Founder and designer Lauren Moss has turned her love for health and fitness into a growing business. In October 2015 her company vivimoss is supporting Breast Cancer Awareness Month by
donating 20% from the sale of their ladies hot pink shorts and tees. Read about Lauren and her journey to business success in our interview feature with her.
Please tell us what is a
typical business day for you?
I typically start my day
at around 7.45am, when I check my emails, and have a quick coffee before taking
my dog, Chewie, for a play in the park. There-after each day is different. I
tend to try and split my day between social media, sales calls, manufacturer
research and keeping on top of the financial side of everything. I work from
home, and vivimoss is a ‘one
man band’ at
the moment, so there’s
a lot to keep on top of! I’m
a great believer in work/life balance, so I always make sure I make time for a
trip to the gym when required, and try to switch off (as much as possible) each
evening!
What made you start the
business and how did you get started?
I had been working in
finance in Edinburgh for close to 10 years, and although I loved my colleagues
and clients, I just did not find the job fulfilling. At the same time, I was
rediscovering my love for health and fitness, but could not find the type of
clothing that I wanted to train in. In a moment of madness, I decided to take
the leap and try to create my own. Since then I haven’t looked back!
I fortunately have a
very supportive, patient partner who has helped my immensely whilst I’ve been setting up the
business!
What would you say has
been your greatest accomplishment in the business world to date?
I think that simply
launching the range was a huge accomplishment for me, it was a long process and
a bit of a leap of faith!
What has been your
biggest challenge in business so far?
Moving into a totally
new industry was a big challenge, it was a terrifying leap. I have to say
though, that it has been so worthwhile. It is such a supportive, friendly
industry - the majority of people want to see you succeed and are happy to
offer advice and support.
What are your future
plans for the business?
It’s still very early days
for vivimoss, but what I would really like to do, is move the production to
somewhere in Europe. When I began searching for suppliers, Taiwan was at the
forefront of technical sportswear fabrics so it was a no brainer! I’ve recently found a
potential supplier in Portugal that I hope might be suitable, so watch this
space!
If you had to do it all
over again, what would you do differently?
Thats a tough one -
obviously I’ve made a lot of
mistakes, but if I hadn’t
made them, I would never have had that experience - its always easy with
hindsight!
When I first launched my
site, I was really keen to use ‘regular’ people for models, in regular locations. I’m a keen supporter of
promoting body confidence, and thought that it would be a great way to promote
the clothing. I’m
not sure that the industry is quite ready for this just yet though, and in the
future will probably have to move towards using fitness models!
Why is it so important
to inspire young women in particular to follow their dreams?
Life is simply more
fulfilling if you are doing something that you are passionate about. It’s easy to settle into a
job that is just ok and that pays the bills, and it’s tough to break away
from that. There are opportunities out there though that will help you follow
those dreams - and I think young women need to be made more aware of them.
What advice would you
give to somebody who wants to start a business in your industry?
Do your research!
Possibly my way of entering the industry (with absolutely no experience) was
not the most sensible! There are lots of businesses in the industry that
welcome interns, and that would be a great way to start. If that’s not possible, make
sure you talk to as many business owners as you possibly can. Other business
owners are a great source of information, and you can benefit hugely by
learning from their mistakes!!
What or who inspires you
in business and why?
I have met a few owners
of very successful businesses of late. And I was totally blown away by their
generosity of both their time and their advice, despite them clearly being
ridiculously busy. I’d
like to be one of those people!
What is your favourite inspirational quote?
Oooh, thats a tough one.
This would change regularly depending on my mood, but my current favourite
would be:
“The best advice I’ve ever received is, ‘no one else knows what
they’re doing either’ “ Ricky
Gervais
For more product
information please visit www.vivimoss.co.uk.
