"Being an entrepreneur is not for the faint of heart" with Geralyn Breig

Geralyn Breig is Founder and CEO of AnytownUSA.com https://anytownusa.com/, the first e-commerce marketplace for American-made goods, which she launched in 2018. She also hosts and produces the podcast, The American Made Marketplace. As a senior executive with Fortune 500 companies, Geralyn ran operations on five continents for leading consumer products and specialty retail brands. Today, she serves on the Boards of 1800Flowers.com Inc., Hanes Brands Inc., and Welch Foods Inc.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

I have had years of experience at the helm of omni-channel retailers, which included substantial online businesses. The most fun I had during my career was when I was creating and executing strategies to grow businesses. I’ve had the privilege of working on great teams with great brands like Godiva, Jell-O, Pepperidge Farm, and Avon, and growing them by $300 million or even $3 billion! I came up through the ranks in product marketing roles in U.S.-based businesses, and eventually, took on operating roles for international businesses.

 What inspired you to start your business?

Back in 2014 in the U.S., the week that Jay-Z and Solange Knowles had their elevator fight, what was not being covered on the news were the hundreds of shoe and clothing factories being burned down in riots in Vietnam. As President of Clarks shoes at the time, I had my fall line go up in smoke. It seemed like a good time to investigate growing manufacturing here at home.

Where is your business based?

We are based in Westport, CT, about 45 miles outside of New York City.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

I did a lot of research and spoke with trusted advisors, who had experience in retail, finance, and consulting to a huge online marketplace that-shall-not-be-named, to make sure this was the right idea. I found a BCG study, which says 78% of people want to buy American, but they don’t know where to find it. It was a good starting point. But that can also be like saying most Americans report they go to the gym three days a week. Oftentimes, people respond to surveys as the ideal version of themselves, not the real version. So, it took more than just reading a few reports.

I grabbed two former colleagues with merchant/buyer experience and we began traveling the country, going to trade shows and large juried craft shows, to talk to the seller community and see if an online marketplace for American-made goods was something they were interested in. They certainly were.

American makers are tired of being pushed around by large marketplace sites. They need a place where they can be seen and not price shopped next to a cheap, low-quality import. And our customers want a site that they can trust! We always say the next great marketplace will be trusted, not just huge. 

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

We’ve had the most success so far with targeted, paid ads on Instagram and Facebook. Now that the press has “found” us, we are seen as a trusted source for made-in-USA product ideas/gift guides, and we are seeing our direct orders increase. Our customer file is growing all the time, and we are getting an increasing number of orders from our email campaigns. 

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

Being an entrepreneur is not for the faint of heart. Every challenge seems like a tall mountain, and then you get to the top and find there is another mountain, and another, and then another! First, we had to figure out how to build a top-quality e-commerce marketplace on a low budget. I leveraged my contacts at a board I sit on to locate an outstanding resource who has done amazing work for us. Second, I had to raise money. While I bootstrapped the initial spending, a marketplace is costly to stand-up properly. I was at the Penn Club in NYC for lunch one day and overheard a woman speaking about her business helping founders like me, hired her almost immediately, and we raised $800K. And third, I had to find a scrappy, hardworking, talented staff to join me. I tapped former colleagues and networked my way to other hires.

How do you stay focused?

Every night, before I close up my laptop, I write down my to-do list for the next day. I also keep a dynamic spreadsheet of the urgent, near-term, and long-term strategic projects for myself and my team. It all helps to make sure we are handling both the fire drills and the long-term. The days fly by. Many times, I look up and it’s 4pm and I’ve forgotten to eat!

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

For our Buyers, we are the only e-commerce marketplace that offers products that are certified made in the USA/compliant with FTC guidelines. We offer selling by invitation only and we validate Seller identities, so we prevent fraud, fakes, and low-quality items. Our product assortment only overlaps about 20% with the mega, established sites, so we have a truly unique product offering. We offer a win-win business model for our Sellers -- a full retail margin for them and great flexibility in how they manage their business and product “shop” on our site, something other platforms don’t do. When they win, we win. We are creating a genuine community of buyers and sellers, and we add unique benefits for both groups regularly.

