What 50 Years In the Shoe Trade Taught Dune London Founder Daniel Rubin

Over the past three decades, I have built Dune London into a global footwear and accessories brand with a strong retail presence. Along the way, I’ve transformed setbacks into strategies, and over my 50 years in the shoe trade, I’ve learnt some key lessons that have helped grow a business into an international brand. Here are five of them:

1. Do Your Research

Before you commit to investing a lot of time and money in a new business, do thorough due diligence. Fully research the market, and understand your competition. Make sure that your product or service has a clear niche where there will be sufficient demand to sustain a healthy business. Get as much relevant information as you can by talking to people in the industry and potential customers (without giving any secrets away!) to satisfy yourself that this is a business that you are prepared to invest in.

Prepare a business plan with a budgeted profit and loss account, and, more importantly, a cash flow forecast. You need to be confident that you will have enough cash to fund the business during the early years, when cash will be going out but not much is coming in. Many businesses fail, not because the business plan is inaccurate or the idea is flawed, but because they run out of money to continue to fund the business.

If you don’t have the expertise to prepare the business plan and budgets, get help. There are many professionals with whom you can work to produce one. Many entrepreneurs are experts in their field, but lack commercial skills. It is important to recognize these shortcomings and work with someone who can give you this expertise.

After qualifying as a chartered accountant, I spent 50 years in the shoe trade. I got into it for the wrong reasons. I followed in my family’s footsteps. I was the fourth generation of my family making women’s fashion shoes. It is a challenging industry requiring large stock holding, due to the many sizes and long lead times. If I had done my due diligence, I would have most likely done something else. As it happens, it has turned out okay, but I still have that nagging feeling that if I had devoted 50 years to something else, I would have an easier—but maybe not so enjoyable—life.

2. Have A Robust Business Plan

Once you have done your research, have a robust business plan, and enough capital to fund the business, you need to get into the market and sell. The channels you will be targeting depend on the kind of business you are in; so, you need a clear plan. The more exposure you have in the market for your product, the better—whatever your business is.

Prioritize those customers who are most important so that you are channeling your effort economically. You must be persistent. You will have many refusals, but don’t let these get you down. Many of the most successful businesses initially struggled to get traction, but their determination and persistence paid off eventually.

You learn so much from being in the market and speaking to those engaged in it. This may result in you making alterations to your product to improve its performance and marketability. In addition, building relationships with your customers is hugely valuable, as you will get insights and advice that can make your business more successful. You may not be a natural salesperson (I’m not either), but your knowledge and passion for your product are what’s most important, and buyers notice and appreciate these qualities.

3. Learn From Your Mistakes

Every business owner has problems and makes mistakes. It is impossible, during a career, not to. The key is to learn from these mistakes, understand what went wrong, and make sure that you don’t repeat them.

One of the most fundamental mistakes is not to appreciate the changes that are taking place in the market. You are so engaged in the day-to-day of your business that you don’t step back and look at the big picture. Successful businesses are constantly looking ahead and anticipating change. There is a long history of businesses that failed because they didn’t change and became irrelevant. I remained a manufacturer for five years too long. I was so engaged in the everyday that I didn’t see that footwear production was rapidly leaving the UK and going to the Far East. It was when I made a trip to Taiwan in 1987 and saw them making shoes at half the price of my factory’s product and of better quality that I sold my factory and became an importer.

4. Don’t Lose Focus

Many entrepreneurs and business owners lose focus. They look for new opportunities and take their eye off the core business. Many entrepreneurs are, by their nature, restless people. The danger is that they get distracted and devote time and money to new unproven ventures whilst the main business suffers.

Of course, it is important to look at new opportunities as they could be transformational for the company. Like most things in life, it is a balance between being open to new ideas and opportunities, and not taking your eye off the main chance.

5. Build A Strong Team

Building a strong team is an essential ingredient for a successful business. As an entrepreneur, there is a natural reluctance to delegate. A lot of business owners are very hands-on. They like to remain involved in the details. However, as a business owner, it is important to understand what your strengths and weaknesses are, as well as understanding where you can make the greatest contribution. When you are recruiting the senior team, don’t compromise. You want the best person for the job, even if you are paying over market rates.

Although I am a chartered accountant, I am not strong on the operational side of the business. My strength is in product and brand; so, that’s where I devote my energies. In many companies, product development is a key aspect of the business. Titans of business like Steve Jobs and James Dyson were brilliant at developing world-beating products. However, they built a very strong team around them to make sure all the other important functions operated smoothly.

Finally, it is essential that the team you employ shares the same values and fits in culturally to the business. For me, attitude and application are more important qualities than intelligence, although having both is ideal.

Pictured in the lead image is Daniel Rubin, founder and Chairman of Dune Group. Image Courtesy Dune Group.