SlideShare a Scribd company logo
1 of 11
Download to read offline
9 things  no one  told me about running a business Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino designswarm.com riglondon.com
1. Everyone wants to know why you failed.
2. Don’t try to start 3 businesses at once.
3. No one will lend you money.
4. Don’t hire anyone.
5. It’s fame or fortune,    rarely both.
6. Noone is irreplacable.
7. You’ll never work for free  again.
8. You will remain unemployable.
9. This will change you forever.
Good luck! Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino designswarm.com riglondon.com

More Related Content

Viewers also liked

Shhh, they're listening, a subjective history of the Internet of Things
Shhh, they're listening, a subjective history of the Internet of ThingsShhh, they're listening, a subjective history of the Internet of Things
Shhh, they're listening, a subjective history of the Internet of ThingsAlexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
The Good Night Lamp (Pecha Kucha Montreal edition)
The Good Night Lamp  (Pecha Kucha Montreal edition)The Good Night Lamp  (Pecha Kucha Montreal edition)
The Good Night Lamp (Pecha Kucha Montreal edition)Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
No man's land: creativity, commerce and open source
No man's land: creativity, commerce and open sourceNo man's land: creativity, commerce and open source
No man's land: creativity, commerce and open sourceAlexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Never alone: design, communities and open source
Never alone: design, communities and open sourceNever alone: design, communities and open source
Never alone: design, communities and open sourceAlexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Divining & white canes: the mobile internet of things
Divining & white canes: the mobile internet of thingsDivining & white canes: the mobile internet of things
Divining & white canes: the mobile internet of thingsAlexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Great expectations: how we're rethinking production, design and innovation on...
Great expectations: how we're rethinking production, design and innovation on...Great expectations: how we're rethinking production, design and innovation on...
Great expectations: how we're rethinking production, design and innovation on...Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Ceci n'est pas une pipe : designing semantic layers in a connected world
Ceci n'est pas une pipe : designing semantic layers in a connected worldCeci n'est pas une pipe : designing semantic layers in a connected world
Ceci n'est pas une pipe : designing semantic layers in a connected worldAlexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Or how i learnt to stop worrying and love electronics
Or how i learnt to stop worrying and love electronicsOr how i learnt to stop worrying and love electronics
Or how i learnt to stop worrying and love electronicsAlexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Chasing the Future: challenges and opportunites in the design of emotional ro...
Chasing the Future: challenges and opportunites in the design of emotional ro...Chasing the Future: challenges and opportunites in the design of emotional ro...
Chasing the Future: challenges and opportunites in the design of emotional ro...Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 

Viewers also liked (20)

Shhh, they're listening, a subjective history of the Internet of Things
Shhh, they're listening, a subjective history of the Internet of ThingsShhh, they're listening, a subjective history of the Internet of Things
Shhh, they're listening, a subjective history of the Internet of Things
 
Maker's Guild launch presentation
Maker's Guild launch presentationMaker's Guild launch presentation
Maker's Guild launch presentation
 
The Good Night Lamp (Pecha Kucha Montreal edition)
The Good Night Lamp  (Pecha Kucha Montreal edition)The Good Night Lamp  (Pecha Kucha Montreal edition)
The Good Night Lamp (Pecha Kucha Montreal edition)
 
Creativity outside the boxes
Creativity outside the boxesCreativity outside the boxes
Creativity outside the boxes
 
Danger ahead: Being and staying in business
Danger ahead: Being and staying in businessDanger ahead: Being and staying in business
Danger ahead: Being and staying in business
 
No man's land: creativity, commerce and open source
No man's land: creativity, commerce and open sourceNo man's land: creativity, commerce and open source
No man's land: creativity, commerce and open source
 
THe power of Postcards
THe power of PostcardsTHe power of Postcards
THe power of Postcards
 
Online presence for designers 2
Online presence for designers 2Online presence for designers 2
Online presence for designers 2
 
