Nick Lavidge is the founder & CEO of Alley Group, one of Australia’s fastest growing startups, a hybrid between digital marketing agency and big data house, that specialises in increasing customer count and revenue for online retailers. With a starting capital of $8,000 he has built a team of 11 employees across two countries in two years with an annual turnover of AUD $3.7million. Nick forecasts AUD $10million in turnover for this calendar year. Nick is originally from Phoenix, Arizona and in 2008 graduated from LA’s USC Marshall School of Business, with a degree in finance and entrepreneurship. While studying, Nick continued down the entrepreneurial path, first turning a friend’s online sunglass business into a $100,000 a year job. He then co-founded a voice recognition business called Moshi, which later sold for $8million. Nick says ‘this was like Siri, before Siri was invented.’
Entrepreneurial Role Models:
Father
Role models at a group called EO
When business started difficulties overcame:
“Being an entrepreneur…especially making that leap is incredibly difficult. I mean when you look at most entrepreneurs they are usually very good at what they do, that is why they left their job to start their own business because they had that confidence to do that. And a lot of times when you do that you know you go from having a high paying salary and taking a cut in that salary or not paying yourself anything. And so that first year or so as you are trying to gain traction it’s a really stressful time for you and the people around you. You feel like you are pushing a boulder uphill that just doesn’t seem to get lighter and lighter. But I think similar to in the book Good to Great with the fly wheel the more and more that you push over a period of time things start to get a tiny bit easier and easier. And then you may seem a little bit more confident in your decision. But ehere are tons of things that are kind of difficult in the first initial stages. But I think persistence ultimately wins everything”…[Listen for More]
Favourite Books:
- Built to Sell: Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You Book by John Warrillow. You can listen to the John Warrillow podcast interview here
- Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make It…and Why the Rest Don’t, Rockefeller Habits 2.0 Book by Verne Harnish
Also mentioned:
- Good To Great Book by Jim Collins
- Harvey Mackay Books
Favourite Quote:
“Keep the end in mind”
Recommended Online Resources:
Podcasts
Audio Books
Ad Exchanger
Harvey Mackay University
Best Advice to Other Entrepreneurs:
“To be easy on yourself. I think it is really, really common for entrepreneurs can go through what is called a trough of sorrow where they doubt themselves. I think you taking the leap and trying to do something on your own is really admirable. So be kind of easy on yourself as you go and to really believe in yourself. But also trust in others that they also have some good ways of looking at the situation and trying take everything into consideration when you are growing your business”…[Listen for More]
More About Nick Lavidge:
Neil’s Quote at the Beginning:
“I think being a parent is the most challenging thing you do. That’s why we’re here. It’s at the heart of what it is to be a human being. It’s the ultimate experience because it questions everything about who you are. But it’s difficult.” Michael Sheen
Other Quotes From the Chat with Nick Lavidge:
- “If someone never knows about your brand how are you going to make them buy your product or service”
- “I love the work. I almost view it as a hobby. But I do think it is important like anything… Just because you love chocolate you can’t eat chocolate all of the time”
- “you can’t fail if you never quit”
- “no one wants to hire someone who is okay at a lot of things they want to hire someone who is really great at a specific thing”
- “making that transition from generalists to specialists is one of the main reasons our company grew”
- “We have a belief that we can teach people performance but we can’t teach them culture”
- “being okay with the ups and downs of a start-up business is really important”
- “if success is the only option you can’t really fail”
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