How to start a small business: we round up some inspiring stories of entrepreneurship

As the UK’s largest provider of business insurance, here at Simply Business we’re lucky enough to hear lots of inspiring small business stories. We decided to make the most of this, and to share some of these stories with a wider audience. To do so, we invited our community of over 220,000 business and landlord insurance policyholders to tell us their stories of setting up and getting going. From cake shops to gardeners and from dreams of expensive cars to hopes of world domination, the stories we heard were often eccentric, frequently funny, and always incredibly inspiring. We visited some of our favourites and quizzed them on camera about why and how they set up their business, and how they’re making their ventures a success. If you’ve ever considered packing in the day job and turning a part-time passion into a full-blown business, get started by finding out how these plucky start-ups have done it.
Bill Rogers: Author and publisher

We spoke to author and publisher Bill Rogers in his book-lined study, where his own novels nestle between those of the authors he admires.

Bill told us that when he’d retired from a long career in education, he turned his attention to his true passion: writing. Bill’s first crime thriller novel was shortlisted for a debut novel award, and a leading literary agent signed him up. But when it came to approaching the big publishers, Bill was repeatedly rebuffed, despite positive responses.

Refusing to be deterred, Bill set up his own publishing company, Caton Books, and has continued to publish his crime fiction series himself, while he carries on penning the adventures of character Tom Caton.

Bill’s series has now developed a loyal following, garnering glittering reviews on Amazon and stocked by UK high street bookstore Waterstones. When we visited Bill, he told us about the huge impact that modern technologies have had on both marketing and distribution of his fiction: Bill uses social media to help create a buzz around his series, and is also keen to make his novels available on as many e-reading platforms as possible.

Bill was clear about what was next for him: writing and publishing more books, and continuing to use technology to make sure that he reaches as many readers as possible.

Debbie Hinton: Rocking horse maker

When we visited rocking horse carver and small business owner Debbie Hinton at home in her beautiful Surrey cottage, she’d spread some of her incredible creations across her sun-flooded lawn. The skill and craftsmanship evident in each piece suggested many years of training, but Debbie had only started carving the year before, and had entirely taught herself, using an instructional carving DVD.

Once we’d taken a look at some of the finished horses in the garden, Debbie took us to ‘The Stable’ where much of the woodcutting and other work takes place. Blocks beginning to look like dignified horse heads were piled on the workbenches, along with downy piles of wood shavings, tools and paintbrushes.

Debbie spoke to us about the magic of the creative process: the satisfaction of beginning with a humble block of wood and forming it into something with character. The turning point, Debbie explained, is the moment the eyes are put in.

“I began carving rocking horses because I thought I would never be able to afford to buy my own” Debbie told us. From that starting point, Debbie has come a very long way: her range of toddlers' rockers has recently gone on sale in world-famous London department store Harrods.
Phil Eckett: Owl conservationist

Midweek on a quiet suburban street in Essex, and I was looking into the huge, amber eyes of Isis the eagle owl. We had come to this unusual street on Canvey Island to meet Phil Eckett, and to hear a bit more about his business, Owl Wise.

A self-proclaimed ‘owl-oholic’, Phil told us that his love of birds had begun as a child. A ten year old Phil came across two orphaned barn owls, and learnt how to care for them. As an adult, his fascination with birds of prey continued. Soon, people from around the country were bringing him birds that they found injured or in need of care. At the beginning, Phil juggled his conservation work with a fulltime job and raising a family.

Eventually, Phil saw an opportunity to create a business based on his love and knowledge of the birds. Owl Wise provides demonstrations to schools, parties and other events. Phil’s passion for conservation and energetic, dedicated explanation of bird conservation is one of the main attractions, and his burgeoning collection of thank you cards from the children he’s worked with testifies to this. The income from these events helps to fund the important but expensive breeding and conservation work that Phil continues to carry out.
Steve Adams: New Forest walking guide

“This is my office” Steve smiled, indicating the expanse of heathland and woods around him. We’d come to the New Forest, one of southern England’s largest rural areas, to hear more about Fuzzacker Guided Walks from founder Steve Adams.

It all started with one guided walk that was a huge success with both participants and guides. From this modest starting point, Steve and a small band of other local guides have built a business from showing people the countryside that they love. Walking with Steve for our film on a sunny February day, his enthusiasm for the landscape and knowledge of the environment shone through.

Fuzzacker organise a range of rural outings, from short walks to whole weekends and coach tours.

Steve explained that conservation and environmental awareness are very important to the ethos of the business, and spreading the message about protecting the environment is something that he’s personally passionate about. When I asked him about future plans, he spoke about introducing a sustainable transport element to the business, using a minibus to collect people from local hotels in an effort to reduce emissions.

“I want to build up slowly, though” Steve adds – “I want to be able to maintain the quality of service that I can offer now”.
Takeaways: What we learnt from these business owners

(1) Do what you lover
Whenever we asked small business owners what advice they’d give to others, they always emphasised the importance of enjoying what you do. This might sound obvious, but it’s one of the most important reasons for both starting a business and for its success. At the beginning, being an entrepreneur can be tough, lonely, and not necessarily financially rewarding. At this stage, often the only thing that keeps you going is the belief in and the passion for what you’re trying to do.

(2) Retain passion and personalityr
The small businesses that we visited were wonderful because they had a clear and unwavering sense of how they wanted their business to look and how they wanted to treat their customers. As you grow and hopefully have success, it’s important to make sure that you keep close to what drove you to start your business in the first place; being tempted to cut corners or make concessions to your initial vision could mean that you end up compromising what makes your business stand out.

(3) It’s never too later
Rocking horse carver Debbie told us that her inspiration for starting her business came partly from her mother in law, who’d enrolled on a textiles course in her sixties. All of the businesses we spoke to said that “just do it” was one of the best pieces of advice they could give. A 2012 study of UK businesses showed a 19% rise in businesses started by retirement-age entrepreneurs, suggesting that increasingly, entrepreneurs are starting to realise that it’s never too late.

(4) Embrace the internet
Most of the businesses we spoke to use technology for marketing and promotion, and have learnt the importance of creating an online community around their business or product. Phil’s Facebook page is populated with photographs of his owls and the demonstrations he’s done, and he’s even given his followers the opportunity to name one of his fledgling birds. Author Bill has made the most of e-reading platforms for making his books as widely available as possible, and also uses social media to keep in touch with fans and readers. Even if you don’t see yourself as a tech geek, it’s important that you embrace the web as an almost-indispensable part of modern business.

Read more inspiring business stories at: http://www.simplybusiness.co.uk/microsites/business-success-stories/