Rachelle Duffy, left, of Little Big Events and Danielle Cubis, of Spongedrop Cakery. Photo/George Novak
Three local entrepreneurs - Rachelle Duffy - Little Big Events, Shaye Woolford - On My Hand Props Styling and Flora, and Danielle Cubis - Spongedrop Cakery, will be sharing their journey to running their own businesses in the Bay at the indulge Speaker Collective in association with Craigs Investment Partners on October 7 at ASB Arena. Annemarie Quill caught up with the three ladies this week just a few weeks out from the event.
Rachelle Duffy Rachelle Duffy is the founder of Little Big Events (www.littlebigevents.co.nz), an events company that has worked on hundreds of events across the Bay of Plenty, Waikato and Auckland regions. Rachelle's passion for building community through food, art, music and family has been instrumental in the launch of her charity event, Tauranga's Christmas in the Park, which over the past four years has raised in excess of $40,000 for organisations working with children and youth.
In addition, the annual event has provided a platform to help local organisations such as the Tauranga Food Bank, Homes of Hope and Women's Refuge. Rachelle's unique ability to form positive working relationships has enabled the business to flourish since it's inception in 2009, with a symbiotic approach to the local community.
1 Your first event in the Bay of Plenty was the little big markets, What drove you to start them and how do you feel about how they have developed? We initiated The Little Big Markets six years ago in Mount Maunganui because we recognised a need to start a quality artisan market that wasn't being offered in Mount Maunganui at that time. We had fairly short-term goals because it was initially treated as a hobby but our attitude to do everything comprehensively, coupled with good timing, meant the markets grew in popularity and working relationships within the community developed from there.
2 You and your husband work together; what are some of the pros and cons of this? Chris joined the business full-time last year, which saw the business expand more than 300 per cent over six months, so there's been a significant jump in workload, but Chris and I have worked together many times before and are able to adapt pretty well. Being a husband and wife team means we can be incredibly honest with each other, but it's important to build some boundaries around work and home life because the downside is the two can merge quite easily, so that's one element we try to keep in check.
3 What is the biggest challenge you face with your business development in Tauranga and how have you or do you plan to overcome it? The biggest challenge is sustainability - it's a reasonably small market, so our historical growth has been organic and nurtured in a way that has welcomed collaborative relationships to be formed. The approach has been a successful one as it's complemented our mantra of bringing communities together but it's also meant that we've been able to diversify our offerings and as a result created opportunities outside the region as well.
4 Your work requires a lot of late nights and weekends, how do you balance that with a young son? With difficulty - but we're blessed with an incredibly patient and easy going son. We have little pockets of time each day that we cherish, like morning time in bed watching sesame street, or after-dinner bath time and story reading, I guess we just grab every opportunity we can and some weeks it's awesome and some weeks it's not nearly enough.
5 Were you brought up in Tauranga and how has that helped you in business? I'm a born and bred Mountie from a pretty big family, which I think has helped our business tremendously. From the outset we relied on our networks to get momentum and I was lucky to have a great source of friends and contacts who attended our markets and helped with word-of-mouth marketing. I was obviously a member of our target market, which was the local community. I've grown up here and I'm passionate about the region, so I think that comes across in what we do and what we offer the community.
6 Best piece of business advice you have been given so far? Earn more than you spend. And do what makes you happy because that is what is going to drive you
7 What's next for you and your business? We're going through a transitional phase where we've employed some key personnel. We've been used to working as a two-man team for so long but we've reached the tipping point where, in order for us to develop the business further, we needed to invest in human resources. Our long-term goal is to take our event model nationwide, to replicate what we've done to other regions. We are expanding into the Auckland region first, this summer, taking over the Victoria Park Market patch, so that is pretty exciting.
Danielle Cubis Danielle Cubis is the owner and cake maker behind Spongedrop - a boutique cakery located in the iconic i-Site building on the edge of Coronation Park, Mount Maunganui.
From a market stall in 2012 Danielle has grown her baking business into a well-established and recognisable brand with a retail space open six days a week. Self-taught and baking everything from scratch, Danielle has always been passionate about food and the art of baking. Building her business on a foundation of quality and attention to detail Danielle's ultimate return on investment is seeing the joy on people's faces when they bite into one of her delectable Spongedrop creations.
1 When did you first open your market stall? What did you do before then? Spongedrop was launched at The Little Big Markets in July 2012. Before then I had spent my working career in advertising and marketing, in New Zealand and Australia. In 2011, I headed to London, where I worked at a cake supplies and decorating store for eight months trying to absorb as much knowledge as I could.
2 How did you learn to bake/discover a passion for it? I think I've always had a passion for food. Many of my earliest memories focus on food (such as eating chocolate in Switzerland). I remember my father would sometimes bake cakes in the middle of the night when he couldn't sleep and we'd wake up to freshly iced chocolate cake. Baking represents a lot of happy things - it's a way of showing love, of letting someone know they are cared for. I'm a mostly self-taught baker - I read as much as I can on the subject (when I have time!) including magazines, books, blogs and watching videos. I also talk to fellow bakers.
3 Was it always your intention to move into a store? That was always my dream, yes. I didn't know where my little business would take me when I started but I always hoped it would lead to a physical space.
