5 years down...
Last February it was 5 years ago that I registered as weColLaborate with the CoC and I can say that a lot has happened since then.
The start was of course absurd, because less than 2 weeks later the first case of Corona was diagnosed in Netherlands and what happened after that is now history.... more than a year later I could really start my company.
And what a “journey” it has been so far!
Starting a small business is not that difficult, but owning and maintaining one is a completely different story. I had to convert my thoughts from being an employee at a large company with a permanent contract, where many things are automatically organised, to being an independent entrepreneur, where I have to organise everything myself.
My business plan, administration and work processes were ready fairly quickly, as a Lab Manager and Colour Specialist I was already used to project-based way of working, but what is the best way to acquire customers, what will my hourly rate be, do I need an accountant and solicitor/barrister, what PR approach do I follow, are LinkedIn and a website valuable tools?
There are not that many Colour Specialists of technical plastics in the world, so I knew that my qualities could be interesting, but it remains daunting to commercialise this via my own company: who is interested?
And then I wrote my first blog, did my first PR via LinkedIn, approached (cautiously) some first companies and… the first companies came came to me. Phew, that felt good!
Now 5 years ago, 43 blogs later, looking back, I can form some conclusions. First of all, of course, that I still believe it was a good decision to start my own company weColLaborate: what freedom I have, what a pleasant balance between work and free time (which I can fill with art - culture - volunteer work of my own choosing), what a diversity of enjoyable and interesting customers and work, what fun I have in the PR side of my company and also to some extent a sense of pride (I say it carefully, I don't like the word very much) that I did it... whatever happens or will happen, I have (as often in my life) did it my way.
Linkedin for me is a useful work tool, where I can present my blogs and PR and, additionally, you build a good and interesting network of both people and companies that I already knew, but also new ones. I see it as the modern day version of word-of-mouth advertising. It is and remains essential to approach potential customers personally and my experience is that it helps enormously to present potential collaborations via a custom-made pitch or project plan.
My benchmarks in the field of Engineering Plastics producers, Colour spectrophotometers, Pigments and Dyes are valuable instruments in this, especially now that there is so much demand for independent advice in the field of, for example, sustainability and new applications.
I considered and decided early on at the start of weColLaborate that (among other things) discretion and trust are pillars of my company. For example, I will not easily mention the names of my customers and/or contacts in PR statements and beyond, except where it is to their advantage (after consultation of course). And I do not want to lose my independence in any way, so no surcharge or reward from, for example, producers and suppliers of raw materials and equipment that I include in the advice to my customers... the only reasons why I do or do not "promote" these suppliers is because of quality, price, communication and service/support.
What is also not unimportant is that I continue to develop myself (and want to do so), the world does not stand still, the market is in motion and so I do not sit still either. I am not only an analyst by nature, but also a researcher. The how and why interests me endlessly and the world of Colour offers me a rainbow of great subjects to research. From raw materials and compounding to injection moulding and analysis to recycling and sustainability and that in particular for Engineering Plastics (although now also other materials), which is a very challenging and diverse group of plastics.
It has been a great “journey” so far and it has given me a lot: freedom, independence, creativity and expression. It has given me a world of new fun contacts and a deepening of existing ones. It has given me a broadening of knowledge, and the application thereof, that I already had; walking existing paths and discovering new ones. With my blogs and the development of my (unique) Knowledge Hub E-learning and training material I have been able to shape my passion for sharing information, and supporting employees in their personal development. In the conviction that there is more to life than financial gain, I am happy that I have been able to share my experiences with other starters who are still at the beginning of their “journey”. I too could not have done it without the help of freelance predecessors.
And I couldn't have done it without, I want to mention them by name in this blog, my indispensable help from Dominique and Thérèse (Administration & Advice, Legal Advice; companies closed down), the designers, André and Sheila - Digi-D company (www.digi-d.nl), of my beautiful website and business card (Sheila, I still get compliments!) or my patient company photographer René (www.rwkiek.nl), my accountant René from www.kerssies.com and the many existing and new people in my network, such as sparring partner Arthur from www.ecnn.nl, the immensely interesting LASER creative Edwin Kroon (www.ekyw.nl) and, last but certainly not least, my good and knowledgeable work friend Henriette Frese, J+F Chemicals, who I can always rely on to have a vigorous and fun discussion with or simply exchange ideas over a cup of tea.
