Entrepreneurship has nothing to do with age and gender. As long as you want to and are willing to take action, there will be your own entrepreneurial story. Let me share the grassroots entrepreneurial story with you. I hope you like it! Welcome to read!

First, selling handmade soap for the first time

I majored in carpentry in college. You must be surprised how a engineering male finally went to sell soap, and it is easy to find a job when studying civil engineering. When I first entered the university, I guess I should also be thinking about dedicating my youth and sweat to the great construction cause of the motherland. It's just that one accident is superimposed on another accident, and finally I magically stayed with soap for life. I also had a good time in college. I was a monitor for three years in four years, served as the president of a community association in the college, won a scholarship from the school, passed CET-4, and got a second-class computer certificate, etc., even if I didn't write down my wonderful entrepreneurial experience in school, it was quite beautiful.

it's really an accident that I became attached to handmade soap. In the third year of college, I started to open a shop in the school. First, I opened a women's clothing store in partnership with my very good friend Wei Chun, and then I opened a boutique myself. The magical history of selling handmade soap began from this boutique.

I was in love when I was in college. She was in Wuhan and I was in Nanchang. We were long-distance lovers. These trains can be said to be the best witnesses of my beautiful love.

(Nanchang to Wuhan always spend the night buying hard seats or standing tickets)

I once wandered around her school, just in the snack street at the southeast gate of China Normal University, and I was deeply attracted by a beautifully decorated shop with a window filled with many things like stones, which was especially beautiful under the warm yellow light. Only after listening to the boss's introduction did I know that the stone-like thing is handmade soap, which can replace facial cleanser for washing face. It was the first time I heard about this magical thing, which was extremely novel. Under the boss's introduction, we bought one piece each.

If my first contact with handmade soap started when I accidentally discovered this shop, then the thing that really introduced me to the business of selling handmade soap by myself should be to see the boss's book for registering customer information. She gives members to every customer who spends two yuan or more in her shop and keeps records. I am surprised at how there are so many members in her shop, and judging from the decoration of the shop, it is not an old shop that has been open for a long time. At that time, my own boutique had already opened, and I was wondering whether I could sell this product in my own store. Logically speaking, the customers I faced were all students, so it would sell well.

when we went back in the evening, we both specially experienced washing our face with this soap, and compared it with facial cleanser. It was really good, and it was very clean and comfortable. At that time, I was very excited. After several discussions, I decided to take this product back to sell. The next day, I went to that store again, talked with my boss all morning, and immediately took more than 3,111 goods in that store. When I returned to Nanchang, I had an extra suitcase filled with handmade soaps.

Second, I graduated to work.

Opening a shop at school is only a sideline of mine. As a business practice, the shops were resold after graduation. Like most people, I applied for a job. I'm competing for a big state-owned enterprise? China Construction Third Engineering Bureau chose Xiamen as its working place. At that time, it was because the city was beautiful, and villas and luxury houses were being built there, and the surrounding environment was particularly good, which was what I wanted.

(This is the gate of the project department where I work)

(The blue house in the lower right corner is our project department, surrounded by a music island and a private yacht dock in the wetland park)

(This is a panoramic photo of Wuyuan Bay, a famous natural ecological scenic spot in Xiamen)

Working in the company can be said to be the most comfortable day I have ever had since graduation, when there was no particularly great pressure on my life and work. Don't worry too much about money. Anyway, the salary is so much. The happiest thing is to work in a large state-owned enterprise. Many people who don't know us will think that we are awesome (of course, there are many awesome people in the company, but such a soldier as I just entered at that time can only be stained with light). It is very respectable to go out to contact people or do things. Life after work is even more interesting. Besides the activities organized by the company, I will also engage in various activities with my friends on the project, and I have never enjoyed that kind of relaxed and carefree life since I came out.

