Xtralicious Inc – Rachel Chung

Story by Rachel Chung – Xtralicious Inc

Have you ever wished that you could work from home while taking care of your children? I know I have. I stopped working full time to do just that.

Why online businesses and what’s great about it

I used to work in the fashion industry reporting directly to the head honcho of the group. Hence, I had a lot of exposure to fashion resources and contacts. When I decided to start a home business so that I can spend more time with my children, it made sense to venture into fashion retail.

My research also showed that local women are not adverse to shopping  online and indeed, many of them prefer to shop online due to their busy schedules or a reluctance to shop amongst crowds.

I only started working on the web store after I left my full time job. It took me about two weeks to set up the operations, website, marketing and communications – the stock sold out much faster…in about a day!

It’s a great feeling when customers email to tell me that the dresses are gorgeous or to ‘complain’ that the stocks sell out too quickly. I also love that I need not be physically there in the ‘store’ while customers browse, pick and then pay via an excellent ecommerce shopping cart system.

My second business manages communication projects from agencies, publishers and corporate associates. I specialize in traditional print marketing materials such as brochures, direct mail and advertorials; editorial materials such as newsletter and magazine articles; and sales/ information oriented copy for websites and small business owners.

I love how it affords me the freedom of working anywhere and anytime I want to, as long as I have my laptop and mobile connection… or even just a notebook and pen. I also love how I can bring my children to places of interest during off peak periods too!

You can do it too

What are your interests and areas of expertise? Take some time to ponder on these points and then work out a business plan. Working from home cuts out the rental costs that can work out to tens of thousands of dollars. That is a huge chunk of savings from a start up point of view.

Speak to business leaders and relevant networking groups to get a feel of what you plan to do. Different  and fresh perspectives are crucial -  they offer feedback that we might not have thought of ourselves.

Do you have the support of your family? Does your husband support you in what you plan to do? I find that having emotional and/ or physical support is an important motivation for mums who have to juggle both family and the new business.

Family/ Work Balance

The beauty of having the shop is that the customers can shop on their own without requiring my physical presence. The photography is done in the day while the children are in school, the updates into the website and the physical packing of the packages to be brought to the post office. My children sometimes help me to wrap the purchases or to affix the stamps on the packages – they seem to find it very fun. LOL.

As for the writing front, I tend to do most of my writing either when the children are in school or late at night while they are asleep.

Business strategies for success

My business strategies are really experimental since I am not formally trained in business.   I have had great success with the usage of social media in the marketing of my store launch and subsequent ‘seasons‘. Being featured in a popular local magazine also strengthened our online presence. I also position the store differently from other blog-shops in the market to maintain a unique selling position.

This year, I will concentrate on customer rewards to grow the business and to increase awareness.

For my writing business, my blogs are an online showcase of my different writing styles. I now get most of my clients through networking or referrals. It is easier in a way as I do not need to hard-sell myself – my reputation with previous clients speaks for itself. Word of mouth is a very important marketing tool in today’s businesses.

It also helps to actively market one’s personal brand and talk to others about what I am doing. For example, if you know anyone who needs a professional writer, please give me a referral! For every successful referral, the referee gets to pick any item from my store.

I have had a few successes doing cross referrals this way.

Advice for mums just starting out in business for the first time

Never give up! There is no quick way to grow a business or to make fast bucks. It just doesn’t happen that way. It takes time, dedication and perseverance to build a business. Sometimes, it takes several years sometimes to reach the goals that you want to reach in business. You can’t just start a business and expect to get rich over night. Once you have given up, you may never know what you could have achieved if you just kept trying a little longer.

You don’t need formal qualifications to make it. Willingness to learn, courage to fail and the perseverance to press on with the journey makes for a stronger formula of success than paper knowledge alone.

Network like crazy too. Leverage on the power of social media. Ask your friends to help spread the word.

Don’t be afraid to try new things or that you will fail. There are always lessons to be learned from mistakes and even Donald Trump had failed before.

Get the kids to help out in little ways. Not only do they feel a sense of achievement in being able to ‘help Mum’, you get to spend time doing things together. If you give them a  little ‘salary’ that they can either save for future purchases or spend on little indulgences, they can have a head start at learning how to manage their money.

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Rachel Chung is an online entrepreneur who operates her businesses from home so that she can spend more time with her two children. 11 and 6.