Started my business a few years ago, doing convention design and manufacturing.
Projects have been lengthy, but the rewards have been worth it. We would find clients wanting to exhibit at a convention through hundreds of cold emails and contacts. We would plan and design without getting paid and landing on a contract, usually after months of preparation.
We send orders for raw materials to Asia and get everything shipped to keep a competitive price edge over larger companies.
Our revenue broke 1m revenue back in 2019, and it all felt everything was on the way to success until Covid hit. We lost all of our contracts for 2020 and 2021, and more than half of our clients also went under.
Just as I thought the company would not make it for 2022, we stumbled on a large project this year, and we hoped to catapult the business to the next level. This felt like the "big break" you see in movies and tv shows.
We leased a bigger shop and got more hands and equipment. In hindsight, this was one of the worst decisions I have ever made.
Not doing much for 2 years was pretty bad. Many of our subcontractors went out of business, and many have an overwhelming amount of work. We outsource a lot of our work, due to various reasons, from the equipment to the amount of skilled labour we have. With many new contractors this year, everything started falling apart.
This single project had everything we'd hoped for, and everything went wrong.
- Shipping came in way too late from a labour dispute at the harbour
- Some contractors turn in work that is not up to standards, and we'd have to redo much of it.
- Exploding costs from rising inflation
- Third-party unions refuse to work
We kept the project moving, but it had many flaws. The client refuses to pay the remainder of the work, leaving the company's cash flow drying out. And bad things come in bunches. We've also lost a few projects that may help us survive.
The only way to chase a six-digit unpaid invoice is through legal means, and we barely have enough funds to keep the lights on.
Our current situation is dire, and we have no idea what to do.
But for all of you, please don't reach the stage I am in. I have a few dying tips for you lol...
Projects have been lengthy, but the rewards have been worth it. We would find clients wanting to exhibit at a convention through hundreds of cold emails and contacts. We would plan and design without getting paid and landing on a contract, usually after months of preparation.
We send orders for raw materials to Asia and get everything shipped to keep a competitive price edge over larger companies.
Our revenue broke 1m revenue back in 2019, and it all felt everything was on the way to success until Covid hit. We lost all of our contracts for 2020 and 2021, and more than half of our clients also went under.
Just as I thought the company would not make it for 2022, we stumbled on a large project this year, and we hoped to catapult the business to the next level. This felt like the "big break" you see in movies and tv shows.
We leased a bigger shop and got more hands and equipment. In hindsight, this was one of the worst decisions I have ever made.
Not doing much for 2 years was pretty bad. Many of our subcontractors went out of business, and many have an overwhelming amount of work. We outsource a lot of our work, due to various reasons, from the equipment to the amount of skilled labour we have. With many new contractors this year, everything started falling apart.
This single project had everything we'd hoped for, and everything went wrong.
- Shipping came in way too late from a labour dispute at the harbour
- Some contractors turn in work that is not up to standards, and we'd have to redo much of it.
- Exploding costs from rising inflation
- Third-party unions refuse to work
We kept the project moving, but it had many flaws. The client refuses to pay the remainder of the work, leaving the company's cash flow drying out. And bad things come in bunches. We've also lost a few projects that may help us survive.
The only way to chase a six-digit unpaid invoice is through legal means, and we barely have enough funds to keep the lights on.
Our current situation is dire, and we have no idea what to do.
But for all of you, please don't reach the stage I am in. I have a few dying tips for you lol...
- Don't invest in liabilities unless you have signed projects to back them up. (like the new shop we have rented...)
- Don't take on large projects unless you have more than one plan B. We've burnt through 5 plans and never thought it would end up like this.
- Get an accountant early, plan out your cash flow, and don't bet on contracts that are not signed.
- Always have enough funds to save yourself if needed. Anything from 3-24 months may be needed if you need to sue.
- All the success stories you see online are mostly survivorship bias. Sometimes even if your team work to the death, you may still end up failing.
- Sometimes, it only takes one project for you to fail.
- When the failure started, at least for me, it was slow and gradual; I saw it, I tried all I could, and it still failed. After a certain point, it was like an unstoppable train.