Seeding a New Business

The initial years of a business are undoubtedly the most challenging for a variety of reasons, most prominently the fact that within the initial stages, entrepreneurs are still ideating their business concept. There are many things that one could do wrong in the process of building their empire – especially if the business owner is relatively new to the supply-chain. Fortunately, most entrepreneurs that have grown to be successful business owners are willing and able to give their two cents on the matter in hopes of helping other entrepreneurs become successful. The fact is, even the simplest mistakes can be detrimental to the success of a business, so it is always better to avoid making them!

Frank Delgadillo; Chief Executive, brand builder, designer, and creative director is one such successful entrepreneur, who hopes to see the youth of today becoming successful creative-entrepreneurs of tomorrow and has more than enough advice to offer. With 24 years of experience, Delgadillo has founded numerous companies, namely Ambiguous Industries in 1996, Commune in 2008, Komforte Chockolates in 2010, Chapter in 2011, Colony 2139 in 2014, and DECO86 in 2019. Additionally, he has also worked as Mitsubishi’s creative director for Port & Marine Walk Yokohama, Japan in 2015. Each company that Delgadillo has influenced, or was a part of, gained massive success thanks to his entrepreneurial mind, iconoclastic thinking, and his ability to identify talent.

Resilience

Within the current marketplace many people still falsely believe that they do not need a true concept and brand vision to build a successful business. There is a lot more that goes into the process of starting, executing, then exiting a business - it may seem simple and easy on the outside, but it can become very complicated and requires cohesive creative solutions and dynamic thinking.

The most challenging growth period for any business or brand is $0-10M. In most cases, every business is initially a small business until it actually has narrowed its focus on its distinctive strategy over the quarters and years. Simply put, the hallmarks of successful entrepreneurs are courage, dedication, and hard work. Nurturing these key characteristics are Frank’s legacy left behind for the next generation of “creative thinkers turned entrepreneurs”.

The Pivot

As mentioned before, all businesses are inclined to start small. This is mainly due to the fact that most entrepreneurs aim to make sure that they can handle a small-sized business, prior to expanding, and make sure that they can handle a corporation that has the potential to double or triple in size. Moreover, it is also important for the business owner to focus on a unique selling point that would help their business communicate a unique vision as to best stand out and ascend over the competitors. 

At the end of the day, the main question on any customers mind would be “why should I invest in your products and services?”

If you just make it a habit to tap into your creative genius whenever you want to come up with ideas that help you stand out, then you will be able to observe and create a successful marketing strategy as well. This is one of the most undervalued skills in traditional business. 

Mentor Moment

When it comes to starting a business, many people are under the notion that having a scholastic degree is the only way one can begin and set foot on their journey to becoming entrepreneurs - the truth is; most importantly experience, hard-work, dedication and the ability to strategically problem-solve will be the currency to take you where you need to be. Many others and I are proof that it is possible to start a highly-valued business without having a degree. The key to your success will lie in how creatively you assess problems, lead from the frontline and how well you manage execution.