A WOMAN who never went to university or had a “real job” has revealed how she managed to turn a teenage blog into a multi-million pound brand.
Sarah Ashcroft started a fashion blog called That Pommie Girl in 2013, when she was 18, to help her get a job in fashion PR.
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The now 29-year-old said that within six months the blog began to gain traction, along with her Instagram account.
Sarah describes herself as one of the first influencers and a “dinosaur” in the industry.
She started making money from her blog and Instagram by sharing commissionable links and made £1,500 in her first month.
Sarah said her parents weren’t very impressed at first and told her to get a “real job”, but are now very happy with her career choice.
She said she never liked school and didn’t want to go to university, but believes that path is not necessary for success.
Speaking to Amelia Sordell on her podcast Branded, she said: “Never be afraid of not going to university.
“Trust your instinct and follow what you think is right.
“I’m living proof that if you follow your passion, everything will work out.”
After Sarah gained a decent amount of followers and made good money from social media, she decided to create her own brand.
In 2019, she launched SLA, a premium special occasion fashion brand.
Sarah said she decided to start her own brand after realizing that if her work as an influencer ended, she would have nothing tangible to sell.
Sharing a message to influencers, she said: “If you don’t turn your platform into something, what are you doing?”
Sarah said she believes her business, which is now worth millions, has been very successful as she has spent years building a loyal following and learning exactly what kind of products they would like to buy.
“I have a great community of people who grew up with me and I really nurture that.”
How to start your own business
Dragon’s Den star Theo Paphitis has revealed his tips for budding entrepreneurs:
- One of the biggest barriers aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners face is a lack of confidence. You must believe in your idea – even more than that, be the one who bores your friends to death with it.
- Never be afraid to make decisions. Once you have an idea, it is the confidence to make decisions that is crucial to starting and maintaining a business.
- If you don’t take calculated risks, you will be stuck. If a decision turns out to be wrong, identify it quickly and resolve it if you can. If that fails, find someone else who can.
- It’s okay to not get it right the first time. My experience of making bad decisions is what helped develop my confidence, making me who I am today.
- Never underestimate the power of social media and remember that the Internet has leveled the playing field for small businesses.
- Don’t forget to dream. A machine can’t do that!
Sharing advice for anyone who has a large following on social media and is thinking about turning this into their own brand, Sarah said: “If you have the feeling you can do more, you need to try.
“I didn’t know SLA would be successful, I had no idea.
“But I knew it was a passion and I wanted to see if it would work.”
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