Trevor Ginn is the founder of online nursery shop Hello Baby, having previously worked for an online marketing agency. Trevor had become frustrated with helping other people to create successful online businesses and was itching to have a go himself. The opportunity came when his employer went into liquidation. Far from seeing this as a set back, Trevor saw this as a great opportunity to set up on his own. And so, just two weeks after the birth of his first daughter, Hello Baby was born.

Trevor started the business with £10,000 in cash and a credit card. He pulled in favours and used industry contacts to build a website and back end infrastructure in a very cost effective manner. Every effort was made to save costs, including taking office space without a window as it was cheaper. “The last company I had worked for went bust as they spent too much money on silly things” said Trevor. “I was determined not to make the same mistake”. It was also a great help that Trevor had a background in web design and online marketing. This gave him a clear idea of what he wanted and minimised the need for consultants. “Self sufficiency and drive to do things for yourself are essential attributes for the entrepreneur” said Trevor.

Trevor believes that online retail businesses have many advantages for young people looking to set up their first business. An eCommerce enabled website can be set up using off-the-shelf software for less than £1000 and an expensive high street storefront is not required to make sales. Furthermore, a website is open 24 hours a day and can be accessed anywhere in the world. In fact, around 25% of Hello Baby’s sales are international. Hello Baby also makes extensive use of drop shipping where the stock is shipped directly from the supplier, allowing the company to greatly increase the items it has on offer without needing the capital to buy stock or rent more storage space. This is particularly useful for larger items like prams and nursery furniture which come in a large number of variations and are cumbersome to handle.

Eighteen months on Hello Baby is selling across multiple online channels – eBay, Amazon and their own website – and sales are growing at 10% every month despite the recession. “In retrospect I made a wise (or lucky) decision in choosing to sell baby products online” said Trevor. “In a recession people still have babies but they are more price conscious, and therefore more likely to seek bargains online. I also believe that our success is also down to having a fantastic online presence and providing a great service”.

You can follow Trevor at his blog , www.trevorginn.com or on Twitter @trevorginn.

http://www.startups.co.uk/6678842910797284341/trevor-ginn.html

http://www.smarta.com/advice/starting-up/starting-your-own-business/60-second-start-up-hello-baby