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

The best momentum we get is when we find a “key item” and merchandise it like crazy. For example, last summer our top seller was a third-generation family business in Georgia that makes shoes and flip flops.

In Q4, we put up a wonderful Christmas ornament “shop” and they do extremely well. We also get placements in print/online gift guides for our items since we are so unique, and we get included in gift guide segments on morning news shows in top 10 markets.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

No matter how talented someone is, if they aren’t scrappy -- ready to roll up their sleeves and do whatever it takes the first few years -- don’t hire them. They will be miserable and won’t go the distance. Choose people you like spending time with, who have a passion for the business, and who have a “walk-through-walls-to-make-it-happen” work ethic.

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

Favorite App: I love TikTok. It makes me laugh out loud.

Favorite Book: It might be a cliché, but I have read Pride & Prejudice 50 times. I love a strong woman’s story!

Favorite Blog: Ours! The Talk Around AnytownUSA https://anytownusa.com/blogs/anytownusa It is like a treasure hunt, filled with the items we literally travel the USA to find, and the stories of the made-in-USA makers are incredibly inspirational.

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

·       Shopify Plus:​ Our site is built with a Shopify Plus front end, so that is how we interface with customers right now.

·       Avalara:​ Avalara is how we calculate and remit sales taxes to the many state and municipal authorities.

·       Facebook/Instagram:​ Facebook and Instagram help us to easily spread the word about AnytownUSA.com.

·       Slack: ​Our team works remotely quite frequently, so Slack is key for keeping us all on the same page and operating effectively. We even have a “random” channel for water-cooler talk, which is a nice way to keep the team spirit alive even when we’re in different places.

Who is your business role model? Why?

Truth -- I don’t really have one. I’m not going to make one up. But I will say that I have worked with a lot of amazing people in my career, learned a ton from each of them, and am very grateful to them.

What is your beauty routine? What are some of your favorite products?

The most fun of questions! I was very fortunate to serve as global CMO of Avon at one point in my career. In that role, the R&D team of talented, creative scientists reported to me, and I learned a lot from them. Plus, we tested our products and benchmarked against the best. Here is a list of everything I use every day. It works for me. People say I have great skin -- I owe that to my mom.

Morning:

Dove Beauty Bar, Original

Avon Anew Platinum Day Cream with Sunscreen

Clinique Pep Start Eye Cream

Benefit Browyo Conditioning Primer

Benefit Cream Gel Brow Color

Ramy Perfect Brow Wand

Elizabeth Arden Cream Eye Shadow Stylo

Elizabeth Arden High Drama Eyeliner

Avon Super Shock Mascara

Clinique Dramatically Different Lipstick

Elizabeth Arden Ceramide Lift and Firm Concealer

Giorgio Armani Face Fabric

Chanel Powder Blush

Freedom Natural Deodorant (available on AnytownUSA.com)

Loreal Ever Pure Shampoo and Conditioner

Kerastase Nutritive Magic Hair Serum

Salacia Showertime Rocks (available on AnytownUSA.com) 

Evening:

Avon Anew Platinum Night Cream

Origins Anti-Aging Power Serum

How do you balance work and life?

I live the saying, “You can’t have balance every day, but you can have it across all the days.” If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my career, it’s that you cannot control everything and everyone around you. The best quote I’ve read is, “The day you die, there will be items in your inbox to do.” This means, your work is never done, and never will be done, so accept that. Turn off the job when you come home and live in the moment with those you love. Value that time. It’s both a philosophy and a way of living.

 What’s your favorite way to decompress?

This is a tie between reading a book while soaking in a fragrant bath with a lit candle and going for a walk or run by the beach.

