Finally, a good news retail story!
| Tuesday July 21Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it.
with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner.
Date: 21 July 2020
There are certain types of stories we all listen to in times of crisis. Stories of strength when overcoming personal hardship, of growth in economic slumps, of great leadership when dealing with unusual situations, and those ones which inspire us when we simply don’t want to adult anymore.
Well this story will tick the box ALL OF THE ABOVE.
With literally no previous retail experience Karen Edbrooke started Big Girls Don’t Cry Anymore, using extraordinary work ethic and desire to assist women, it is now a rare success story in a weird world of retail closures. Founded before social media and online sales, she has been forced to adapt not only the way she sells to clients but how she interacts with them. Her team has completely changed, her products have evolved, and her business is a great example of how the retail world is now survival of the fittest.
Welcome to the show Karen.
Topics we’ll be covering:
- Growing your online sales
- Where was the starting point? Did you divert away from your strategy or start over in the crisis?
- Socials – did you increase your budget?
- employing the right people & the ideal worker who can adapt
- top tips on finding the right fit
- Passionate about upskilling retail workers in IT
- what the industry leaders can do to improve the candidates
- Helping the local business community
- mentored other female entrepreneurs
- using her space to support other businesses
- Operating in times of crisis
- Adjusting your mindset & staying focus on what you want to achieve,
- keeping your team focussed
To find out more go to their website: https://brastogo.com.au/
About our Guest:
Big Girls Don’t Cry Anymore was founded by Karen Edbrooke in Brisbane in 1992. Edbrooke got inspiration for the business whilst recovering from a serious car accident. Edbrooke grew increasingly frustrated by the challenges that larger women faced in the fashion and lingerie industry. She believed that mainstream lingerie manufacturers in Australia ignored the needs of larger women. Upon realising that the Australian lingerie industry was ignoring a significant portion of the female population, Edbrooke decided to take action.
Founded before the birth of the internet and the existence of Facebook, the business has been forced to adapt, but has done so with immense success. Big Girls Don’t Cry Anymore has a large social media following. They currently have the largest social media following of any independent Lingerie Store in Australia. They currently have over 105,000 ‘followers’ on their Facebook page and hundreds of thousands of followers on other platforms.
Before her accident, Edbrooke was working at the National Australia Bank. She never went to university and she is completely self-taught in business. She uses her experience to teach others about how to start a business from scratch. Edbrooke’s passion for her brand, extraordinary work ethic and desire to assist women to find the right fitting bra has helped her to create one of the country’s leading business success stories. The business is now the most successful retailer of lingerie and swimwear for women of all sizes with customers across the nation and around the world. Services are also offered virtually through virtual bra fittings, live streamed fashion parades and a number of other innovative offerings.
