100 Customers
Nearly 6 full months after launch, my company has reached the 100 customer milestone. At the same time, net sales have eclipsed the $10k mark, which means each customer has spent an average of $100. I think that number will go up. August has been busy, already the busiest month on record with 8 days left in the month.
The busier I get, the more holes I see in my process that need to be plugged. But keeping the trains running full time is eating most of my time. I am forced to choose between tasks, which is why it has been so long since I’ve written.
But those holes need to be plugged and the process needs to be streamlined soon. These are the tasks before me:
- Presentation / Packaging — I’ve been buying this expensive plastic drop cloth (for painting) and using it to wrap and seal the laundry once it’s done. I have to switch to a different plastic product and I am testing different ones as I go.
- Invoicing / Tracking / Receipts — Right now there’s a lot of information I keep in my head that should be written down somewhere. I don’t have a receipt printer yet or a good way to keep track of orders offline. I thought I could keep everything online but now realize that a physical invoice needs to be attached to the physical laundry bag. This is very important and I need to develop the process of doing this with every order.
- Doing Laundry — I’ve personally done over 4,000 pounds of laundry in the last 6 months and I have learned a lot. For example it takes less time to dry three 10 lb. loads than two 15 lb. loads in my dryer. There are lots of little details like this about the laundry process that need to be documented and streamlined.
Yet all of these tasks have to take a back seat to 1) the orders coming in and 2) moving the operation into a commercial location.
Still it feels good to reach 100 customers and noticeable growth in just 6 months. The business (and my confidence with it) is growing slowly but surely.
I wish I had time to write more, especially about the difficulties of finding a suitable commercial space. My current project is putting together a proposal for prospective future landlords to give them a better understanding of what my company does. I believe a professional presentation will go a long way towards helping me find and secure a commercial location. At minimum I plan to continue to write a monthly report. The next one will be Sept. 1st.
This story is part of a series documenting the journey of a 2016 Dallas startup called Feather. For your reference here is the Table of Contents for the series.
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