Deep city: a tale of the in-linkable
Deep city: a tale of the in-linkableDeep city: a tale of the in-linkable
Deep city: a tale of the in-linkable
 
Never alone: design, communities and open source
Never alone: design, communities and open sourceNever alone: design, communities and open source
Never alone: design, communities and open source
 
Divining & white canes: the mobile internet of things
Divining & white canes: the mobile internet of thingsDivining & white canes: the mobile internet of things
Divining & white canes: the mobile internet of things
 
Great expectations: how we're rethinking production, design and innovation on...
Great expectations: how we're rethinking production, design and innovation on...Great expectations: how we're rethinking production, design and innovation on...
Great expectations: how we're rethinking production, design and innovation on...
 
Making, not designing the internet of things.
Making, not designing the internet of things.Making, not designing the internet of things.
Making, not designing the internet of things.
 
Ceci n'est pas une pipe : designing semantic layers in a connected world
Ceci n'est pas une pipe : designing semantic layers in a connected worldCeci n'est pas une pipe : designing semantic layers in a connected world
Ceci n'est pas une pipe : designing semantic layers in a connected world
 
The Internet of Stuff
The Internet of StuffThe Internet of Stuff
The Internet of Stuff
 
Or how i learnt to stop worrying and love electronics
Or how i learnt to stop worrying and love electronicsOr how i learnt to stop worrying and love electronics
Or how i learnt to stop worrying and love electronics
 
You2.0: Living Responsibly
You2.0: Living Responsibly You2.0: Living Responsibly
You2.0: Living Responsibly
 
5 Things the Internet has done for me
5 Things the Internet has done for me5 Things the Internet has done for me
5 Things the Internet has done for me
 
Chasing the Future: challenges and opportunites in the design of emotional ro...
Chasing the Future: challenges and opportunites in the design of emotional ro...Chasing the Future: challenges and opportunites in the design of emotional ro...
Chasing the Future: challenges and opportunites in the design of emotional ro...
 
New economies of innovation
New economies of innovationNew economies of innovation
New economies of innovation
 

More from Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino

Repairable by design? (January 2022 meeting notes)
Repairable by design? (January 2022 meeting notes)Repairable by design? (January 2022 meeting notes)
Repairable by design? (January 2022 meeting notes)Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Ideas to reframe your corporate innovation activities
Ideas  to reframe  your corporate  innovation activitiesIdeas  to reframe  your corporate  innovation activities
Ideas to reframe your corporate innovation activitiesAlexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good design
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good designGood for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good design
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good designAlexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good design
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good designGood for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good design
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good designAlexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Invisible colleges: wealth, friends and fame in art and design.
Invisible colleges: wealth, friends and fame in art and design. Invisible colleges: wealth, friends and fame in art and design.
Invisible colleges: wealth, friends and fame in art and design. Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 
Death by a thousand cuts: information fatigue in the smart cities of tomorrow.
Death by a thousand cuts: information fatigue in the smart cities of tomorrow. Death by a thousand cuts: information fatigue in the smart cities of tomorrow.
Death by a thousand cuts: information fatigue in the smart cities of tomorrow. Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
 

More from Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino (20)

Good for What?
Good for What?Good for What?
Good for What?
 
Portfolio 2023
Portfolio 2023Portfolio 2023
Portfolio 2023
 
Sustainable Sustainability
Sustainable SustainabilitySustainable Sustainability
Sustainable Sustainability
 
Systemic Mindsets
Systemic MindsetsSystemic Mindsets
Systemic Mindsets
 
Ways of Learning
Ways of LearningWays of Learning
Ways of Learning
 
Smarter Homes
Smarter HomesSmarter Homes
Smarter Homes
 
Regenerative Bursts Keynote
Regenerative Bursts KeynoteRegenerative Bursts Keynote
Regenerative Bursts Keynote
 
