Tori Dunlap, the founder of financial advice platform Her First $100K, shared tips on starting businesses with minimal investment.
Dunlap's
most important advice is, "Before the business concept is proven,
founders should keep it as lean as possible until their business is
earning money."
- Dunlap started her business as a side hustle in 2016, investing as little as $40 into the business to get it off the ground.
- Her business has since grown to $4M in revenue and amassed over two million followers on social media platforms.
- She
says newly formed businesses should operate as lean startups, avoiding
expenses, such as new equipment purchases or investing in paid
advertising, for as long as possible.
- "While
I started the business on my own, outsourcing tasks and bringing people
onto the team was the best investment I ever made," writes Dunlap.
- Lastly,
she recommends that founders always make financial investments or
decisions that align with the core business goals and avoid going all-in
on creative projects, especially ones that mimic trends or business
models of other startups.
