March 21, 2014
Anita McLachlan, Sequins and Sand
Bio The path that led her to this point
Change has been the one constant in my life, both personally and work-wise.
I think it's because I thrive on diversity and the challenge of something new. Married to the military, moving house every couple of years keeps change bubbling away.
A love of taking something from idea to reality has always fuelled what I do.
After leaving high school I studied science and became a radiographer.
Unsatisfied, I turned to property, which was, and still is in my blood.
I found my niche in retail property development. Over the years I learned skills and experienced a variety of roles.
Store project management became my true love, leading to a national management and more recently, consultancy.
I've been a full-time mum since 2001 (that project just keeps on going) and in the last six years, creator and owner of Sequins and Sand (my other baby). These paths have often paralleled. I love to juggle!
A nomadic lifestyle is certainly never dull, but it often means your support network is fragmented and fragile. Being the constant in the ever-changing lives of my two children will always be my number one priority.
When my youngest was about to start kindy and my husband was back from war, it was my time to make a start on something that was going to challenge me in other ways and produce an income (eventually) that would help pay for their schooling.
I wanted to create a work world that was home based, very flexible and mobile!
Then I met Pip. She was new to Australia, having moved from the UK with her family and was pretty much in the same place as I was. We were both ready to do something for ourselves.
A whinge over a coffee about the lack of stylish, well-priced summer holiday wear for women of our age would see us joining forces and diving right in to change that.
Online shopping was pretty much in its infancy when I first started my business with Pip but it seemed a good fit, though I knew absolutely nothing about it.
She's since moved back to the UK and Sequins and Sand has been mine for the last three years.
It's been a vertical learning curve since day one and crafting its identity, purpose and place in the world keeps my creative juices flowing, my mind ticking over and expands my horizons daily.
Q&A Insider advice & tips
What's been your greatest achievement to date?
Career-wise, creating a respected business from scratch, in an area I knew little about, while moving every couple of years.
On a personal level, creating and nurturing two engaging and beautiful children. Kids who take on the challenges that moving frequently throws at them even though they might not like it. At times it's hard, but they work through it and that makes me enormously proud.
What's been your biggest challenge so far?
Ensuring my business can be found! Keeping up with the ever-changing landscape of the online world and adapting business strategies and tactics to ride the wave and not drown. Oh, and did I mention moving which affects stock and logistics but, thankfully, not how my store presents to the world.
Best lesson you've learned along the way?
Marketing and PR. Having the best products is not enough.
If they’re not visible to the right people at the right time, in the right way you’ll go broke. Missing from my skill set, I should have allocated more funds to this in the set-up funding and annual budget to ensure this expertise was an integral part of the business.
A website, book or resource that has helped you in your business or inspired you and why?
My website development team. They have helped shape and morph my evolving business with their up-to-date knowledge and more importantly approach and attitude. We have a great relationship and I value it enormously. Then there's Saasu, cloud-accounting software. Easy to use, affordable and with amazing support. For a small business it's a great fit. If you haven’t, check it out!
Which person or brand do you most admire and why?
Styling You (blog) and Nikki Parkinson.
Nikki speaks to women in a way that makes them feel welcome, heard and understood. Ever true to her audience and brand, dedicated to "keeping it real". A beautiful blend of inspiration and information that works for women every day. I've witnessed her amazing journey. It gives me hope that I can do the same.
What advice would you give someone starting an independent business in your industry?
Be prepared for hard work and making mistakes. Forget the one-in-a-million stories; generally it's all consuming especially in the early years and it takes usually up to five years for a retail business to find its feet. You will make mistakes. Embrace them, learn from them and adapt.
Stay on top of what’s happening - online, offline, new ways to do business better, marketing opportunities and strategies.
Connect with others in business as much and often as you can, especially if you are working from home where it can be quite isolating at times. Reach out even to a few and talk to broaden your perspective, bounce ideas, share challenges, swap favours and to keep in touch.
Believe in yourself and if you lose your way, stop, recharge and start again. This could be as simple as giving yourself the morning off once a quarter. Trust your gut.
Finish this sentence
Everything changed for me when…
My Google Page Rank for important key words and phrases hit page one.
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