My baby, Dremur Ltd is almost out of its nappies as we recently passed our 2nd year in business!!
That time really has flown and, as the old saying goes, I am certainly going to put that down to it being fun…. mostly. The books are being cooked as I write this but I know that our 2nd year has been progressive compared to the 1st; more revenue, more profit, more customers, better tech, bigger pipeline and, before 2022 is over, we’ll have 2 new employees too!!
Of course my dear Dremurs (I am convinced this will really be a ‘thing’ within 5yrs – not a cult, more a following of like-minded people), it’s not all been sunshine and rainbows. I’ve let myself get too invested in a couple of client projects which has resulted in me over-stretching myself and providing far too much of my time for the costs – tough lesson learned. I let myself fall out of a regular prospecting habit which obviously set my pipeline back and meant I had to work much harder to get it back to being healthy – tough lesson learned. I’ve been too trusting of the word of some people and overlooked standard due diligence which meant getting involved in ‘opportunities’ which proved to only be headaches and me losing money – tough lesson learned.
But, good or bad, lessons are exactly that and, with the right attitude and being true with myself, I know I won’t make the same mistakes again and that Year 3 is where Dremur will really start to establish itself.
What is the vision?
Dremur will be a B2B Sales Agency offering the following resolutions to the people and businesses who have these problems:
Consultancy – are you stuck for how to achieve a better sales-based outcome and will benefit from the guidance of those who’ve been there and done that? Dremur’s here for you.
Outsourced sales – do you need current and quality leads for your staff to work on? Maybe you need some meetings booked with quality leads who are the right fit for what you offer? Are you struggling to convert qualified prospects into buying customers? Perhaps you’re lacking the resource to show the love to your existing customers. Dremur’s going to be here for you.
Coaching, training & CPD – would you spend a load of money on a nice car and then run it dry, never service it, let the tyres go bald and never clean it? Of course not! So, why wouldn’t you ensure that your investment in salespeople isn’t protected too? Dremur’s here to ensure your staff are permanently equipped to achieve consistently great results.
Recruitment – do you struggle to find quality salespeople? Dremur will find raw talent and train them at our expense so that they’re ready to hit the ground running for you.
Insight – much like your wardrobe, sales techniques, terminology, buyer’s preferences, methods for communicating and the needs of customers changes ALL of the time. Dremur will be the place to come to for the information you need to stay ahead of the curve and not be left with the dodos.
To date, Dremur has not taken any external funding. Sure, we’ve benefitted from a couple of low-level grants but I’m determined to, for as long as possible, bootstrap this baby. Thankfully, I have found numerous providers who have played a significant role in making sure we’ve made it to this point so far.
Brandspace Media – they built website 2.0 and have trusted me enough to give me back-end access so that I can make edits myself. They also manage my business page on LinkedIn which continues to attract followers. Thank you very much to Paul and Rachel for their support and service.
Multiply Accountancy – one of my besties recommended Chris to me when I was 1st considering setting up Dremur. I’m sure I was a bit of a pain in the backside in the early days but I hope I’m not so much nowadays. Whenever I have a need to contact them, whoever I deal with is great and never makes me feel stupid for asking what I know are most likely basic questions.
The Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce – membership of this offers the greatest ROI out of anything that I pay for – it’s ridiculous how much value I’ve got, get and know I will get from being a member (if any of you happen to read this, that’s not an invitation to put the prices up!). I dithered for about 9mths on whether to sign up and I kick myself now for that as it’s been an absolute no-brainer. Big thanks go out to Kaz, Vickie, Kelly (who, sadly, is no longer with them), Adam, Molly (who, sadly, is leaving soon), Su and Adam.
Jim Gorrie – Yes, I am a qualified Executive Coach but that certainly doesn’t mean that I don’t need a coach! To be frank, if you think you’re above having a coach then that tells me a lot about you as a person. Jim has helped guide me to where I am today, he gives advice when needed and he helps me to tidy up the chaos constantly in my mind. He’s a great guy and he’s one of only 2 people who I can be completely transparent with when discussing business.
Marble Financial Planning – run by the Nashes (Liam & Kerry) – We’ve known each other on a personal level for at least 20yrs however we weren’t really in each other’s lives for the last 10 or so until I heard about the potential to rent a desk in their office. I moved in April 2021 and it’s been an absolute game changer for me. I am fortunate to have a home office where I can shut the door and be separate from the house but, still, the isolation was soul destroying for a social butterfly like me! WFH is definitely NOT the one for me and being able to come into a space with other human beings has been crucial to being able to develop Dremur. Kerry & Liam have been hugely supportive of my business and I reckon I’ve got at least another 2yrs of being blessed to work with them before Dremur will need to find a home of its own. HUGE eternal thanks to them both, Siobhan, Georgia, Abi and, whenever he might be in, Alan too.
Many others have helped contribute too and please don’t be offended if you’re not named – if you have been important to me, you’ll know it as I’m very conscious about keeping great people close.
There you go, into our 3rd year as a thing and big tings are coming…. don’t worry, you’ll hear us when we’re ready for you.
Lots of love and gratitude to all.
Owain
