do you love most about your business? I used to exercise on holiday, I used to just wear a short skirt on top of my leggings. Now I have my b7active wear; I cover up properly and wear it proudly. I’ve never had any strange looks, although I have had some people stop and ask me admiringly where it’s from! More women than you can imagine are interested in modest activewear; they want to exercise but they don’t want people looking.

'What do I love best? When I’m in my car and I see a woman going past in my activewear, the feeling What would you say is the that I get is absolutely indescribable. I also most difficult aspect of the love getting feedback from women who tell "In every situation in business? me that they have started running because of me, that they’re healthier now, or that life, if you really want 'Like with any business, they work out more because they now have modest activewear in which to do it. I even something to happen, there are tough times. I get worried if sales aren’t great, heard through a friend about someone who never used to work out modestly, but since then you can make it when it’s been a bad week or when extra costs come up. discovering b7active, she puts on a skirt when she goes out running. That’s way happen" Sometimes products don’t turn up on time, like my new beyond my expectations, and I’m so happy silk fit, lightweight t-shirts that I’m helping to normalise the concept of frum women that I had hoped would be ready for the Summer but were exercising, whilst giving them a way to do it modestly. It delayed as it took time to find the perfect material. However, has definitely also cause my tznius level to improve. When I made myself a promise when I started out that this business is going to be my outlet, something that I enjoy. I didn’t

want it to be stressful; just a fun, creative project, and whenever things are not going well, I try to just ‘let it go’ and remind myself why I set up the business. Looking back, if I had known beforehand what was involved, then maybe I wouldn’t have done it, so I’m happy that I did just jump in.

I can see that there is a lot going on – how do you balance it all with your home life?

Batsheva laughs here and tells me ‘I don’t! It’s very hard, it’s full on. I have help, and I no longer have babies; all of my children are in school so it is definitely much easier. I also work long hours, and I’m a real insomniac so I end up getting a lot done at night in my room when I can’t sleep.

Exercise is still my outlet, and I’ll fit it in around my work schedule and my children, so I’ll serve supper, supervise homework, then run off to the gym and be back in time for bedtime. In my schedule, everything has its own slot, and whilst there is a lot to do, I found that the key is to be organised and to make sure to keep things manageable. I’m also very motivated, I’m not scared of work, and very importantly – I try not to sweat the small stuff.’

So what are your plans for your business? What pieces are you working on at the moment?

'My -5 year plan is definitely for the business to grow and to become well known. At the moment I do ship everywhere, yet I would like to extend more into the US. After my son’s wedding I aim to throw myself into it and hopefully find a shop there from which to sell my products.

I’m also currently working on a new exercise hoodie which is going to be absolutely gorgeous. It’s soft, lightweight, yet it’s also great for colder weather as it covers the hand completely; it even has an extra flap that acts as mittens. It feels amazing on, and it’s just a lovely piece, definitely a luxury item. I’m still working on some tiny details – the zips on the last sample were too bulky and I wanted a different shaped cord, but I hope to see the last sample next week, and I’m really looking forward to it coming out.

Lastly, what advice would you give to someone starting out their own business? Do you have a personal motto?

‘If you have an idea, just do it - make sure that you have your family’s support and just do it. My motto is ‘No excuses’. If you’re late, if you broke your diet, if something went wrong, just own it. In every situation in life, if you really want something to happen, then you Between running two businesses and a full household, Batsheva is definitely not one to make excuses for herself! And now that I’ve invested in my b7active exercise gear, I definitely don’t have any excuses left of my own. Watch out on the road women: here I come!