Whether it’s your hobby, special skill, passion for a service, or a great idea, when it comes to starting your business it can be scary, intimidating, and feel like A LOT. Today Connie and Rob Lawson, the creators, owners, and chocolatiers behind Sweet Ashley’s Chocolate, share their journey in business, and the mistakes and successes along the way.
Sweet Ashley’s Chocolate is a small chocolate company in Pennsylvania, born out of natural talent and a side hustle turned full-blown company. Connie and Rob run their business together, with their daughter Ashley as the namesake. Life changes and a desire to bring her chocolate to more people brought Connie to a small storefront, and things moved quickly from there.
Connie and Rob share some of the mistakes they’ve made along the way. Some costing them thousands in unplanned expenses. They want to assure new business owners, this is going to happen. And it’s okay! Mistakes will happen. Sometimes the same one twice. Fix them. Learn from them. Move on.
Along their business journey they’ve experienced a recession, COVID, worldwide supply chain issues, store and manufacturing moves, and major equipment purchases. These have all caused ebbs and flows in their numbers, profits, and growth. Connie warns business owners to not follow all advice to the T, because every business is different. Some accountants may recommend that if your business isn’t profitable at year 5 then you should fold up and go home. For Sweet Ashley’s this was not the case because of all the change, investment, and growth they had in their first 5 years… even if on paper things did not look great.
Each step, Connie and Rob took as they continued on their business venture felt like huge steps, but looking back, they were small risks and investments in their business and their future growth. The couple's biggest piece of advice for anyone ready to start a small business is one we’ve heard on the podcast time and time again. Get Help! They urge business owners to hire people with expertise in the areas they need help with: accounting, IT, marketing, etc. You can’t do it alone!
You can find out more about Sweet Ashley’s Chocolate online or visit them at their in-person location! If you found this episode helpful, please like, subscribe, and follow us on social media!
What’s Inside:
Mentioned In This Episode:
Sweet Ashley's Chocolate
Whether it’s your hobby, special skill, passion for a service, or a great idea, when it comes to starting your business it can be scary, intimidating, and feel like A LOT. Today Connie and Rob Lawson, the creators, owners, and chocolatiers behind Sweet Ashley’s Chocolate, share their journey in business, and the mistakes and successes along the way.
Sweet Ashley’s Chocolate is a small chocolate company in Pennsylvania, born out of natural talent and a side hustle turned full-blown company. Connie and Rob run their business together, with their daughter Ashley as the namesake. Life changes and a desire to bring her chocolate to more people brought Connie to a small storefront, and things moved quickly from there.
Connie and Rob share some of the mistakes they’ve made along the way. Some costing them thousands in unplanned expenses. They want to assure new business owners, this is going to happen. And it’s okay! Mistakes will happen. Sometimes the same one twice. Fix them. Learn from them. Move on.
Along their business journey they’ve experienced a recession, COVID, worldwide supply chain issues, store and manufacturing moves, and major equipment purchases. These have all caused ebbs and flows in their numbers, profits, and growth. Connie warns business owners to not follow all advice to the T, because every business is different. Some accountants may recommend that if your business isn’t profitable at year 5 then you should fold up and go home. For Sweet Ashley’s this was not the case because of all the change, investment, and growth they had in their first 5 years… even if on paper things did not look great.
Each step, Connie and Rob took as they continued on their business venture felt like huge steps, but looking back, they were small risks and investments in their business and their future growth. The couple's biggest piece of advice for anyone ready to start a small business is one we’ve heard on the podcast time and time again. Get Help! They urge business owners to hire people with expertise in the areas they need help with: accounting, IT, marketing, etc. You can’t do it alone!
You can find out more about Sweet Ashley’s Chocolate online or visit them at their in-person location! If you found this episode helpful, please like, subscribe, and follow us on social media!
What’s Inside:
Mentioned In This Episode:
Sweet Ashley's Chocolate