All together now
All together nowAll together now
All together now
 
Repairable by design? (January 2022 meeting notes)
Repairable by design? (January 2022 meeting notes)Repairable by design? (January 2022 meeting notes)
Repairable by design? (January 2022 meeting notes)
 
Design for repairability / Green shoots
Design for repairability / Green shootsDesign for repairability / Green shoots
Design for repairability / Green shoots
 
Repairable by design
Repairable by designRepairable by design
Repairable by design
 
Ideas to reframe your corporate innovation activities
Ideas  to reframe  your corporate  innovation activitiesIdeas  to reframe  your corporate  innovation activities
Ideas to reframe your corporate innovation activities
 
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good design
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good designGood for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good design
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good design
 
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good design
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good designGood for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good design
Good for who? Understanding the challenges of implementing good design
 
Connected Product Experiences
Connected Product ExperiencesConnected Product Experiences
Connected Product Experiences
 
IoT & Public Space
IoT & Public SpaceIoT & Public Space
IoT & Public Space
 
Invisible colleges: wealth, friends and fame in art and design.
Invisible colleges: wealth, friends and fame in art and design. Invisible colleges: wealth, friends and fame in art and design.
Invisible colleges: wealth, friends and fame in art and design.
 
Creating a Culture of Innovation
Creating a Culture of InnovationCreating a Culture of Innovation
Creating a Culture of Innovation
 
Don't press snooze: design in a crisis.
Don't press snooze: design in a crisis.Don't press snooze: design in a crisis.
Don't press snooze: design in a crisis.
 
Death by a thousand cuts: information fatigue in the smart cities of tomorrow.
Death by a thousand cuts: information fatigue in the smart cities of tomorrow. Death by a thousand cuts: information fatigue in the smart cities of tomorrow.
Death by a thousand cuts: information fatigue in the smart cities of tomorrow.
 

Recently uploaded

NewBase 25 March 2024 Energy News issue - 1710 by Khaled Al Awadi_compress...
NewBase  25 March  2024  Energy News issue - 1710 by Khaled Al Awadi_compress...NewBase  25 March  2024  Energy News issue - 1710 by Khaled Al Awadi_compress...
NewBase 25 March 2024 Energy News issue - 1710 by Khaled Al Awadi_compress...Khaled Al Awadi
 
Anyhr.io | Presentation HR&Recruiting agency
Anyhr.io | Presentation HR&Recruiting agencyAnyhr.io | Presentation HR&Recruiting agency
Anyhr.io | Presentation HR&Recruiting agencyHanna Klim
 
NASA CoCEI Scaling Strategy - November 2023
NASA CoCEI Scaling Strategy - November 2023NASA CoCEI Scaling Strategy - November 2023
NASA CoCEI Scaling Strategy - November 2023Steve Rader
 
TalentView Webinar: Empowering the Modern Workforce_ Redefininig Success from...
TalentView Webinar: Empowering the Modern Workforce_ Redefininig Success from...TalentView Webinar: Empowering the Modern Workforce_ Redefininig Success from...
TalentView Webinar: Empowering the Modern Workforce_ Redefininig Success from...TalentView
 
Slicing Work on Business Agility Meetup Berlin
Slicing Work on Business Agility Meetup BerlinSlicing Work on Business Agility Meetup Berlin
Slicing Work on Business Agility Meetup BerlinAnton Skornyakov
 
Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer.pdf
Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer.pdfChicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer.pdf
Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer.pdfSourav Sikder
 
AMAZON SELLER VIRTUAL ASSISTANT PRODUCT RESEARCH .pdf
AMAZON SELLER VIRTUAL ASSISTANT PRODUCT RESEARCH .pdfAMAZON SELLER VIRTUAL ASSISTANT PRODUCT RESEARCH .pdf
AMAZON SELLER VIRTUAL ASSISTANT PRODUCT RESEARCH .pdfJohnCarloValencia4
 