What do you have planned for the next six months?

We are serious about building a thriving maker community. Currently, we are building a suite of services of all types for our Sellers. This is really exciting and will include incredible opportunities that are only available to sellers on ​AnytownUSA.com​.

In five years, we’d like to get everyone to “shop made-in-USA first” before jumping to buy an import. Think of it this way: You keep 67 cents in a community when you shop at a local store filled with imports. You keep the whole $1 in our communities when you buy from a maker in the USA. At AnytownUSA, we want to grow our business enough to have an impact on our communities coast-to-coast.

How can our readers connect with you?

https://anytownusa.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/geralynbreig/

https://www.instagram.com/anytown_usa_/

https://twitter.com/anytown_usa_

https://www.facebook.com/AnytownUSA.Marketplace/

4 Ways to Start a Successful Gig Economy Business

By: Lucy Reed

It’s easier than ever before to start a business, thanks to the gig economy. Whether you want to provide short-term work as a consultant or services provider or do freelance work, you can build your own successful gig-based business in just about no time. The trick is zeroing in on a need in your area or putting your skills to work for yourself.

1. Turn Your Hobby or Interests into a Gig Economy Business

The gig economy is characterized by independent contractors providing services or work for the short-term. It’s an ideal environment for people who want to set their own hours and rates and have more freedom than a permanent position provides. It’s also ideal for entrepreneurs or people who want to start their own small business and achieve an improved work-life balance.

One of the best ways to get started in the gig economy is to transform your hobby or interests into a real business. For example, if you have a knack for painting, you could paint people’s homes for them. If you have an eye for decorating, you could stage people’s homes as they prepare to sell them.

If you prefer to spend time outdoors, you can start a gig economy business guiding people on hikes in your area or completing landscaping projects. Thousands of people offer their skills and services on TaskRabbit. Using a platform such as this helps you connect with more people looking for your particular skills, from housecleaning to completing handyman jobs.

2. Turn Your Love for Animals into a Gig Economy Business

Some people turn their love for animals into successful gig economy businesses. For example, if you love dogs, you could become a dog walker, dog boarder, or pet sitter. Regardless of where you live, people look for reliable animal lovers who can help take care of their dogs when they are away at work or on vacation.

Becoming a dog walker, for instance, is a perfect way to spend time with four-legged friends, spend time outside, and set your own hours and rates. You’ll also enjoy the benefits of getting exercise outside and reducing your stress by spending time with dogs. In fact, Time Magazine reports that spending time with pets is good for your mental health, and studies show that spending time with dogs can reduce your blood pressure in addition to reducing stress.

3. Create a Website

To get started in the gig economy, you’ll need to market yourself. One of the best ways to get more work is to provide an excellent customer experience so that satisfied clients tell others about you. Word-of-mouth advertising is free, and people are more likely to hire someone their friends or family members recommend.

That’s why you also should build a website for your gig economy business; according to Forbes, online customer reviews generate more business, and you want to help prospective clients find you by creating an online presence for your business. This includes creating a social media profile and keeping your Google business listing up to date. The more places that people can find excellent reviews about you, the easier it will be to generate more business.

4. Use Your Network

It’s also helpful if you rely on your professional and personal networks as you delve into a gig economy business. Independent contractors especially attract more freelancing work when they network. Make sure the people from your former permanent position know that you have started your own business so they can recommend you.

Use your personal connections to get information about projects before they go public so you can get in as early as possible. Go to Meetups, economic development meetings, alumni networking events, and career fairs to expand your network. It’s also a good idea to collaborate with others in the early days of your new business so you can tackle larger projects with more people.

You can start a successful gig-related business by focusing on your hobbies, interests, or love of animals. Build a website so people can find you easily and leave reviews to generate more business. Then, rely on your network to launch your business quickly.

