In this episode of ScaleUp Radio, we sit down with Yanika Cordina, the brilliant mind behind Cordina Hair, to unravel the journey of creating a revolutionary hair tool – the Flower Curl. Here are the key takeaways from our conversation:
**1. The Birth of Cordina Hair:**
- Struggling to find her career passion, Yanika initially started a pet care business in her 20s to gain experience and supplement her income.
- The unique Flower Curl hair tool emerged from Yanika’s frustration with traditional styling solutions.
- Launching Cordina Hair took 3 years, involving extensive prototyping, testing, patenting, and overcoming manufacturing challenges.
**2. Dragon's Den Drama:**
- Appearing on Dragon's Den, Yanika sought validation and exposure for her innovative product.
- Despite a deal falling through with Sarah Davies, the experience brought credibility, even though direct sales impact was minimal.
- Surprisingly, it was a viral social media video, not Dragon's Den, that fuelled significant sales growth.
**3. Navigating the Manufacturing Maze:**
- Finding manufacturing partners willing to innovate proved challenging but vital for Cordina Hair's success.
- Detailed technical specifications and production plans streamlined the manufacturing process.
- Starting with UK-based seamstresses and transitioning to a larger factory enabled scalable production.
**4. Fortifying with Patents:**
- Early filing for worldwide patents, guided by a freelance patent attorney, safeguarded designs and added value to the business.
- Intellectual property played a pivotal role in warding off copycats and supporting business growth.
**5. Sales Strategies and Partnerships:**
- Cordina Hair strategically leverages various sales channels, including direct e-commerce, retail partnerships, and collaborations with salons and boutiques.
- The partnership with Urban Outfitters stands out as a significant milestone, with US retailers driving substantial recurring orders.
- Wholesale partnerships heavily rely on vendors to drive promotion and sales.
**6. Mane-taining Marketing Mastery:**
- Cordina Hair achieved over 100 million views on TikTok and Instagram through a constantly evolving and controversial content strategy.
- Viral videos, while impactful, don't always correlate with sales, prompting Yanika to meticulously review performance data.
**7. Tackling Global Logistics:**
- International logistics remain a persistent challenge, requiring continuous optimisation to ensure smooth operations.
Join us as Yanika Cordina shares the ups, downs, and curls in her journey of building Cordina Hair into a thriving business in the beauty industry.
Scaling up your business isn't easy, and can be a little daunting. Let ScaleUp Radio make it a little easier for you. With guests who have been where you are now, and can offer their thoughts and advice on several aspects of business. ScaleUp Radio is the business podcast you've been waiting for.
If you would like to be a guest on ScaleUp Radio, please click here:
https://bizsmarts.co.uk/scaleupradio/apply
You can get in touch with Kevin here:
[email protected]
Kevin's Latest Book Is Available!
Drawing on BizSmart’s own research and experiences of working with hundreds of owner-managers, Kevin Brent explores the key reasons why most organisations do not scale and how the challenges change as they reach different milestones on the ScaleUp Journey. He then details a practical step by step guide to successfully navigate between the milestones in the form of ESUS - a proven system for entrepreneurs to scale up.
More on the Book HERE - https://www.esusgroup.co.uk/
Yanika can be found here:
linkedin.com/in/yanika-cordina-b47a5488
https://www.cordinahair.co.uk/
https://www.instagram.com/cordinahair/
[email protected]
Resources:
Microsoft 365 - https://www.office.com/
Later - https://later.com/