5 years on the road I can say that I am precisely where I need (and want) to be… and that makes me a grateful person 👍
The start was of course absurd, because less than 2 weeks later the first case of Corona was diagnosed in Netherlands and what happened after that is now history.... more than a year later I could really start my company.
And what a “journey” it has been so far!
Starting a small business is not that difficult, but owning and maintaining one is a completely different story. I had to convert my thoughts from being an employee at a large company with a permanent contract, where many things are automatically organised, to being an independent entrepreneur, where I have to organise everything myself.
My business plan, administration and work processes were ready fairly quickly, as a Lab Manager and Colour Specialist I was already used to project-based way of working, but what is the best way to acquire customers, what will my hourly rate be, do I need an accountant and solicitor/barrister, what PR approach do I follow, are LinkedIn and a website valuable tools?
There are not that many Colour Specialists of technical plastics in the world, so I knew that my qualities could be interesting, but it remains daunting to commercialise this via my own company: who is interested?
And then I wrote my first blog, did my first PR via LinkedIn, approached (cautiously) some first companies and… the first companies came came to me. Phew, that felt good!
Now 5 years ago, 43 blogs later, looking back, I can form some conclusions. First of all, of course, that I still believe it was a good decision to start my own company weColLaborate: what freedom I have, what a pleasant balance between work and free time (which I can fill with art - culture - volunteer work of my own choosing), what a diversity of enjoyable and interesting customers and work, what fun I have in the PR side of my company and also to some extent a sense of pride (I say it carefully, I don't like the word very much) that I did it... whatever happens or will happen, I have (as often in my life) did it my way.
Linkedin for me is a useful work tool, where I can present my blogs and PR and, additionally, you build a good and interesting network of both people and companies that I already knew, but also new ones. I see it as the modern day version of word-of-mouth advertising. It is and remains essential to approach potential customers personally and my experience is that it helps enormously to present potential collaborations via a custom-made pitch or project plan.
My benchmarks in the field of Engineering Plastics producers, Colour spectrophotometers, Pigments and Dyes are valuable instruments in this, especially now that there is so much demand for independent advice in the field of, for example, sustainability and new applications.
I considered and decided early on at the start of weColLaborate that (among other things) discretion and trust are pillars of my company. For example, I will not easily mention the names of my customers and/or contacts in PR statements and beyond, except where it is to their advantage (after consultation of course). And I do not want to lose my independence in any way, so no surcharge or reward from, for example, producers and suppliers of raw materials and equipment that I include in the advice to my customers... the only reasons why I do or do not "promote" these suppliers is because of quality, price, communication and service/support.
What is also not unimportant is that I continue to develop myself (and want to do so), the world does not stand still, the market is in motion and so I do not sit still either. I am not only an analyst by nature, but also a researcher. The how and why interests me endlessly and the world of Colour offers me a rainbow of great subjects to research. From raw materials and compounding to injection moulding and analysis to recycling and sustainability and that in particular for Engineering Plastics (although now also other materials), which is a very challenging and diverse group of plastics.
It has been a great “journey” so far and it has given me a lot: freedom, independence, creativity and expression. It has given me a world of new fun contacts and a deepening of existing ones. It has given me a broadening of knowledge, and the application thereof, that I already had; walking existing paths and discovering new ones. With my blogs and the development of my (unique) Knowledge Hub E-learning and training material I have been able to shape my passion for sharing information, and supporting employees in their personal development. In the conviction that there is more to life than financial gain, I am happy that I have been able to share my experiences with other starters who are still at the beginning of their “journey”. I too could not have done it without the help of freelance predecessors.
And I couldn't have done it without, I want to mention them by name in this blog, my indispensable help from Dominique and Thérèse (Administration & Advice, Legal Advice; companies closed down), the designers, André and Sheila - Digi-D company (www.digi-d.nl), of my beautiful website and business card (Sheila, I still get compliments!) or my patient company photographer René (www.rwkiek.nl), my accountant René from www.kerssies.com and the many existing and new people in my network, such as sparring partner Arthur from www.ecnn.nl, the immensely interesting LASER creative Edwin Kroon (www.ekyw.nl) and, last but certainly not least, my good and knowledgeable work friend Henriette Frese, J+F Chemicals, who I can always rely on to have a vigorous and fun discussion with or simply exchange ideas over a cup of tea.
5 years on the road I can say that I am precisely where I need (and want) to be… and that makes me a grateful person 👍
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