Bree Richey on growing a business

In 2011, Bree Richey was doing well. She had developed a successful home-based jewelry design business, creating silver jewelry with clean, fluid styles echoing her favorite Art Deco and architectural themes. She also had about a hundred galleries as solid clients, a manageable base that allowed her to handle almost everything herself, with some marketing/pr assistance.

However, she wanted more.

“I wanted to add new and interesting design styles,” she remembers today, “and I wanted to be a bigger business—I didn’t want to keep working out of my house. I wanted to hire people to whom I delegate those things that weren’t my strengths. But to do that, I had to make a leap, and I didn’t know how to do that.”

The answer came when Bree spotted an announcement for the first Future of Design (FOD) competition. Described as a “business incubator,” the contest, sponsored by the Jeweler’s Resource Bureau and StrategyWerx, focused on not just design skills, but also business practices and strategies. Contestants were required to fill out an application that was, in essence, a miniature business plan. Semi-finalists received one-on-one sessions with renowned industry experts and designers, and the finalists competed for the grand prize: a package of consulting and manufacturing services valued at $250,000. (The finale was held on the last day of MJSA Expo New York in March 2012.)

It was hard to ignore such a tantalizing prize—one that would provide the resources necessary for a small business to advance and “leap” ahead—and Bree didn’t hesitate; she immediately entered the contest. But as soon as she opened the application form, she realized that getting to the prize would not be easy.

“When I sat down and looked at the questions, it kind of woke me up,” she says. “They were difficult, complicated questions—questions like ‘Where are you going to be in five years?’ and ‘What do you want your business to look like?’”

They were, she admits, questions, she should have been asking all along, but had resisted. “I avoided them because I think I was afraid to ask them,” she says “I came at my business from an artistic/design perspective, and I had never completely thought through the business side; everything I had done had been instinctual.”

In that sense, her experience probably typified that of any young jewelry-designer-turned-entrepreneur. Although she came from a family well known in jewelry circles (her father, William, is a renowned designer, and her mother, Marlene, is well respected as a former gallery owner and current consultant/author), Bree began making jewelry only after being introduced to it in her college years, back in the early 1990s. She progressed through several years of apprenticeship, then began seriously considering how to build her own business: she assembled mailing lists, developed catalogs, and in 2004 did her first wholesale show and officially launched Bree Richey Designs. Things progressed well, and Bree felt comfortable heading her own firm. Then she had her epiphany in 2011, and she was forced to confront the fact that her business growth had stalled—and she didn’t know how to get it unstuck.

So, faced with that FOD application, she sat down, thought through those complicated questions, and answered them. In fact, she answered them so well that she won that debut competition, and received the prize package she had coveted. But, in many respects, the biggest reward had already been received: She had been forced to confront, and conquer, those intimidating but all-important business aspects that she had long avoided.

Below, Bree reflects on some of the FOD questions offers her thoughts, post competition, about key business topics.

Who’s Your Competition?

Bree: I had no idea; I really struggled with that. I hadn’t really thought of my business as being in competition with other designers’ businesses—it was more like I created this product, I sold it, and people liked it. The question made me look at other women like me in the craft market, designers who were looking for a wider audience. I began looking at what they did, and then looking at my own business and thinking, What is my service like? What do my catalogs look like? What does my trade show booth look like? I evaluated all of those things that support my product, that make people want to work with us. And I realized that, to be a legitimate business, I had to up the ante, because I wasn’t just competing with myself.

(Ironically, in my answer I put down two designers, Elizabeth Garvin and Jennifer Dawes, who actually were my competition in the finale of the Future of Design contest!)

Where Will Your Business Be in One, Five, and Ten Years?

Bree: I was pretty clear about where I wanted to be in one to three years—I was going to add to my list of galleries and do things with the craft market, but also do more “industry” shows, like JA New York and JCK, and to get into more traditional jewelry stores. The five-to-10-year answer I settled on was broader: “To eventually be known within the craft and the industry sides of the business for designs that are unique and have a recognizable look, and to have a number of employees who can do what they’re best at.”

This question really made me reflect on where I needed help. I’m bad at delegating—I want to be in charge of every little part of the process. However, while I’m good at making and designing jewelry, and good at selling and customer relations, I’m bad at accounting and bookkeeping and organizing paperwork; my brain doesn’t think that way. I’m also not well versed in anything computer related. I was hoping that I could slowly adapt [into those things I wasn’t’ good at], but being forced to think ahead a few years made me realize I can’t run around and fill in areas. I at least needed to have someone who could be in charge of marketing, accounting, and office work.

What Is Your Corporate Culture?

Bree: When I saw this question, I didn’t know if I even had a corporate culture. It used to be just my mom [who helped with part-time marketing] and I, but in the past year we’ve added two more employees and an apprentice. One thing we try to do is have an open atmosphere. We have a big round table, and we all do the same grunt work together, as well as the fun things. We also try to create a real learning atmosphere. One thing I do well, I make really nice silver jewelry that’s finished like gold. I’ve taught one woman the technique for it, and she’s taught others. I know that at some point they’ll probably learn and then move on, but that’s ok. I just try to encourage them and keep them excited and involved. That’s the fun part of it—I learned that from my mom.

About Pricing and Cash Flow

Bree: As I began growing and had more expenses, I realized that cash flow was crucial: When you need money at specific times [whether to pay salaries or loans or any other expense], you better make sure that everything is figured out down to the penny, and you have money when you need it. There are always the variables—what if a collection doesn’t take off, and you have all of this money tied up in it—but over time, as you learn more about your customers, their likes and their spending requirements, you get better at producing jewelry at specific price points that will sell. I can take a look at my line now and see where, based on my customers’ tastes and how much they spend, I might have product gaps to fill. I thought I might feel limited by designing to meet a price point, but it’s actually great: by starting at the price and going backward, I’m better able to work out the production mechanics and to have fewer problems.

Bree’s Recommendations for Others:

For anyone who wants to grow a business, I would recommend they go to night school and take basic business classes, to learn how to understand basic terms, to think about capital, and how they’re going to fund growth. I started my business with nothing and built up as I went. But our business has doubled this year, and I work a lot closer with my accountant; I now know how much money I need to make each week, how much product needs to be made, and how much needs to be shipped. More than anything else, business success is about knowledge: Knowing where your business stands.