4 Your specialties are cupcakes and cakes. How have you found going into retail with a limited product range or has this been an advantage as you have become known for this? I always wanted to offer something different for Tauranga locals. We are a growing city and there is space and demand for boutique stores that specialise in what they do. I think people appreciate when someone devotes their attention and skill to one particular practice. It shows passion. There are so many great cafes here so I never wanted to pit myself against them. I know my cakes and sweets and would never want to sacrifice the quality of those by trying to cater to everyone's needs. Sure, occasionally we get people coming in asking for pies but that's not what we do - so we direct them to someone who does. People are gradually learning and embracing our point of difference.
5 You have written columns for indulge and flavours, is writing something you enjoy and is there any chance we will see a Spongedrop book in the future? I hope so! I would love to write a Spongedrop book. I have squirrelled away some of my recipes in the hope that will happen one day. Writing is such a thrill. It's a challenge but hugely rewarding. I love writing for the Bay of Plenty Times as it lets me connect with readers and customers on a more personal level.
6 What's next, do you plan to extend into different locations? Possibly, although Spongedrop on Salisbury Ave is keeping me busy enough. There is still a lot we want to do with the business and I wouldn't want to expand until I felt we had achieved what we hoped to in our current space.
7 Best piece of business advice you have been given so far? This is more motivational quote than advice; "It always seems impossible until it's done." I know Nelson Mandela was referring to immensely more serious issues but this quote has pushed me through some of those internal brick walls we all hit when trying to achieve goals.
Shaye Woolford Shaye Woolford is a 30-year-old successful, self-taught stylist of events, florals and food. Shaye has a long background in the hospitality industry, but while starting a family created her business On My Hand | Props, Styling & Flora (www.onmyhand.co.nz). Being a unique start up in an unheard of, previously non-existent market, Shaye's vision and enthusiasm over the past four years has seen her business grow hand in hand with her family.
Shaye has an infinite passion for flowers and food and has built her business from scratch with drive and determination. She has contributed to many events throughout New Zealand as well as done commercial styling for print magazines such as Homestyle, Monday's Journal and Kinfolk.
1 How long have you had your business? I started it in 2011.
2 It began as a prop styling business, where did this idea come from? Was it a hobby that developed into a business? I saw a gap in the market for alternative prop hire and after having my own wedding and buying the things I needed, I found I had a lot of props to hire out to others, so I started a Facebook page and the business was born. The business has evolved by demand and I've grown it alongside raising the boys, so took on only what I could personally do in order to build and retain my reputation. The business caters for about 40-50 weddings a season.
3 Now you are known nationally and internationally for your wedding florals and food styling. Was this always the plan? Absolutely. I've always wanted to work with flowers although as I am self taught I needed to build a reputation before launching into the third facet of the business (florals). I wanted to make sure I was ready for it by way of teaching myself, and figuring out the systems relating to floristry. I found adding a botanical element to my styling made for an entirely cohesive event, and I've never looked back. With food styling this is more of a down-time interest right now, but it's something I'd love to pursue more in the future.
4 As a self-taught florist and stylist, how have you picked up your skills? I've picked up a few tricks from friends and other professionals along the way, as well as teaching myself, but it really is natural to me. It's something I just know and feel. I know what I love and don't love and I understand themes, natural colour palettes and trends. I've spent time recently learning styling and photography in Australia with some of the best in the industry, which was a great experience. I think styling and florals are constantly evolving so learning one way of doing something isn't necessarily going to see you through your career so I try to be open-minded and learn from everything I see and do.
5 In the past year you have moved your workspace from home to a shared studio space, how has that changed your business? It's been amazing to separate home and work life, it's done wonders for my stress levels and organisation skills. Now when I leave work it's easier to wind down, and make sure when I've got my mum hat on I'm present with the boys and my husband. It means I can set boundaries on the time I give to work, which has made me more efficient and focused. 6 What is the biggest challenge you have faced as a self-employed business women? The never-ending challenge of work-life balance!
7 Best piece of business advice you have been given so far? Dad told me to always trust my instincts. If it feels wrong it generally is.
8 You are born and raised locally, has this helped doing business in Tauranga? How? Absolutely, the long-term relationships I hold with people in Tauranga provides positive recognition in terms of word of mouth and my network encompasses a wide age bracket.
9 You are mum to two children. How do you juggle being a mother with your own business? Tips? I'm a mum to two busy boys, Hunter, 7, and George, 4. I juggle motherhood and work with amazing support from my husband and family. It's so great to have their help, and when I am full-time during wedding season I hire a nanny to assist so that I'm not completely reliant on family. It is hard as it takes a lot of income but I see it as a necessary way to achieve what I need to achieve to grow the business. During off season I love slowing down and enjoying them more, I move into part-time work June-August.
Tips: *As most mums are, be completely organised. Sunday I usually bake for the week, make my almond milk, chicken stock etc. I write meal plans and shop for what I need so once home on week nights I don't have to "think" and I can cook, be with family and chill. *I start each Monday like a weekly staff meeting. I plan my week, set goals for each day, add it all to my diary and make sure I'm putting systems in place for the end result.
Hear more from these inspirational ladies at the indulge Speaker Collective in association with Craigs Investment Partners on October 7.
They will join keynote speakers, nutritionist Claire Turnbull, who will speak on women's health; Jane Hastings, CEO of NZME, speaking on women in business; and Diane Maxwell, retirement commissioner, speaking on women's wealth.
Hurry if you want tickets to this, as well as our indulge Bay Model in association with Blur Eyecare and our indulge Outlet Sale in association with Aspire Health and Sports. VIP tickets to these events are already sold out; however, general admission tickets still available.