Q&A with Leissan Sadykova

Leissan Sadykova is the founder and executive director of Advocates for Rural Community Health (ARCH), a not-for-profit organization that provides quality healthcare services to rural regions on a global scale.  Driven by her passion for healthcare as a human right, Leissan started ARCH while living and conducting research in Uganda for her master’s thesis.  Visit http://archruralhealth.org to learn more about programs and services offered.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

I graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno and, like most people, was not fully certain about what I wanted to do.  I dabbled in teaching and was part of Teach For America when I decided to pursue further education.  I completed my Masters in Diplomacy and Military Studies from Hawai’i Pacific University, where I had an opportunity to travel to Uganda for my thesis research.  My emphasis was on post-conflict health sector development, and Gulu was the perfect case study, given its recent post-conflict status given in 2012.

I lived in Gulu, Uganda for about 6 months, conducting research and working at the World Health Organization conducting health center assessments.  Upon returning to the US in 2016, I started developing Advocates for Rural Community Health (ARCH), which combines my research results and passion.

What inspired you to start your business?

While working with the World Health Organization in Uganda, I conducted a health center assessment that allowed me to travel to health centers within Gulu District and assess the physical structure, the type of care provided, medicine stock-outs, and the overall functionality of the health center.

Each week, every health center is supposed to submit statistics to the District Office in order for us to track any potential outbreaks and other health needs.  One health center, in particular, Patiko Health Center, consistently missed these reportings.  I went to Patiko to find out why this was happening.  When I arrived it was pretty evident that this was a human capital issue.  In rural regions, especially remote rural areas such as those in Gulu District, there is a severe shortage of trained medical healthcare professionals.  There are about 1 physicians per 10,000 people.

We invited the District Office to join us when we returned to Patiko to provide additional training and support.  During this visit, the health center was shut down for a little over two hours.  As I watched the queue grow with crying babies, restless mothers, and sick patients all waiting in the blistering Uganda sun, I couldn’t sit in the meeting anymore.  I excused myself and mingled with the patients the remainder of the visit.  This was the moment I started developing ARCH.

I wanted to create something that addresses the human capital shortage and provides quality healthcare to rural regions.  Additionally, ARCH provides educational outreach programs including teaching proper hand-washing and teaching adolescent girls how to make reusable sanitary pads.  These are issues that the local population has identified and something ARCH can provide.

Where is your business based?

Business is originally based out of Reno, NV.  ARCH has a local office in Gulu, Uganda and I am currently working on opening an office in San Francisco.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

When I started my business, I had no idea what I was doing or how to go about starting a nonprofit business.  So I took opportunities to intern and sought mentorship.  I interned at the Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation, in which the Executive Director at the time was the founder.

Then, I just started.  I took it one step at a time.  Being a nonprofit, I had to make sure that I had something to offer donors since I wasn’t selling a specific product or service that donors would be receiving.  I registered the organization in Nevada and started fundraising.  I had a couple of crowdfunding campaigns to raise initial money and started recruiting medical students.  

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

Being the biggest believer in your organization and talking to everyone.  It was important to believe in ARCH more than anyone else.  I was the biggest initial investor in the organization and the biggest advocate for our work.  Once I was able to see the results of what ARCH was accomplishing, then I was able to confidently share those results with others.  I reached out to everyone I knew and started to aggressively expand my network.  The most effective way of raising awareness is making sure that I always talked about ARCH because the organization produces results and it is essential to share that with people in order to raise awareness for the cause.

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

The biggest challenge that I faced was imposter syndrome.  I was truly scared of the potential success of the organization, especially on an international level.  So I played it small, and that does not benefit anyone, especially the population receiving our programs and services.  I started listening to podcasts for entrepreneurs, one in particular that I like is “Behind the Brilliance” by Lisa Nicole Bell.  I realized that imposter syndrome was more common than I thought.

To deal with this challenge, I sought out mentors and feedback early.  I also changed the way I viewed the organization and rather than keeping the focus on myself, I shifted and focused on what programs and services would benefit the community.

