Cioccolatina: Handmade Natural Skin Care

Akua Wood founded Cioccolatina in November 2002 in response to her frustration in trying to find a natural range of toiletries to moisturize her skin, as well as to fulfill her need to work at home in order to look after her disabled daughter. Now, only 4 short years later, Cioccolatina has formed a cult following with her fine range of shea butter, olive oil, and other natural skin products. Akua shares her experiences in building Cioccolatina:

Typical Customer
“I have a diverse range of customers all over the world. The typical customer being 28 years of age and mainly female.”

Balancing Act
“Although I am self-employed, I work part-time. I do not have any full time job and have to balance my time as a “mother/wife/business woman”. As a parent, I work hard and long hours and have very little time for myself.”

Typical Akua Day
“Most of my working days start at 07:30 and finish at 22:00. This is mainly made up of responding to customers’ emails, packing/dispatching orders and answering telephone calls.”

Where to find Her Products
“Cioccolatina products are sold mainly via my website. Our retail shop in Sonning (Berkshire- UK) will soon be open to the buying public.”

Keeping in Touch with Customers
“As a business woman, I tend to follow the trend by generally reading specific magazines.”

Challenges in Building a Business
“The most challenging part was providing customers the right products which I have been able to achieve.”

“[Other challenges include changes in] market trends, problems to overcome with suppliers being late with deliveries or packages getting lost in the post. You need determination and pre-planning.”

Inspiration in the Mix
"Mixing up a cream with natural ingredients that my customers love to purchase and use."

Her Father, the Mentor
"My father who introduced me to the use of herbs at a very early age."

Words of Advice: Research and Spend Wisely
" Starting a business seem to be easy. The difficult bit is sustaining it. My advice for any one starting out will be to research on your target market and spend wisely by printing your own labels."
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Contact:
Akua Wood
Cioccolatina

IE Tip 9: Linked In.com: Connect and Network

LinkedIn is an online network of more than 10 million professionals worldwide in 130 different industries. You can create a profile, post your resume, add contacts, connect with colleagues, and all that good stuff. But for indie entrepreneurs, you can also use this site as a free marketing tool by increasing the visibility of your business and enhancing connections with possible customers. Read this informative article on other ways to use LinkedIn.

IE Tip 8: IndieFinds.com: Designer Coop

Formed in response to big-box, mass retailers, Indie Finds is a designer-run cooperative that have teamed up to increase awareness of indie shops and boutiques. To be a member, you must have a website selling indie goods with a .com or .net URL, and be able to provide your own photos. As a member, you are free to participate in any ad opportunities. This is a great and low-cost way to increase your brand exposure and awareness both online and offline.

Help Girls Rock Out

The Willie Mae Rock Camp is a non-profit New York City summer day camp that serves girls 8-18 years old by offering them a chance to learn how to play musical instruments, write songs perform, and “rock out” in a supportive artistic environment. The Camp is currently holding an online auction to raise funds to raise scholarship funds for future camp rockers.




Do some good and satisfy your shopping itch by bidding on some really cool items like this Hot Balloon Ride for Two or this awesome Alise Marie dress. And if you really want to make me happy, send this Hampton Weekend Getaway my way.

IE Tip 7: Another Girl At Play: Where Work and Play Coincide

On those times when you begin to doubt yourself, head over to Another Girl At Play and be inspired by 25 artists who have made their creative dreams real. Read the experiences, stories, and insights of women who have become successful creative entrepreneurs.

Bizarre and Mayhem Craft Fairs, Workshops

Mafia Mayhem Craft Fair: Indie craft fair sponsored by the Anchorage Craft Mafia. Located in Anchorage, Alaska. May 5, 2007, 12-6 pm.

Odd Ones Bizarre: Alternative arts and craft show sponsored by The Mantis Collective. Located in Harrisburg, PA. May 5, 2007, 11-7 pm.

HOW SHE DOES IT: How And Why Women Owned Businesses Are So Successful: Inspiring workshop on why women’s businesses are successful and tips on how they continue to become successful. Sponsored by the WITI. Located in San Diego, CA. May 2, 2007, 12:45-4:30 pm.

Immedium: Inspiring a Word of Imagination

Founded in San Francisco, California in 2004, Immedium is an independent publisher of wonderfully illustrated children’s books, and titles on Asian American topics and contemporary arts and culture. Currently, Immedium has less than 10 employees, who range from graphic designers, artists, editors, and administrative staff. Meet Oliver Chin, publisher of Immedium and accomplished author whose works include children’s books The Year of the Dog and The Adventures of Wonderbaby.

Preparation for Immedium
“As a cartoonist in college, I wanted to continue work in publishing and help spread ideas worth sharing. Then my work career became marketing and selling products from media companies, both large and small. I learned how products are created to satisfy a demand, target audiences, and build customer loyalty. But then I took the opportunity to write two books. This experience inspired me to return to my roots and build a publishing company based upon imaginative ideas that are well executed.”

Not Just For Children

“Though most of our books are categorized for young children (ages 4-8), Immedium also aims to please parents and gift-givers who appreciate being entertained when they read to kids.”

“However, we occasionally publish specialty titles, such Desert to Dream: A Decade of Burning Man Photography, which certainly attracted adults with an alternative/artistic attitude.”

Motivation

“[B]ecoming parents motivated us to start Immedium. Once we started searching for good books to read to our children, we realized there was still room (and, more importantly from a parental perspective, need) to create stories that had stellar art, contemporary relevance, and timeless themes. [We are motivated to make] great books for kids and parents – ones that resonate with humor, understanding, and engaging art.”

Landing a Wholesale Account

“Immedium landed its first wholesale account before we actually incorporated. Trade distribution was essential to the business’ viability, so we submitted proposals, got multiple offers, and chose one. Once we inked that, we were off and running.”

Selling Books

“We sell through our web site (http://www.immedium.com/) as well as others like Amazon, which get books from distribution, or a few that work directly from us through consignment. We have done limited consignment, experimenting locally as well as with stores far away which have a compatible clientele.”

“[Aside from selling] through bookstores (traditional and online), [we] are actively building a network of specialty retailers and community associations.”

Marketing/Advertising

“[We market our products] through our distributors catalogs [and by contacting] specialty retailers directly to get orders.”

“[We also] contact news outlets and send press releases. [In addition,] we actively try to get out books reviewed (print and online) and set up author events. We are experimenting in keyword/search engine advertising.”

Challenges with Building a Company

“Beyond raising and committing the capital, every step is challenging: from coming up with a marketable concept and finding talented artists, to printing the books and convincing retailers and consumers to buy them. We can make the best titles ever, but if people don’t see them on store shelves, they may never know what they’re missing.”

“Being a small company, we lack the marketing, distribution, and sales of larger companies. We have to compensate by constantly building our own network of customers who value our products and help generate awareness.”

Recommended Business Resources

“The Small Business Administration is a good place to start. Generally, you need to read the trade media particular to your market, and keep abreast of social trends from your local newspaper and national periodicals.”

Artistic Inspiration

“[I am inspired by ] artists whom I work with. I enjoy befriending creators who really produce dazzling art and push me forward to share it with others.”

Words of Advice-Be Your Own Best Sales Person

“Beyond coming up with a salable concept, you can’t be afraid to contact people. If you think your product is worth buying, it is worth calling a stranger about or saying hello to someone in a store. You have to be your own best sales person, because you know your creation best.”

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Contact:
Publicity Department
Immedium
P.O. Box 31846

San Francisco, CA 94131