(These two are my best friends at work, and the one in white is myself. This photo should have been taken at a democratic exchange meeting)

(These two photos were taken at a company speech contest and won prizes, and I was still quite young in those days)

Third, I resigned from the company and went to Fuzhou to open a shop

Maybe I was used to fooling around, but the comfortable and comfortable work made me feel less busy and full. Life in the company is also quite good. I eat well, drink well, sleep well and still have face, and my work is still excellent. I have published a professional paper in the national architectural journal with the project technical director for more than half a year, which is relatively rare. Just like this, I still feel that there is a restless factor in my body, always thinking that I should do something different from others, or I will waste my young and wonderful time. Plus, during that time, good news came from my friends who started their businesses outside, and I changed two cars in less than a year, which made my heart itch even more. Finally, I didn't resist the temptation and resigned after working for less than a year. A person went straight to Fuzhou to open a shop to sell handmade soap with only 26,111 yuan in cash.

(This is the periodical information published in our paper)

Fourth, in order to save money, I moved into the basement

I didn't dare to tell my family when I resigned from the company that 26,111 yuan was definitely not enough to open a store normally, and I had to rent a house for dinner myself. It was definitely not possible to ask for money from home, so I had to find a way myself. At that time, I tried every means to save my own expenses. When I searched online for renting a house, I directly checked the column with the lowest price and then compared it. Living in the basement in a first-tier city like Beishangguang may not feel anything, but in Fuzhou, there are really few people who find a basement. At that time, I didn't think much about it. I moved in when I saw that the place was cheap and convenient by car. The rent for that room was 151 yuan a month, and the water and electricity bills were all settled at 11 yuan a month. This figure is estimated to have set a new record for many people.

(This is the room, which was originally estimated to be used by others for warehouse access)

5. The first handmade soap shop opened in difficulties

Although it is very difficult, if you insist on doing it, there will always be a way. Although I didn't have any money on me, I managed to set up my first shop myself. The storefront is very poor, that is, a "storefront" made of a groove formed by a 2-meter-long wall concave inward by 31 cm. People can only stand outside and sell things. The decoration is all done by myself, and of course there is no beauty at all.

At the beginning, the business was actually good, with at least 411 to 511 yuan in income every day, but this situation lasted for about 1 months and was suddenly cut off. There is a subway construction outside the market where my shop is located, and some roads need to be fenced. Moreover, the demolition of some houses in the back is very dusty, and the number of people going shopping in the market has decreased sharply. The business of my shop will wither before it fully blooms.

I have to pay the rent as usual without business. If I continue to insist on not withdrawing, I will face the situation of closing the door because I can't pay the rent within three months, and I can't get the withdrawal deposit back before the contract expires. At that time, I was like a person crossing the river on the ice. Suddenly, I found that the ice around me was melting. I didn't know where it was safe to go forward, and it would be dangerous to stand in the same place immediately. It would be difficult to go to the other side if I returned. If I can't get the deposit back, I can't do anything but go to work obediently.

Six, God never shuts one door but he opens another.

I have always had an unyielding pride in my character, and I don't want to go back to find a job and become the laughing stock of others just after I quit my job smartly and started a business two or three months ago. After the business of that store failed, I posted small advertisements about my transfer shop everywhere in the hope of getting back the deposit after the store was transferred. At the same time, I was not idle at night. Every day, I would go to a crowded place to find a new store in order to start over. Finally, everything pays off. Half a month later, I found another shop near the railway station. It was acceptable to rent a room with a large flow of people, and I didn't consider the bad public security environment around the railway station. The key to opening this store is that the original owner can use it to operate without receiving my deposit. He belongs to the nature of subletting the store.

The rent is paid monthly. I had the goods in my original store, and I decorated them myself. In the end, I really opened this store with less than 1W cash on me, and the business was surprisingly good. The daily turnover was basically over 1,111, and the highest exceeded 3,111. I felt incredible.

I was lucky to find the store next to the railway station. At that time, I couldn't bear it if the cost was a little more, and the total cash on me was no more than 1w. I had already borrowed money from my friends before opening the store, and it was not justifiable to borrow money again. Strangely, the first store was transferred and got the deposit back not long after the second store opened. After this incident, I thought that since God didn't let me go back to work, I must hope that I can make a appearance outside. I absolutely can't give up easily. Later, I often motivate myself in this way. No matter how many problems and difficulties I encounter, there will always be such a mentality: God never shuts one door but he opens another. As long as I don't give up and don't stagnate, there will be ways.

