Taking Your Idea from a Hobby to a Real Business: How One Woman Made the Leap
Hello, friends! ๐๐ผ๐๐พ๐ Thanks for kicking off your week with Generation Si!
So you have a hobby and are trying to make it into a full-time business? Camila Toro shares how she made the transition.
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๐ดIt's time to learn about Camila Toro.
ONE EXPERIENCE CAN SPARK A BIG IDEA
When Camila Toro was 10 years old, something happened that may seem quite ordinary, but it changed her life.
Her grandfather gave her a pack of smiley-face stickers.
โHe said, โSo you can share happiness with others.โโ
Well, Toro took this to heart.
She not only passed out the stickers to her cousins and friends, she has kept on passing out stickers, many years later.
โWhen people say, โOh, youโre doing that for your business.โ No. No. Believe me. No, Iโm doing this all my life. I have my business because of this.โ
Camila has had a fascination with smiley-face stickers for a long time (Her 19th bday)
THE TIP JAR (tips provided courtesy of Camila Toro)
STARTING OUT: Toro's advice to those starting out is to just start.
"Sometimes, we take timeโฆ to develop something perfect. And itโs not going to be perfect... not in a week, not in a month, not in even a year.โ
Toro suggests, if you have an idea, just go ahead and get your website up and running.
โJust do it. In the process, itโs going to change. I donโt know how many times. Millions of times, perhaps. And itโs okay.โ
Camila's dad helping out with order fulfillment in the early days
STEEPED IN SKILLS (mid-career): Toro believes mindset is important at this stage. She thinks people need to believe that they can do it, even if they're older.
โBecause, maybe, they see the younger people and they say, โOh, yes. They do it because they are in their 20s. They are in their 30s. Of course, they can do it. They donโt have responsibilities.โ And thatโs not the mindset.โ
STARTING OVER: โI think itโs important to become involved in the entrepreneurship world.โ
โYou need to surround yourself with people who are in tune with the same energy or vision that you haveโฆโ
She believes itโs important to have this circle of influence in your business and your personal life. Toro says they'll be the fuel to help you reach success - or they'll be the ones who will hold you back.
IโLL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN: โBuy inventory like crazy. Of course, I was so excited with the idea.โฆ I was, like, Iโm going to order thousands of this. A thousand of that. I didnโt think it throughโฆโ
BEST ADVICE FROM โLA CASAโ/BEST โHOUSEโ ADVICE:
Toro says the best advice she got came from her mom when she was around 12 years old.
โI remember I was doing my homework or something for my school. And I was, like, 'I canโt do this! I canโt do that! Oh, Iโm so dumb' or something like thatโฆโ
Toro says her mom didnโt know anything about mindset or study psychology.
โBut she told me in that moment, โCamila, whatever you say to yourself, you become. So be careful.โโ
Camila and her mom on Camila's 30th birthday
PICKING THE BEST BUSINESS IDEA IS A PROCESS โ IT TAKES TIME
The idea to establish Happy Cami as a business came to her when she was in graduate school and had to come up with a business idea for class.
After choosing and discarding many ideas, it hit her.
โSomething came up in here (pointing to her heart), like, in my soul, okay? I share happiness. I love happiness. I have this inside me for all my lifeโฆ I want to share smiles. I want to share happiness [with] the world.โ
DO INITIAL RESEARCH ON DOMAIN NAMES
Camila went to Google and checked domain names. To her surprise and delight, Happy Cami was available.
Toro started her business.
Convincing people this was not just a hobby, but something she was taking seriously, was difficult.
Camila with her vision board in2020
TAKING AN โOFFICIALโ BUSINESS ACTION MAY BE JUST THE PUSH YOU NEED
Something she did which made a difference mentally was that she set up the business as an LLC (limited liability corporation).
โWhen you open your LLC, youโre telling yourself, okay, this is seriousโฆ Itโs not a hobby anymore.โ
Then, there was the biggest factor that separates full-fledged businesses from fun side projects.
FUN IS GREAT, BUT CAN YOU MAKE MONEY FROM YOUR IDEA?
โI realized, if I wanted to have a business, not a hobby, I had to make money.โ
So what did she do to make money, change perceptions and even change her own mindset?
YOU NEED A VILLAGE
Toro says the single most important thing she did was to network.
