Fear of Failure, Formulations, Talking to your List + the next masterclass
La Onda is a newsletter by Sandra Velasquez, founder of Nopalera, with actionable insights around brand building, selling, and a recap of the most asked questions during Mentor Mondays.
Hi Founders,
During today's Mentor Mondays I announced that the series will be replaced with the Nopalera Podcast, launching next month! Stay tuned.
Second, I wanted to let you know that I will be hosting the Margin Magic Masterclass again on Sunday, April 3rd.
I get a lot of questions about marketing, shipping, and all sorts of other things that happen after your product is made. But LET ME TELL YOU, the most important thing you should focus on in the beginning is understanding your COGS and MARGINS.
I am constantly amazed at how many people take their product to market without understanding these two things first. If this is you, please register for the next Margin Magic Masterclass. I will personally walk you through doing your cogs and calculating your margins. Everyone that attends will get a recording of the class + all of the templates. I even include a sales tracker I built and use for my own brand!
In the meantime, here's a recap of topics discussed during today's LIVE.
(Scroll down to the bottom for past resource links.)
FEAR.
Are you scared you will spend money and launch a brand only to have it fail?
Are you scared of being judged? Are you scared of letting people down?
All of these feelings are normal. I assure you that even people who HAVE money still have self doubt and fear they could lose it all.
Whatever your fears are, Identify it. Write it down. Say it out loud.
And then, look at the facts.
Scared of losing money? Fact: money is a renewable resource and you can always make more.
Sacred that people won't like your product/ brand? Fact: Not everyone will and that's ok. You don't need everyone to like your product in order to build a successful and profitable brand. There are over 7 billion people on earth. There's more than enough people for everyone to have a healthy customer base. Take out a piece of paper and write "not everyone will like my product and that's OK." Get comfortable with this fact.
Don't try to make a product for everybody. Make it for somebody.
Today I shared that I created my brand because I had a burning (borderline desperate) desire to change my life. At the age of 44, with no savings, students loans, and a child to raise — it was do or die. My life was not going to change by getting yet another job. I already had 3!
I share this because if you are truly committed to building a great brand, you have to be ALL IN. You have to do your homework (study the competitive landscape). You have to be willing to learn A LOT of new things every.single.day. You have to get good at math. You have to want to WIN. These are more important that having all the money to start! I did not start with money. I paid for things in increments over the course of a year.
Whenever I get paralyzed with fear or doubt, the only way to make it go away is to take an action. Success will not "discover" you or be handed to you. It will ,however, move towards you though if you move towards it.
I've been provided many great opportunities since starting my brand but it was because I took the first step.
FORMULATIONS
I studied formulation with Formula Botanica. Most brands don't formulate their own products though. Most hire chemists or work with manufacturers to create products. The pros work backwards from the end math. ie " I want to create a $12 body wash to sell at mass retail so I need you to make it for $2 all in".
When approaching co-packers you want to put your best foot forward so they take your seriously. Create a product brief. I make mine in Canva.
A product brief is nothing more than a pdf document that outlines the product you are trying to create.
What are the main product call outs and non-negotiables?
For example: Must be vegan and contain these ingredients...
What is the size of the product
How will it be packaged?
Does the manufacturer have capabilities for turn key (they take care of the packaging).
Manufacturers also want to know you will be a solid partner.
How frequently will you be ordering from them?
Most co-packers / manufacturers have in house testing labs or relationships with third party labs for micro-testing. Ask them.
You can also check out MicroQuality Labs (based in CA) or NJ Labs (based in New Jersey).
ICYMI
Here is a recap of topics covered in previous Mentor Mondays.
You can always visit my page and scroll down to see all posts.
If you haven't yet read them all, do so. Lots of gems in each post.
How to find suppliers and co-packers in beauty: here
My short list of BIPOC bookkeepers/CPAs: here
Building your email list and outsourcing shipping: here
Trademarking your name: here
Building a team and Paid Ads: here