(This is my handmade soap shop, which can't be opened for less than 1w. The wallpaper, shelves and light lines are all made by myself)

(The business information of this store in those years found in the computer shows that the business in this store is good)

VII. Creating my own brand and strictly controlling the quality

At first, I sold handmade soaps from other stores, and the brands were good. The quality is also uneven. Some soaps may be produced in small workshops, just because I sold them earlier and there are no competitors. Most customers have never seen handmade soaps before, as long as they are beautiful and smell good. At that time, after the products were sold for a period of time, some customers often complained that some soaps were allergic or uncomfortable. Because soaps were not produced by ourselves, it was difficult for us to deal with this problem, so we could only refund others.

at that time, I was thinking that if I want to do handmade soap for a long time, the product quality must be guaranteed, otherwise all the sales networks and influence I have worked hard to build may collapse at any time due to quality problems, and the bigger the scale, the higher the risk. At that time, I didn't expect to be a brand chain, just thinking about how to make the business in the store go well for a long time. In the end, it is concluded that only by controlling every link of the product from production to sales can the product quality be fully controlled in our own hands. It is under such a background that I set up a company and registered my own brand. The purpose is to control every link of the product from production to sales and ensure the quality of the product.

Handmade soap is easy to make. You can buy some materials yourself and study it at home for a day or two, but it can only be regarded as a hobby after all, and the requirements should not be too high. If it is turned into a business, it is far from enough. You must have special equipment and testing tools to ensure the stable quality of products, which is something that individuals can't do.

(This is the whole process of soap production in our cooperative workshop, all of which are taken in real scenes)

(The first thing the product comes out is testing, and it will only be sold in the market after passing the testing)

VIII. Developing the chain and going to the whole country

Compared with the time when the brand really developed, it was after the first store in Nanjing started, and after coming to Nanjing, the decoration image and management methods of the store were greatly improved. I wrote down the problems I had encountered before opening a store and some experiences summarized in the sales management process, and then combined with some joining methods I read and learned, I began to promote it outside. Because all the contents I wrote are really summed up from practice, which is very operational, and the business of the shop I run is really good. In addition, the handmade soap project itself is also very attractive, and people who joined me came one after another, all over the country.

It was in this way of franchise chain that I sold my own handmade soap to all parts of the country, that is, I gained the first 1 million in my life this year.

(This was the first store in Nanjing at that time, which was small but exquisite)

(There are more chain stores in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai all over the country, and they are still developing inland)

(At first, because the brand just started, its popularity was relatively small, and all store brands directly used the word "handmade soap". It is convenient for everyone to know what products this store sells when they see the brand.)

IX. Facing the network impact

I am in the physical store business, and the impact of the network on physical stores will definitely have an impact on me, especially when Wechat business is popular all over the country this year, which makes me feel particularly obvious.

The popularity of Wechat business in the first half of 2115 can be described as almost crazy, and there are many handmade soap brands sold on WeChat, such as Treasure Island Magic Soap, Chinese God Soap and so on.

In the first half of the year, the sales performance of our own offline stores also declined due to the impact of Wechat business. At that time, we were really a little nervous. We also opened the sales channel of WeChat agent, perhaps because we didn't invite celebrities or spend a lot of money on advertising, and the sales in Wechat business didn't do very well. What Wechat business didn't do at first was also related to the model we built ourselves. We always insisted on the purpose of improving product quality and offline service, instead of designing the way of laminating the goods on the agent layer by layer to achieve our own sales purpose. What we respected was to sell the products to real consumers, not to stay in the hands of middlemen.

I think doing business also needs some principles. We can't stick to what we think is right just to make money. Wechat business rapidly declined after its explosive growth, just as there is a saying, when the tide ebbs, you will know who is swimming naked. In the second half of 2115, many Wechat business brands disappeared. After the hot environment in Wechat business, many products that fish in troubled waters also withdrew from the market. The same is true for handmade soaps. After a frenzy, there are basically no "big brands" that have risen on WeChat, and the market will eventually.