โWhen you are alone, as an entrepreneur, sometimes, you feel stuck.โ
She became involved with a networking group her best friend founded, TheLatinaProยฎ.
โI can say it changed my life as an entrepreneur.โ
The members became her friends. They helped her with โopinions, perspectives [and] contacts.โ
With some of the ladies from TheLatinaProยฎ
SEEK ADVICE, CONNECTIONS & HELP WITH SERVICES FROM YOUR NETWORK
Specifically, she met someone who helped her with product design. She explains, โIโm a disaster with design.โ
Toro met an accountant through the group.
She also found someone who helped her with branding.
โI am working with a lawyer for my trademark. And sheโs part of TheLatinaProยฎ.โ
Those connections also helped Toro find a Mastermind group that meets every Monday night virtually.
GROUP LEARNING EXPERIENCES CAN BE REALLY VALUABLE
Toro saw how the Mastermind groupโs members treated their businesses. She paid attention to โthe things they were doing. We went to [conferences]. We listened to podcasts together. We watched videos together.โ
Toro started to understand more of the financial part.
A PIVOTAL EXPERIENCE CAN TAKE YOUR BUSINESS IN A NEW OR COMPLEMENTARY DIRECTION
She now has expanded Happy Camiโs offerings to include emotional intelligence and positivity products and tools, all in an effort to spread happiness.
But there was a specific event that transformed Toroโs life and business. Iโll share that in the next issue of Generation Si!
Camila with Happy Cami positive affirmation products
INDUSTRY: Educational Supplies & Gifts
STARTED BUSINESS: 2017
LATINO/HISPANIC CONNECTION:
Born in Colombia
Parents were born in Colombia
EDUCATION: EUDE European Business School (Spain)โ Masterโs degree in Digital Marketing
Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (Colombia) - Bachelorโs degree in Journalism and Social Communication
DREAM JOB AS A KID: โJournalism โ at a TV channel. I was dreaming [of] doing interviews for a TV channelโฆโ
BIGGEST GOAL YET: โI want to have, I will have and Iโm going to have all my products in a big [retail] store in the U.S. Yes. For example, in Target.โ
โCan you imagine if we walk in Target and we see this Happiness Corner?โ
NO NEED TO GO IT ALONE
HELP ON THE OUTSIDE...because we can all use a helping hand:
BUSINESS CONTRACTS โ THE BASICS
There are some basics to business contracts. Do you know what they are? And what is the most critical element that MUST be included in any business contract? To find out this, and much more, about the world of business contracts, attend this FREE online webinar:
SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives) Broward
โBusiness Contracts โ Must Knowsโ
Wednesday, June 29, 2022
6:00 p.m. EDT โ 7:30 p.m. EDT
Virtual Webinar
FREE
https://broward.score.org/event/business-contracts-must-knows-1
WORKING ON THE INSIDE...because we know our culture has a hard time asking for help:
BOUNCE BACK!
You donโt have to be a small business owner to experience disappointments and setbacks in life. They happen to all of us. Business owners can be especially sensitive to these occurrences. So how do you become more resilient and โbrush it off"? In this webinar, which is an oldie, but still very-relevant goodie, Lisa Dinhofer helps us get right back up with strategies for understanding and building resilience.
SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives)
โBuilding Resilience After a Business Setbackโ
Recorded Webinar
FREE
https://www.score.org/event/building-resilience-after-business-setback
INSPIRATION FOR THIS ISSUE:
Sometimes, the line between whatโs a hobby and whatโs a โrealโ business can be blurred. Sometimes, you may not be sure which route you want to take.
Itโs like a fork in the road.
There are so many factors that go into it.
Thatโs why I wanted to profile Camila Toro and share her decision process and actions with you.
What also struck me about Camila is her positivity.
Itโs something distinct that Iโve noticed in some Latinos.
My mom has it. One of my cousins has it. One of my friends has it. And Camila definitely has it.
Itโs an inner joy that radiates from within. You canโt help but sense that happiness, no matter whatโs going on in their lives.
It sure beats being around grumpy people, right?
Taking that joy and turning it into a product and business was a natural extension of Camila.
It goes to show, as much as some of us get bogged down thinking we have to come up with something technologically advanced or complex, sometimes, itโs really something very simple that can be the best way to go. #theskyisNOTthelimit
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Camila surprising a stranger in Boston with a smiley-face sticker (2011)