Tata Kelola Bisnis perushaan yang bergerak
Tata Kelola Bisnis perushaan yang bergerakTata Kelola Bisnis perushaan yang bergerak
Tata Kelola Bisnis perushaan yang bergerakEditores1
 
Fabric RFID Wristbands in Ireland for Events and Festivals
Fabric RFID Wristbands in Ireland for Events and FestivalsFabric RFID Wristbands in Ireland for Events and Festivals
Fabric RFID Wristbands in Ireland for Events and FestivalsWristbands Ireland
 
Graham and Doddsville - Issue 1 - Winter 2006 (1).pdf
Graham and Doddsville - Issue 1 - Winter 2006 (1).pdfGraham and Doddsville - Issue 1 - Winter 2006 (1).pdf
Graham and Doddsville - Issue 1 - Winter 2006 (1).pdfAnhNguyen97152
 
Data skills for Agile Teams- Killing story points
Data skills for Agile Teams- Killing story pointsData skills for Agile Teams- Killing story points
Data skills for Agile Teams- Killing story pointsyasinnathani
 
Borderless Access - Global Panel book-unlock 2024
Borderless Access - Global Panel book-unlock 2024Borderless Access - Global Panel book-unlock 2024
Borderless Access - Global Panel book-unlock 2024Borderless Access
 
Upgrade Your Banking Experience with Advanced Core Banking Applications
Upgrade Your Banking Experience with Advanced Core Banking ApplicationsUpgrade Your Banking Experience with Advanced Core Banking Applications
Upgrade Your Banking Experience with Advanced Core Banking ApplicationsIntellect Design Arena Ltd
 
UNLEASHING THE POWER OF PROGRAMMATIC ADVERTISING
UNLEASHING THE POWER OF PROGRAMMATIC ADVERTISINGUNLEASHING THE POWER OF PROGRAMMATIC ADVERTISING
UNLEASHING THE POWER OF PROGRAMMATIC ADVERTISINGlokeshwarmaha
 
Project Brief & Information Architecture Report
Project Brief & Information Architecture ReportProject Brief & Information Architecture Report
Project Brief & Information Architecture Reportamberjiles31
 
Team B Mind Map for Organizational Chg..
Team B Mind Map for Organizational Chg..Team B Mind Map for Organizational Chg..
Team B Mind Map for Organizational Chg..dlewis191
 
Intellectual Property Licensing Examples
Intellectual Property Licensing ExamplesIntellectual Property Licensing Examples
Intellectual Property Licensing Examplesamberjiles31
 
Michael Vidyakin: Introduction to PMO (UA)
Michael Vidyakin: Introduction to PMO (UA)Michael Vidyakin: Introduction to PMO (UA)
Michael Vidyakin: Introduction to PMO (UA)Lviv Startup Club
 

Recently uploaded (20)

NewBase 25 March 2024 Energy News issue - 1710 by Khaled Al Awadi_compress...
NewBase  25 March  2024  Energy News issue - 1710 by Khaled Al Awadi_compress...NewBase  25 March  2024  Energy News issue - 1710 by Khaled Al Awadi_compress...
NewBase 25 March 2024 Energy News issue - 1710 by Khaled Al Awadi_compress...
 
Investment Opportunity for Thailand's Automotive & EV Industries
Investment Opportunity for Thailand's Automotive & EV IndustriesInvestment Opportunity for Thailand's Automotive & EV Industries
Investment Opportunity for Thailand's Automotive & EV Industries
 
Anyhr.io | Presentation HR&Recruiting agency
Anyhr.io | Presentation HR&Recruiting agencyAnyhr.io | Presentation HR&Recruiting agency
Anyhr.io | Presentation HR&Recruiting agency
 
NASA CoCEI Scaling Strategy - November 2023
NASA CoCEI Scaling Strategy - November 2023NASA CoCEI Scaling Strategy - November 2023
NASA CoCEI Scaling Strategy - November 2023
 
TalentView Webinar: Empowering the Modern Workforce_ Redefininig Success from...
TalentView Webinar: Empowering the Modern Workforce_ Redefininig Success from...TalentView Webinar: Empowering the Modern Workforce_ Redefininig Success from...
TalentView Webinar: Empowering the Modern Workforce_ Redefininig Success from...
 
