02: Building and Selling a Brick and Mortar Business with Nigel Brooks

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In this episode, I interview Nigel Brooks to discuss about his transition from the corporate world to building a brick and mortar business.

As a case study, we review how he built his cafe and catering business that he sold in 2000. He had at peak 20 employees.

Nigel is an entrepreneur and a management consultant who started his first entrepreneurial venture when he was 15 years old.

He shares with us about the importance of creating a business plan and the challenges related to owning a retail business.

Time Stamped

• [00:20] A brick and mortar business as a case study
• [00:25] Introducing Nigel Brooks
• [02:24] Nigel presenting his background
• [02:40] When he considered himself as an entrepreneur
• [03:20] Entrepreneurial mindset in the corporate world
• [03:57] Leaving American Express to start a coffee and catering business
• [05:50] How did you manage your time between your work and your venture?
• [06:14] How long did it take to write a business plan?
• [07:11] How much time should we spend on the business plan?
• [08:34] What should we consider when creating a business plan?
• [09:33] What about a one-page business plan?
• [11:09] How did you get the idea about starting a retail business?
• [13:41] Skills needed to start a business vs passion
• [15:56] How to stay motivated when things get tough?
• [17:46] Listening to customers’ suggestions
• [18:55] How do you establish yourself as a well known expert?
• [20:49] How to maintain a personal life?
• [22:49] Effort required to manage a retail business
• [24:14] Avoiding technology overwhelm
• [25:00] What happened to the business?
• [26:00] Did you originally plan to sell your business?
• [29:11] How do you know when it’s time to sell?
• [31:13] What do you wish you would have known if you were to start again?
• [32:26] When to take into account clients’ inputs
• [34:15] About his new venture related to writing good sounding music
• [36:48] Links to find Nigel online
• [37:27] Summary and taking action: what would you write in your business plan?

The Show Notes

• Nigel business website
• Nigel personal website
• Follow Thuy on Twitter

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