How do you stay focused?

Daily focus can be a struggle, and it’s important to develop a system to accomplish tasks even when it’s not your most motivated day.  I break down monthly and weekly goals to daily tasks.  Then it’s just a matter of discipline and knowing that things need to get done no matter how you might feel that day.

Additionally, I worked on developing my "why".  Why am I doing this work?  Why is it important?  Having a strong why can keep you focused on the most unmotivated day.  One ARCH campaign we conducted involved having local people write out what rural health development means to them.  I look at those pictures and am reminded of Patiko Health Center, and why this organization was started in the first place.

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

I focus on what ARCH can offer more so than that of our competitors.  ARCH is unique in that our medical student participants stay with local host families allowing them to understand the home culture, which allows them to be better physicians in the hospital.  They are also more integrated into the culture and can understand the health disparities better.  ARCH also provides support for public health centers and hospitals rather than private ones.  ARCH also conducts outreach programs to provide health education programs.  The two main ones are teaching hand-washing at primary and secondary schools and teaching adolescent girls how to make reusable sanitary pads using local materials.

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

Making sure that I am sharing the work that we are doing and talking about our work.  As straightforward as it sounds, sometimes sharing your work is difficult, and posting on social media does require a bit of time.  However, it has been very effective to share our work and even over-sharing sometimes.  If people don’t know what ARCH is doing, then people don’t know why their donation is important.  Scheduling social media posts, with platforms such as Hootsuite, makes it easier to plan social media posts and to post consistently to continuously engage the audience.   

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

The best advice I can give to aspiring entrepreneurs is to just start.  Start somewhere and make sure you are open to learning along the way.  When I first started, I was very hesitant and it took me several months to actually dive in and start sharing the work I was doing with ARCH.  That is wasted time.  I was caught up in making sure that everything I posted and every email I sent was absolutely perfect.  And that delayed a lot of the messaging and I missed a lot of opportunities because things were not “perfect.”  Do not focus on being perfect.  There will always be people who will judge your work and also people who will love it.  As long as you are following your passion, it does not matter what others think.

Do not get caught up in what is perfect.  Start somewhere, do something and learn along the way.  Try something new, then adjust as needed.  You have to start somewhere and remember that no one started something knowing exactly what to do.  And make sure you are sharing what you are doing.  You have to believe in what you are doing no matter what.  If you believe, then you can get others to also believe.  But do not be scared, and make sure you just start.  The details will come as you go along.

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

App: Instagram – it allows me to stay connected with other people and share ARCH’s work

Blog: Nonprofit With Balls – huge resource for nonprofits; this blog has a ton of information for every category 

Book:  You Are A Badass – because sometimes we just need a reminder

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

My favorite business tool is Google Keep.  It allows me to create different to-do lists and share with others so that we can work from one list and make sure everything gets done.  I work well with being able to organize different lists and having everything in one place.

Who is your business role model? Why?

Dr. Cat Begovic is one of my business role models.  As a double Board certified plastic surgeon, she started her own business and has a very strong "why".  I look up to her because she has a strong mission and keeps her audience engaged.  Her message is strong and incredibly inspiring.

What do you have planned for the next six months?

Expansion.  I am excited to work with more medical schools to increase medical student participants as well as expand our programs and services to other countries including Ghana, South Africa, and Liberia.

ARCH is going to expand programs and services as well.  Our hand-washing program will serve more primary and secondary schools with at least 4 participating schools within each region.

ARCH will also implement and expand our reusable sanitary pads program.  This includes teaching how to make sanitary reusable pads to adolescent girls.  The goal is for ARCH to work with at least 4 schools.

How can our readers connect with you?

IG: @LeissanSadykova

Facebook: Leissan Sadykova

ARCH:

IG/Twitter/Facebook: @ARCHRuralHealth