Want to Help Your Startup Get Off the Ground? Start a Second Business
Posted 2/ 25 10 at 2:56 PM | Starting a Business
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A A AIt seems like crazy talk. You're busy getting one company to run smoothly, and then before the kinks are worked out, you begin another. But that's the route Courtney Noelle, 30, took, and it's worked out quite well.
Her main business is Los Angeles-based Girl Extraordinare, which sells apparel and accessories for weddings, bachelorette parties, honeymoons, and numerous other organizations, milestones and occasions. It is, by all measures, a successful small business. It has kept income flowing to Noelle and her business partner, Tiffany Bressan, 32, for eight years now, and their clothing and accessories are sold in thousands of retail stores, online and offline, around the world. "Our collections do really well in stationery stores, gift stores and department stores," says Noelle.
Her main business is Los Angeles-based Girl Extraordinare, which sells apparel and accessories for weddings, bachelorette parties, honeymoons, and numerous other organizations, milestones and occasions. It is, by all measures, a successful small business. It has kept income flowing to Noelle and her business partner, Tiffany Bressan, 32, for eight years now, and their clothing and accessories are sold in thousands of retail stores, online and offline, around the world. "Our collections do really well in stationery stores, gift stores and department stores," says Noelle.
They've also had quite a bit of attention from various corners of popular culture. Early on, Trista Rhen of ABC's The Bachelorette wore their designer tank top, and more recently, they've seen their clothing worn by celebrities including Paula Abdul, Tori Spelling, Jaime Pressly and Jenny McCarthy. But arguably, this business might not be in business if not for the other business Noelle started.
Six years ago, when Girl Extraordinare was two years old and Noelle had yet to leave her full-time job as a sales associate, she created Nature's Notebook, which proves just about anything you can think of can be turned into a business. She writes names or words in the sand at a time when the sunlight and waves are perfectly in sync -- then takes a photo. The results are really quite beautiful, and the framed photograph makes a unique gift.
It isn't a full-time business like Girl Extraordinare, but Girl Extraordinare owes Nature's Notebook a debt of gratitude. Back when Nature's Notebook began, Girl EO, as they often call it, was a part-time job for both women -- and it seemed destined to be that way for at least a while longer.
At that time, Noelle wanted to buy her boss a birthday gift and came up with the idea of writing her boss's children's names in the sand and taking a photo. Then she wrote her boss and boss's husband's name and snapped another picture. She framed the photos and left them on her boss's desk.
"She was really surprised," says Noelle. "This is a woman who had everything. The people in the office saw the photos and really liked them," and wanted to place orders.
The next thing Noelle knew, she was creating a Web site and turning this one-time gift into a gift business. She charged around $80 per photo (the price varies depending on what a customer wants), and that first year of business, especially after she got her product listed in a retail catalog, she sold 125 of these photos a week. That success allowed her to quit her sales job so she could work full time on Girl Extraordinare.
Nature's Notebook, meanwhile, is still kicking. Orders have slowed down considerably in recent years, due to the recession and technology like Photoshop. Still, Noelle says she gets several orders a week, with the calls and emails spiking shortly before holidays like Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day and the Christmas season.
The lesson here for all entrepreneurs: You can't pursue every business idea you think of, but keep an open mind nevertheless. You never know what the tide will bring in.
Six years ago, when Girl Extraordinare was two years old and Noelle had yet to leave her full-time job as a sales associate, she created Nature's Notebook, which proves just about anything you can think of can be turned into a business. She writes names or words in the sand at a time when the sunlight and waves are perfectly in sync -- then takes a photo. The results are really quite beautiful, and the framed photograph makes a unique gift.
It isn't a full-time business like Girl Extraordinare, but Girl Extraordinare owes Nature's Notebook a debt of gratitude. Back when Nature's Notebook began, Girl EO, as they often call it, was a part-time job for both women -- and it seemed destined to be that way for at least a while longer.
At that time, Noelle wanted to buy her boss a birthday gift and came up with the idea of writing her boss's children's names in the sand and taking a photo. Then she wrote her boss and boss's husband's name and snapped another picture. She framed the photos and left them on her boss's desk.
"She was really surprised," says Noelle. "This is a woman who had everything. The people in the office saw the photos and really liked them," and wanted to place orders.
The next thing Noelle knew, she was creating a Web site and turning this one-time gift into a gift business. She charged around $80 per photo (the price varies depending on what a customer wants), and that first year of business, especially after she got her product listed in a retail catalog, she sold 125 of these photos a week. That success allowed her to quit her sales job so she could work full time on Girl Extraordinare.
Nature's Notebook, meanwhile, is still kicking. Orders have slowed down considerably in recent years, due to the recession and technology like Photoshop. Still, Noelle says she gets several orders a week, with the calls and emails spiking shortly before holidays like Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day and the Christmas season.
The lesson here for all entrepreneurs: You can't pursue every business idea you think of, but keep an open mind nevertheless. You never know what the tide will bring in.
Alamy
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