Slicing Work on Business Agility Meetup Berlin
Slicing Work on Business Agility Meetup BerlinSlicing Work on Business Agility Meetup Berlin
Slicing Work on Business Agility Meetup Berlin
 
Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer.pdf
Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer.pdfChicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer.pdf
Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer.pdf
 
WAM Corporate Presentation Mar 25 2024.pdf
WAM Corporate Presentation Mar 25 2024.pdfWAM Corporate Presentation Mar 25 2024.pdf
WAM Corporate Presentation Mar 25 2024.pdf
 
AMAZON SELLER VIRTUAL ASSISTANT PRODUCT RESEARCH .pdf
AMAZON SELLER VIRTUAL ASSISTANT PRODUCT RESEARCH .pdfAMAZON SELLER VIRTUAL ASSISTANT PRODUCT RESEARCH .pdf
AMAZON SELLER VIRTUAL ASSISTANT PRODUCT RESEARCH .pdf
 
Tata Kelola Bisnis perushaan yang bergerak
Tata Kelola Bisnis perushaan yang bergerakTata Kelola Bisnis perushaan yang bergerak
Tata Kelola Bisnis perushaan yang bergerak
 
Fabric RFID Wristbands in Ireland for Events and Festivals
Fabric RFID Wristbands in Ireland for Events and FestivalsFabric RFID Wristbands in Ireland for Events and Festivals
Fabric RFID Wristbands in Ireland for Events and Festivals
 
Graham and Doddsville - Issue 1 - Winter 2006 (1).pdf
Graham and Doddsville - Issue 1 - Winter 2006 (1).pdfGraham and Doddsville - Issue 1 - Winter 2006 (1).pdf
Graham and Doddsville - Issue 1 - Winter 2006 (1).pdf
 
Data skills for Agile Teams- Killing story points
Data skills for Agile Teams- Killing story pointsData skills for Agile Teams- Killing story points
Data skills for Agile Teams- Killing story points
 
Borderless Access - Global Panel book-unlock 2024
Borderless Access - Global Panel book-unlock 2024Borderless Access - Global Panel book-unlock 2024
Borderless Access - Global Panel book-unlock 2024
 
Upgrade Your Banking Experience with Advanced Core Banking Applications
Upgrade Your Banking Experience with Advanced Core Banking ApplicationsUpgrade Your Banking Experience with Advanced Core Banking Applications
Upgrade Your Banking Experience with Advanced Core Banking Applications
 
UNLEASHING THE POWER OF PROGRAMMATIC ADVERTISING
UNLEASHING THE POWER OF PROGRAMMATIC ADVERTISINGUNLEASHING THE POWER OF PROGRAMMATIC ADVERTISING
UNLEASHING THE POWER OF PROGRAMMATIC ADVERTISING
 
Project Brief & Information Architecture Report
Project Brief & Information Architecture ReportProject Brief & Information Architecture Report
Project Brief & Information Architecture Report
 
Team B Mind Map for Organizational Chg..
Team B Mind Map for Organizational Chg..Team B Mind Map for Organizational Chg..
Team B Mind Map for Organizational Chg..
 
