Small Business Connect highlights regional entrepreneurs and small business owners who have been recognized by area Chamber of Commerce organizations and/or the State of North Dakota for their achievements. This week’s post contains excerpts from our conversation with Michael Shope, CEO of Clean Republic LLC. Clean Republic manufactures and distributes practical alternative energy products, including electric bike conversion kits. The company launched its first product in the spring of 2009.
Based in Grand Forks, North Dakota, Clean Republic was recently named a 2010 Innovate ND winner. Innovate ND is a business venture competition that helps entrepreneurs grow their businesses through cash prizes and in-kind professional services.
City Bike
Small Business Connect (SBC): What inspired you to become an entrepreneur?
Michael Shope (MS): I work as an entrepreneur because I care so greatly about overlapping my occupation with issues and work that I care about. It’s possible to do this by getting hired in another company at the “perfect job” that has a cause you believe in, people you like, and an enjoyable environment, but statistically it is very improbable. I find it much easier to fill a large proportion of my time running my own business with work that I believe in and that makes me happy than it is to save up money for five days doing a job I hate, and then try to turn my money into life enjoyment during Saturday and Sunday. Being an entrepreneur is a way to get a very efficient “life value per hour” ratio.
SBC: What have been your biggest challenges?
MS: One of our biggest challenges has been to decide which tasks to do ourselves and which tasks to pay outside service providers or contractors to complete. If we do too much work ourselves, we have no time or energy left to grow the business, and consequently, it would stay a small cottage industry. If we outsource responsibility and pay “consultants” to make all our sales and planning decisions, we could run out of cash or be pushed into bad decisions by outsiders who don’t really care about our project.
SBC: How have you overcome these challenges?
MS: We pay outside people to help us with the most basic and simplest tasks we can identify; the things that require the least passion or attention to the business philosophy. We also use Google AdWords advertising instead of spending thousands of hours manually generating web traffic. We remain focused on the most important things: product development, customer service, and retail website design.
Hill Topper Electric Bike Conversion Kit
SBC: How has the economy impacted your business?
MS: We’re selling electric bike kits faster than we can make them. It’s a very affordable alternative to a car, and it benefits from all the eco-buzz about bike riding. Our product is one that people want in order to make changes to their lifestyle due to the current forces in our economy.
SBC: What are your top three tips for people dreaming of starting their own business?
MS:
- Get a part-time job that requires ONLY as many hours as you need to pay your most basic bills. Any more time at a part time job takes you away from your start-up. Any less will cause you to spend savings and cause you to make rushed, probably poor decisions in a hurry to make an untimely profit from your new business. You need a good personal “survival” budget in the start-up phase.
- If you’re thinking of some new product, go to the hardware store and make a prototype immediately, and then sell it. The minute you try this, you’ll find 10 gaping holes in your imaginary business plan, and then you will find solutions to those problems. Also, sell your prototypes. Right away. Worried about your budding brand? Sell the stuff on eBay in auction format. eBay sales are good at indicating the general issues with your product, but your brand is “insulated” because eBay customers are by definition part of a special club of consumers who don’t expect everything to be perfect. Your prototypes will give you very clear indications of how your final products will be received by future customers.
- Learn some new skills instead of throwing money at a consultant or “expert.” Only pay other people to do something for you after you have done it yourself. It’s okay to outsource tasks, processes, or services, but if you didn’t do it yourself first for a few hundred hours, you’ll have no idea if you’re getting scammed or getting your money’s worth.
in West Fargo, North Dakota. DogIDs was founded in 2005 on the mission of producing and supplying only the best dog products available.
