'Growing is a pain': The trials and tribulations of growing a small business
A series of pivots and changes have helped Tameka Jones and her lip care line, Lip Esteem, continue to grow during a turbulent period for small businesses.
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Tameka Jones always wanted to own a lipstick company, she just didn't know how much the Minnesota State Fair could help in running one.
Hard work, planning, and grit aside, the world of small business can often be complex with unforeseen obstacles and unavoidable challenges. Two years after opening her first brick-and-mortar shop, Jones and her lip care company, Lip Esteem, have learned the value of a quick pivot.
Growings pains
"There's not a lot of brick-and-mortar stores on Selby; it's been hard to get foot traffic into the store. So we've had to pivot," said Jones.
The pivot that Jones made would require changing much of the business plan that created Lip Esteem, switching from a business-to-customer setting to a business-to-business model.
"I became a certified women business owner, so now we can do more federal and state contracts. And so what we've done is now we're in talks with local hospitals to put our products in there," added Jones.
The change has helped speed things along for Lip Esteem, which has since been picked up by all three Mississippi Market co-ops and become the vendor for the Minnesota Vikings Cheerleaders.
The shift to focusing more on businesses hasn't meant the end for Lip Esteem's shop or its signature style of serving customers in one-on-one settings.
"We still service people one on one, but we're kind of looking at a bigger picture in order for us to scale and grow," said Jones.
But, just as one hurdle was overcome, another presented itself.
Construction challenges
"It's been really hard since Metro Transit came in and dug up the street," said Jones.
For a shop that was already struggling with foot traffic, construction projects right outside of its door weren't any help.
"The construction was in front of the store; my sidewalk was gravel," added Jones.
Jones said she initially began investing in other, smaller events to push her products but wasn't seeing a return.
"I had been investing in going to other events, paying hundreds of dollars to be in these events, but I wasn't getting the return on my investment," said Jones.
But there was one event that could potentially help her small business gain customers and move her lip care products.
Minnesota State Fair
"The fair is the greatest Minnesota event that you could ever have. And as a small business owner trying to sell products, I wanted to be where the people are," Jones told me behind a curtain at Lip Esteem's booth in the Grandstand.
The constant disruption of construction directly outside her business led Jones to search for greener pastures.
"There is no event that I'm going to do that's going to be able to provide my salary, the director of operations salary and our intern and so I said, 'You know what? The only thing I can do is go to the State Fair,'" said Jones.
Jones said Lip Esteem's booth at the state fair has helped the company significantly increase its sales volume, but to staff the booth adequately Jones closed down the brick-and-mortar shop on Selby Avenue.
It's Jones' second year at the fair and she's even more optimistic about the outlook of her business after Lip Esteem was recently added to the fair's coupon book.
Despite the ups and downs of small business ownership, Jones is grateful to be exactly where she is.
"I still can't believe I have a lipstick company. I don't think that I ever imagined this,"
You can check out Lip Esteem at its booth on the second floor of the Grand Stand at the Minnesota State Fair. You can also drop by Lip Esteem's shop on 876 Selby Ave. once the state fair wraps up.