Intellectual Property Licensing Examples
Intellectual Property Licensing ExamplesIntellectual Property Licensing Examples
Intellectual Property Licensing Examples
 
Michael Vidyakin: Introduction to PMO (UA)
Michael Vidyakin: Introduction to PMO (UA)Michael Vidyakin: Introduction to PMO (UA)
Michael Vidyakin: Introduction to PMO (UA)
 

9 things no one told me about running a business

Editor's Notes

  1. Hi my name is Alex and I’m a designer. This is a talk I haven’t been wanting to give, I’ve been avoiding giving even. When Ved asked me to come and speak last month, I thought long and hard but also thought it might be cathartic which it has been, especially as today I sent out the last boxes of my former company’s accounts to our insolvency company in North London. But the fact of the matter is running my business Tinker London for almost 4 years, I learnt a lot. Things that I could never have imagined, 10 of which I wished I’d known before starting. I thought I’d share them with you and it might be useful for anyone else wanting to start a business in the creative industries / tech.
  2. I’ll start with the latest finding which is that when you close a company, everyone always wants to know why. And when you tell them “finance” they still want to know why. As if there was some sort of thing you were holding back. I’m not. Finance. Money. When you can’t make the money side of a business work, that’s not a business, it’s an expensive hobby. There are a million reasons why the money thing didn’t work out, bad debts, losing contracts, unpredictable cash flow, unclear business plan that would lead back to unpredictable cash flow and the list goes on. But yeh, money. In our industry, some people avoid closing by selling their business to someone like an advertising group, an investment or consultancy firm. We just decided to close and move on.
  3. I studied product and interaction design and was mainly motivated to get people to look at the world of product design with different eyes, more technology saavy eyes. At the time, my business partner had founded Arduino, an open source tool for controlling low level electronics, quite useful if you’re a designer with no coding background. So in order to diffrentiate ourselves and introduce ourselves to the London-scene (I had just moved there) I became the UK distributor of the platform, organising workshops for creatives and meeting people who would eventually become our clients. This tech-centric multi-headed approach did not pay on the long run. It became a game of badly managed margins. We tried to do the job of electronics distributors, schools and r&d departments all at once. I’d advise just settling for one.
  4. We incorporated in late August 2007 after months of initial work and our creditors meeting was January 7 th 2011. At no point in time during those 1,227 days of trade did anyone give us a credit card, a loan or debt factoring. We ran the whole thing on cash. It was insane. We started the business on 8K EUR that Massimo, my business partner invested in so we could buy enough materials to distribute Arduino and get me out of my boyfriend’s flat. Noone was ready to lend and our credit ratings meant we couldn’t apply for a credit card for the buisness. That definitely trumped our ability to grow or take on more risks than we were taking already.
  5. Don’t hire anyone, really. If you must hire someone, make it your financial advisor. I say this very carefully. Employees are expensive and when you are basically following an agency or consultancy model, you have to make sure you have work on ALL the time in order to justify the expense. Otherwise, you end up being the last person paid.
  6. We were featured prominently in the Guardian, The Evening Standard, the BBC. Make magazine, an industry tech and geek blog featured most of our work, by any measure available for such a young business, we were successful. Something I learnt along the way is that this does not translate into sales. You still have to take care of business development. You also often end up working for no money on projects you think will have enough of a public impact and do work for money you will never mention on your portfolio. It’s a strange Catch 22 that isn’t particularily popular but when the well known photographer Annie Leibovitz was bailed out by a bank because she’d gone bankrupt, I could understand. It happens.
  7. Don’t be too precious about your time and your tasks. Or other people’s. Clinging on to staff or tasks will make you a slave to them and you can re-hire or meet other people who will bring something new to the table.
  8. This is more of a learning post-company I suppose, but after doing so much free stuff for so many years. Free conversations, free advice, free lunch talks, free evening talks, etc I am now much more precious about my time.
  9. I don’t say this in a deprecating way. Unemployability means that you are unwilling to see the value of someone else’s org chart. It also means that you will want to keep starting companies. It’s sort of my drug in a way, there’s always the hope the next one will be better. Always the desire to try.
  10. All in all, I can say running a business has changed me forever. For good. I can’t even imagine what life would have been like had I not seized that opportunity at the age of 26, fresh off a flight from Amsterdam. That folly will carry me in the next decade I know it.
  11. “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” Now go and build your own business. You’ll never look back.