Simulacra – cre8ica

I’ve been reading about the creative process and its challenges. As I mentioned I’m in a new product development cycle. A radical departure from my existing products that will hopefully replace the line with a much more enhanced version in a new package and look.

Essentially I’m looking at taking my best and most popular products and potentially rebuilding them from the ground up.

Whether these new versions become commercial launches still remains to be seen but at this moment they are percolating in my mind and the creative challenge is growing into an obsession.

I don’t have much of a choice but to pursue this idea, not only because of its potential business potential, but because it will haunt me if I don’t.

I’m already laying up at night visualizing the packaging and label designs. I’ve already got reams of data and research about the ingredients and their benefits and I’ve narrowed the formulas down to a half dozen. All this is being done in what little spare time I have and in what little sleep I get.

Creativity and obsessions like this aren’t always healthy. They can be very disruptive and they fill me with fear.

Fear that I could ruin what I’ve built to date. Fear that I could slow down the momentum I already have with the current products. But what’s worse is I fear if I don’t pursue this that it will haunt me for an eternity.

So really I have no choice but to pursue this new idea and possibly reinvent not only my business but an entire industry. All of this because of a creative passion and fear of not moving forward.

As I stated before i’m learning to try and find more balance between work and play this year.

I love living so close to high park as it gives me a chance to take a break from the craziness of the city without actually having to leave.  Once it gets warm in Toronto i tend to grab a coffee and walk to high park with a book and enjoy the quietness and the slower pace.

This week the Cherry Blossoms are in bloom in High Park. This is my favorite part of spring in Toronto and one of the most beautiful sights that i think this city offers. Sadly it’s a limited engagement and a must see early in the blossom season as they tend to fall quickly. Yesterday i quit work at 1pm grabbed a friend and her dog and headed to the park to see the beautiful blossoms.

Had a great walk through the blossom path then onto the park zoo (i’m a sucker for the emu and the llamas) and finally to the off leash trails.  A perfect way to spend an afternoon and worth every minute.

It’s the first gorgeous day in Toronto in a very long time. i.e. no rain and i can walk around without a jacket. I’m celebrating by wearing a short sleeved pink shirt!

Decided that who needs to work i should be outside in the park. So after dropping off some orders to the post office I headed to High Park. The Park is my quiet sanctuary where i can get lost in the woods and lost in myself.

Grabbed a book and a blanket and found the perfect sunny location near the water. 10 minutes later i’m barley able to focus on the book and my mind is wandering to marketing copy and label design ideas etc.

WHY…. This week is the beginning of a new product development cycle. for the last four or five months i’ve been researching new ideas to upgrade some of our current products and working on fitting in a few new products into our current offerings.

Yesterday i developed a few test formulas and now my brain is on how to reflect the new improvements in the marketing copy and what the label will look like.

So much for a much needed break. I can’t force myself to work but on days like this i’m not going to enjoy the day or smell the flowers when my brain is back at the studio. My compromise is heading to the cafe with my laptop and looking out at the gorgeous day. I refuse to be cooped up in the studio but i’m just too passionate about these new ideas and need to let the creativity  flow before it disappears.  Hopefully this weekend will be just as nice so i can enjoy the outdoors.

So a personal post shall creep in here on ocassion. I should post more about my life but it tends to be mostly focused on my work. Trying to rectify that this year and find more balance.

My friend caroline really needed a break from her school life. She amazes me with her dedication and passion to her future. She just finished another grueling round of exams and certainly needed some time away. I’m not in the position to send her on a vacation nor do i think she’d accept that offer…

I started thinking about all the things toronto offers and what would be a fun thing to do that would give a close friend the much needed escape she deserves.

Timing was perfect and I managed to score us tickets to the opening night of The Lion King. Alas they were upper balcony last row but it adds to the last minute adventure idea.

I doubt i have to explain the Lion King to anyone but it was an absolute delight to see it on stage again. It brought out a sense of chidish wonderment and glee in me. Every detail was perfect and I couldnt stop smiling.

Turned out to be a perfect evening and a much needed break for me as well.

I’m not a conventional business owner. I probably break most of the basic business rules. I never wrote a business plan. I never did sales projections. I never did a SWOT anaylsis.

I built the business on intuition and gut feeling and focused on products that customers asked for.

One other rule I break is I try not to outsource anything. I understand that there are experts out there that can help grow my business and allow me to focus on what i do best but I never take that option unless i have to.

What i do best is find solutions to business problems. I’m not a chemist, i’m not a marketer, i’m not a packaging designer, and i’m certainly not a sales person. What I am is a problem solver.

My drive comes from finding innovative solutions to every aspect of a business but because i’m not a sales person or much of a people person i choose not to be a business consultant. Writing this blog is probably the most vocal i’ve ever been about what i do.

Running a business allows me to work in a bubble and focus on innovating and problem solving every day of the week.

So back to my lack of outsourcing. Perfect example is sales brochures. Most companies would hire a marketer, who then would hire a designer who would then contract out the printing.

I look at that outsource cycle and see gaps and problems for my business needs. For one I develop multiple lines of products within different niches so need flexebility in my marketing material. Many of these niches start off as experiments for me to see if there really is a market opportunity i can grow within. So for me printing a thousand brochures for each product or market isnt enough. More importanlty it’s a waste of money and resources printing something that may change quickly.

My Solution is to purchase printing equipment that i can augment to keep ink costs down and allow for a cost effective on demand solution. Next i purchased a brochure folder so we can create different types of printed marketing material. Of course all design and copy was also done in house.

The same goes for packaging and labeling. We purchased equipment that allows us to creat a very professional looking product and can create very small runs to test out different markets. We don’t have to waste money printing many labels for a product that may not lauch or that changes mid stream based on customer feedback.

We do the same thing with production equipment to fill and cap bottles, make product samples for conventions, and even mixing equipment to speed up production.

I feel it necessary to have our hands physically in every aspect of the product cycle. It alows us to be intune with our customers needs and more importantly it allows us to quickly innovate and produce products for new emerging markets.

Once again i know this breaks most business conventions but i’ve been able to create a business model that still allows us to be price competitive and innovate quicker than most larger companies. The best part is we are able to stay true to our business principals while still being profitable and continue to grow with our success.